Wood Craft of Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh

Wood work is largely practiced in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh. Products such as architectural elements, cupboards, statues, altars, picture frames, boxes, musical instruments etc are created under this craft from. Tools such as bamboo fret saw called bah, wooden mallet, sharpening stone called jamdar, chisels, gouges, metal pointer, calipers, template, files and sandpaper are needed for the production process.

The wood craft of Dharmsala is based on the Tibetan craft of wood carving.
The products made include interiors of homes, architectural elements, statues, altars, boxes and musical instruments.

The wood usually used are the khari, chilpine and other softwoods; the selection of the wood to be used is based on its plasticity, ease in carving and durability. The painting, lacquering and varnishing of the wood is an equally specialized task with its distinct colour scheme and style of Buddhist monasteries.

The tools used are traditional and made locally from the bamboo fret saw, the bah, that is used to remove wood along the drawn pattern . with hammers, mallets, fine chisels and files.