Shaam E Sarhad village resort & Hodka village visit

Posted on May 1, 2019 by Toothpicker

Unexpectedly, on the edge of the desert region lies a wonderful eco-friendly and rustic village resort owned and run by the Village Tourism Committee of Hodka village. The village is believed to have been set up by the ‘Halepotra’ clan from Sindh (now Pakistan) who were cattle herders and eventually settled in the grasslands of Banni. The name ‘Shaam E Sarhad‘ means ‘sunset on the border’. There are a number of Bhungas, tents, and family cottages that are crafted with indigenous resources based on traditional architecture and design.

Bhungas are circular mud huts made of water and cow dung. The huts have sloping roofs that are typical of the Banni region. They are made of grass thatch which is an indigenous invention that tackles the extreme climate. The Bhungas keep cool during the hot Kutch summers and warm in the cold desert winters.

We did not stay at this resort, but we came here for lunch during our day excursion in the area. I fell in love with this resort as soon I stepped in. I particularly love all the colourful textiles covering the ceiling of the communal/dining area. Bold indigenous patterns can be seen on walls and mirror work is also incorporated in the design. I would love to stay here next time if I get to return to the region again.

We enjoyed a leisurely vegetarian lunch before heading off to the nearby village for a visit. We were told that the village is not a ‘tourist’ village where all the tourists flock to, but rather an authentic and hospitable one where it receives few foreign visitors.

Upon arrival, we were greeted by some villagers and were then led into the village. The village has a number of round and rectangular bhungas, while sheep, cattle, goats and horses can be seen around the village.

Since it was the first time for me to visit a tribal village in India, I had no idea what to expect. I have had negative experiences before in other countries where locals kept asking for money when we visited local villages, so I became slightly weary when I arrived. Yet the hospitality and warmth we received from the villagers truly blew me away. No one asked for money, and the villagers seemed genuinely happy to see us. All of them, including the children, looked content and at ease.

They were also eager to show-off their traditional embroidery work which features small mirrors. These mirrors are adorned on women’s costumes and sarees so that they can be spotted in the desert when they reflect in the sun. I was fascinated by their colourful outfits, which are conspicuous against the dry landscape and bhungas.

Most of the men in the village were out herding, so only women and children were left in the village during our visit. I have travelled extensively over the years, but I have never encountered a nationality that loves being photographed as much as the Indians – honestly, they genuinely love to be photographed and would even pose for you without you telling them to do so. This is ideal for me because I love taking photographs of people. In this village, the children were excited to be photographed and rejoiced when they saw the results.

I asked the locals for permission to look inside the huts, and they did not hesitate to let me in. Aside from vibrant textiles, there are also many colourful wardrobes and cases decorated with motifs, birds and flowers. I felt like I was intruding as when I saw the elderly napping inside the huts, but they didn’t seem to mind me poking my head into their bhungas.

As we were were leaving the village, many of the villagers came to wave us goodbye. The village experience was extremely memorable and heartwarming, and it reminded me how preconception can be quite misleading sometimes. Although daily life in the village is simple and frugal, I felt that the villagers are happier and more generous than many city dwellers in wealthier countries. I am sure we can learn more from them about the wisdom of true happiness than from self-help books bought from Amazon.

Kutch textiles: Pabiben Rabari, the female tribal entrepreneur

Posted on April 28, 2019 by Toothpicker

In our current fast-paced and globalised world, we are faced with some important questions about our past, present and future: how to preserve traditions and yet make them relevant today? Can we preserve the skills and knowledge but evolve at the same time? Many artisans, craftsmen and designers around the world are trying to find a balance between traditions and innovations. Traditions have to evolve with time, otherwise they would extinct, so we all need to think out of the box when it comes to preservation.

Originally from (possibly) Iran or Afghanistan, the semi-nomadic Rabari community of cattle and camel raisers migrated to Kutch and Rajasthan about 400 years ago. The Rabari women are well-known for their shisha mirror embroidery, which has been passed on for generations. It is customary for young girls to prepare her own dowries, which include the wedding costumes for the bride and groom, hangings for the new home, and trappings for the domestic animals. However, the dowry-making process could take years, and paid for by the groom; as a way of easing the burden for both sides and the delay of marriages, the elderly in the community decided to ban the making and wearing of hand embroidery for personal usage in 1995.

