The history of the intricate designs of Nellore's Udayagiri art dates back to 150 years of time. This craft originated during the time of Quli Qutub Shah dynasty and was passed down through generations over time. Though this art's origin goes back in history, it came into light only 11 years ago. Nobody knew about this craft until government gave it a thought of upbringing this art by providing training to the artists and a platform for them to market their art. Earlier it was practiced by both men and women but it was slowly taken over by women completely.
The essence of the craft lies in the intricacy and geometric patterns. They craft the regular utility product with beautiful forms and designs and take it to a greater level of appreciation. These products has few designs which are named in their own language as Amini, Kangure, Khajuri and Dargah ki Jaali. These are the few patterns famous patterns which bring the identity to this art. The cutlery traces its influence to Persian motifs and forms, and is mostly sold as gifting and table decoration items. The training period for these craftsmen is around 6 months in every 3 years. Certain NGOs voluntarily take up the task of training people and marketing their products.
The raw material used in this craft is available in the hills of Durgampalli. A woodcutter usually gathers the wood and provides it to the artisans. Basically they make wooden cutlery with it and usual salad vessels. Among all the wood Nardi is used the most as it is soft an easy to handle. Then they are carved using machine tools as well as hand tools. This beautiful art existed for more than a century and due to reasons like modernistion, this craft is losing its originality. The artisans have been working on mostly modern designs off late. Mostly the products are sold to Lepakshi and other famous handicraft marketing chains. This delicate art was recognised by the government and was also given Geographical Identification tag in 2015.
