The term Sherpai is a derivative of two terms of the weights and measures system then prevalent in Bengal before the standardization of weights to the metric system in 1956: the
seer or
ser or
sher (Bengali) and
pai. A
ser in Bengal was equivalent to 80
tolas of rice and after standardization, it equalled 933.1 grams. The tola was a 19th century weight standard for gold and silver coins and one tola was equivalent to approximately 11.66 grams. The
pau or
poa (Bengali) was a quarter of a ser and it is erroneously held by some that the term
pai in Sherpai was derived from pau. In actual fact, the pai equalled half a ser or 8
chhotaaks (a chhotaak being one sixteenth of a ser or about 2 ounces). 1
mon or maund equalled 40 sers.
Also referred to as kunke, these bowls usually came in sets of twelve and were graded in size from the largest to the smallest and placed one on top of the other. A set of 12 comprised measures ranging from 1 mon (maund), followed by 1/2 mon, 10 ser, 5 ser, 2.5 ser, 1 ser, 1 pai, 1 adh pai (half pai), 1 poa (pau), 1 adh poa (half poa), and the smallest, 1 chhotaak. The set would be topped by an ornamental cap which was the 12th item in the set.
The total height of these twelve bowls could be well over five feet. Sometimes, the largest bowl had a circumference of 50" and a height of 17 " with a capacity for 2 mon or 80 ser. For those whose needs were less, smaller bowls were available, not including the cap, in sets of eight (5 sers to one chhotaak), seven (2.5 seers to one chhotaak), and the most common, six bowls (one seer to one chhotaak), this being generally used by households for their daily needs.
In outward appearance, the bowls went through a series of transformations over time. Beginning as plain wooden measures with no embellishments, they later had iron bands attached around the mouth of the bowl and at the base. Subsequently the iron was replaced by brass and in its final form, the brass bands were embellished further with designs carved on to it along with brass motifs riveted to the wood. It is in this form that the sherpai or Suri bowl gained a considerable reputation. The sherpais were not dyed black at the time, but developed a dark hue through constant use.
Traditionally, the bowls were hand carved and chiseled from the wood of the mango, jackfruit, palm, shirish (Albizia lebbeck) or shishu (Shisham/Indian Rosewood) trees; today only mango and jackfruit wood are used and the lathe machine to turn the bowls has substituted hand carving. The black colour of the wood was earlier (after it was recognized as a decorative object or a collector`s item) obtained by soaking herbs like haritaki (Terminalia chebula, commonly known as black or Chebulic myrobalan) and amla (Indian gooseberry) in water for two days. From the early nineties, a more permanent dye was made by mixing lamp black with a dilution of resin from the babla (Vachellia nilotica) tree and gum from the shirish tree. In its original avatar however, the wood was not dyed but the bowls obtained their dark colour from constant use over time.
The bowls are ornamented with engraved and punched brass. The brass is obtained from recycled brass buckets and utensils bought from the marketplace. The brass is heated on a furnace and flattened before it is cut into required sizes. Two strips of brass are hammered into shape, fused at the ends and fitted to encase each bowl - the broader band near the mouth of the bowl and the narrower one near the base. These bands are first knurled with concentric circles using a rotary lathe before being firmly fitted on to the bowl. Designs are then meticulously engraved on to these bands using a manual drill.
Mounted on these bands and on the exposed wooden surface with miniscule brass rivets, are exquisitely designed brass motifs of fish, birds and flowers. These embellishments are painstakingly cut manually from brass sheets and engraved with a file, by resting it against a unique wooden contraption known as "khanda-bari". Each measuring bowl has a brass disc at its base traditionally incised with a rosette. From start to finish, there are over 40 steps involved in the making of a sherpai bowl!
T
he current custodians of the art claim that the first sherpai bowls were made towards the end of the 18th century (circa 1785) and supplied to Calcutta via a Jeevan Pharmacy in Suri. The artisan was Nobin Karmakar and it was his descendants who continued with this art. Even in Nobin`s time, they were made to order and with just a single sherpai artisan, they were not readily obtainable in spite of a considerable demand for them among Europeans.
In 1964, a master artisan named Kamala Kanto Karmakar of Lokpur won the national award for his Sherpai craftsmanship. Previously, seven sets of these bowls made by him had won the first prize in the All India Handicraft Competition of 1955-56. This not only gave a fillip to the demand for Sherpai but it also inspired his nephew, Kartik Karmakar, who was at the time employed with the Durgapur Steel Plant, to give up his job and follow in his uncle`s footsteps. Kartik soon established himself as a master artist as well and went on to become a National Awardee in his own right. After his uncle`s demise, Kartik remained the sole master artisan until his death in 2014. His disciples, comprising his brother, his son and particularly, his son-in-law Bholanath Karmakar, who is also a national award recipient, continued to uphold the art for some years after his demise, but after a few years, it was only Bholanath who remained active. Meanwhile, Bholanath taught his wife, Ruma, and later, his daughters, the art of embellishing the brass motifs that are mounted on the bowl. Ruma has recently been awarded a national award too. Her daughters provide her able assistance, but the heavy labour - the woodwork - is borne by Bholanath alone.
Meanwhile, from about the seventies, the changing needs and disappearance of the traditional market reduced these bowls to eye catching items of home decor. With functionality no longer a parameter, small sets of varying numbers of bowls are made and the smallest set of 7 pieces is only about a foot high. While there is a fair amount of sales of Sherpai showpieces today, thanks to the assistance of the District Industries Centre (DIC) under the West Bengal government and Biswa Bangla, it would ideally take at least three people to work simultaneously in order to craft sufficient quantities. With only one family carrying on with this craft in all of West Bengal, the Sherpai remains firmly relegated to the languishing crafts category.