The process of applying coloured enamels into grooves engraved on metal ornaments is known as:

Meenakari is the art of decorating the surface of metal, such as gold, silver or copper, by filling engraved grooves or hollows with coloured enamels (glass-like powder) and then firing the object in a furnace so that the colours melt and fuse with the metal. The word "meena" comes from the Persian word "mina", meaning heaven or the azure blue colour of the sky.

How it is done:

• The design is first engraved or carved into the metal by an engraver (gharaia).
• The enameller (meenakar) fills the grooves with coloured enamel powders, one colour at a time.

The piece is heated in a kiln after each colour. Colours that need the most heat (such as white) are applied first, and those that need the least (such as red) are applied last.

Finally, the piece is polished.

History: Meenakari came to India from Persia. It was brought to Rajasthan in the late 16th century by Raja Man Singh of Amber (Jaipur), who invited skilled enamellers from Lahore to his court. Jaipur is still the most famous centre of meenakari, especially for its use of red, green and white enamels on gold jewellery such as kundan-meena jewellery. Other centres include Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), known for "Gulabi Meenakari" (pink enamel), which received a GI tag in 2015, and Nathdwara and Udaipur.

Other metal crafts of India:

• Bidriware: inlay of silver on a blackened alloy of zinc and copper, from Bidar (Karnataka).
• Filigree (tarakashi): fine silver wire work from Cuttack (Odisha) and Karimnagar (Telangana).
• Dhokra: lost-wax bronze casting of tribal artisans in Chhattisgarh, Odisha and West Bengal.

Why not the other options?

• ✗Bidriware is silver inlay on a dark alloy from Bidar.
• ✗Filigree uses fine twisted silver wire.
• ✗Zardozi is gold and silver thread embroidery on cloth.