Peacock, the national bird of India gets a fitting portrayal in this beautiful Kalamkari painting. Whereas the borders of the painting are marked grey, a happy tapestry of hand-made colours is nicely mixed to create a resplendent effect in the Kalamkari painting. The national bird is in full bloom as its wings and even the legs are prominently painted. Kalamkari is the art of painting cotton fabrics with a kalam i.e. pen. In this genre of painting a sharp pointed pierced bamboo regulates the flow of colour on the fabric. The popularity of this exquisite form of art crossed the borders of the country during the 17th and 18th centuries. Kalahasti and Machilipatnam in Andhra Pradesh, the nerve centres of this art continue to be beehives of Kalamkari activity. Kalamkari colours are made from vegetable dyes. The cotton gets its beauty from its immersion in milk and resin. Kalamkari paintings are the result of seventeen painstaking steps, using only natural dyes, with numerous washes. The motifs are essentially related to temple architecture and scenes from great epics.