Tikamgarh Brass & Bell-Metal Craft
Cast and beaten brass and bell metal — utensils, lamps, deities and the ghungroo of the Bundelkhand plateau.
Tikamgarh, a former princely town in the Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh, has a long-established brass and bell-metal industry. The Kasera and Thathera smiths make household and ritual utensils — thalis, lotas, bowls, degs, spoons — temple lamps and bells, images of deities, incense burners, animal and bird figures, door fittings, and the ghungroo (ankle-bell strings) used by classical and folk dancers, for which Tikamgarh is a noted source.
Craft at a Glance
Origin
Tikamgarh, Madhya Pradesh
Also Known As
Tikamgarh metalcraft, Bundelkhand brasswork, Tikamgarh peetal-kansa craft
Craft Type
Brass and bell-metal casting and sheet forming
Practising Community
Kaseras (bell-metal smiths) and Thatheras (brass-smiths) of Tikamgarh
Materials
Brass (copper-zinc) and bell metal (copper-tin); beeswax and clay for lost-wax moulds; charcoal for the furnace; tamarind pulp and ash for cleaning; and iron pellets for the bells and ghungroo.
Known For
Brass and bell-metal utensils, temple lamps and bells, deity figures, ghungroo dance bells, and decorative and ritual ware
Where It's Made
Tikamgarh town and the surrounding towns of Tikamgarh and Niwari districts in the Bundelkhand region, Madhya Pradesh
Time to Create
Days per vessel or figure; longer for chased and assembled pieces
GI Status
Tikamgarh Brass Craft is a registered GI of Madhya Pradesh
Process Steps
Alloying and melting
Copper and zinc (or tin) are melted together to the required alloy in a charcoal furnace.
Casting the blank, figure or bell
The molten alloy is cast in a mould for a vessel, or by lost wax for a detailed figure, bell or ghungroo.
Forging (for hammered ware)
Cast discs are hammered over anvils, annealing between rounds, to raise vessels from a single piece.
Trueing and turning
Castings and vessels are filed and trued on a hand lathe.
Chasing the ornament
Decorative bands and figures are punched and chased into the surface.
Tuning the bells
Bells and ghungroo are tuned by hammering and by fitting and adjusting the pellet inside.
Scouring and polishing
The finished piece is cleaned with tamarind and ash and burnished to a bright finish.
Technique Glossary
Bell metal (kansa)
A high-tin bronze that is hard, sonorous and pale gold, used for ritual vessels and instruments.
Kasera / Thathera
The bell-metal and brass smith communities of Bundelkhand.
Ghungroo
A string of small tuned brass bells tied around a dancer's ankle.
Lost-wax casting
Casting a detailed piece by replacing a wax model with metal inside a broken-once mould.
Raising
Forming a hollow vessel from a disc by hammering it over stakes, without cutting or soldering the body.
Annealing
Reheating work-hardened metal so it stays workable and does not crack.
Chasing
Decorating metal by punching and pushing the surface from the front with shaped tools.
A Craft Through Time
Pre-modern
Bundela patronage
The Orchha and Tikamgarh rulers patronise the smiths for temple and palace fittings and vessels.
Pre-modern
Household and ritual ware
Kasera and Thathera smiths supply utensils, lamps, bells and figures to the plateau's homes and shrines.
20th century
Decline with steel
Steel and aluminium vessels reduce the utensil trade, and the industry contracts.
Late 20th century
Diversification
The smiths turn to decorative, ritual and dance-accessory items, including ghungroo and deity figures.
2010s
Geographical Indication
Tikamgarh Brass Craft is registered as a GI of Madhya Pradesh.
Present
A metalworking town
Tikamgarh's smiths continue to cast and beat brass and bell metal for ritual, decorative and dance use.
Did You Know?
Tikamgarh is one of the main sources of the ghungroo — the strings of small brass bells that classical and folk dancers tie around their ankles — each bell cast, filled with a tiny pellet, and tuned by ear.
Every craft has a story. Every story begins with tradition.