In order to preserve the Rabari embroidery, a group of Rabari women came up with a new solution without breaking the community’s rules: machine application of readymade elements, which they called ‘Hari Jari.’ One woman from the group, Pabiben Rabari, became a master of this art and created her own style using trims and ribbons, which is later known as ‘Pabi Jari’. She applied this technique onto some shopping bags and they became instant hits. Her Pabi bags are loved by celebrities, and were featured in Hollywood and Bollywood films. As the first female entrepreneur from her tribe, Pabiben has become an inspiration to many women in her community. The mission of her enterprise is to develop a strong viable business model for women artisans, and she works with 50 women in Bhadroi village of different ages and skill levels to create fair trade accessories.

We visited Pabiben‘s house and workshop in Bhadroi village one afternoon, and we were greeted by her and a group of Rabari women who kindly demonstrated their superb embroidery skills and showed us some of their samples. It was wonderful to see these women from the same community working together to bring about positive changes to their village while preserving and reviving an ancient art form.

Interestingly, we found out that traditionally Rabari women would be dressed in black clothing with black veils, meanwhile, men would be dressed in white clothing with white turbans. Legend has it that once a Muslim king fell in love with a Rabari girl, but his proposals were denied by the community, so the king grew angry and threatened to kill them all. The Rabaris were forced out of their land in search of a new safe place and were assisted by a Muslim man from the court. Later, the king found out about this and killed the Muslim man. It is believed that it was then that the Rabari women started wearing black to mourn his death.

Pabiben‘s shop/showroom is packed with colourful, bold and one-of-a-kind accessories and bags. Her products are sold at many high-end outlets in India such as the Taj Mahal Palace Hotel, the Oberoi Hotel and ARTISANS’ in Mumbai, as well as some independent shops overseas. She has also won many awards for her inspiring work and achievement. I think if every tribe in India has a woman like Pabiben in their village, then we are likely to see a very different India in the future.

Kutch textiles: embroidery, applique, quilts & patchwork

Posted on April 25, 2019 by Toothpicker

Embroidery plays a eminent role in Kutch textiles, and Gujarat was the world’s centre for commercial embroidery in the 17th century. The area was renowned for its mochi (meaning ‘cobbler’ in Gujarati and Hindi) embroidery maintained by the Mochis, who were originally cobblers but developed their own style of embroidery technique on silk. An ari is a small crochet-hook like awl/needle used to create chain stitches repeatedly. The embroidered motifs were usually flowers, fruits, animals (peacocks are common) and human figures. However, traditional mochi embroidery suffered a demise when the courts, landowners and merchants lost their wealth in the early-mid 20th century, and now you can only find the finest mochi embroidery in the museums/at the homes of some collectors.

Luckily, our guide Salim Wazir is the son of the renowned Kutch textiles expert and collector, Mr A A Wazir, hence we had the opportunity to visit his home and see his stunning collection of more than 3000 pieces colleced over 50 years. Mr Wazir has traveled extensively around India and has collected textiles of different styles and sizes, with many of them featuring fine embroidery. Besides embroidery, he also collected many wonderful appliques and quilts. This place is a must for all textiles lovers and collectors; about half of his textile collection is for sale, and worldwide shipping is available too.

There are numerous embroidery styles in Kutch, but one of the notable style is the Shisha or Abhla bharat embroidery that feature round or other shaped mirrors attached to the fabrics by embroidery. Some tribal communities believe mirrorwork is auspicious as a tool for warding off the evil eye, reflecting bad luck and evil spirits away from the wearer. The main practitioners of this style are the Rabaris, Kanbis, Ahirs, Rajputs and Oswal Banias.

Applique (or Katab) is easier to work than embroidery, and it was introduced from either Europe or Middle East by through trading in the 19th century. Often animals, plants and humans cut-outs are sewn onto a large piece of cloth that are used as wedding canopies. The applique technique is usually practised bt the Kathis and Molesalaam.

Quilts are usually made by older women in the Kutch communities, and they are a favourite wedding gift for newly weds. Sometimes the quilts feature patchwork designs or appliqués or a mix of several techiques on recycled or new fabric, and are considered a sign of a family’s wealth and position in the community.

The day after a fascinating visit to Mr A A Wazir‘s home, we went to the showroom of Qasab, an collective socio-cultural enterprise founded in 1997 to revitalise the embroidery craft of Kutch. It comprises 1,200 rural craftswomen from 11 ethnic communities spread across 62 villages in Kutch. The enterprise is known for its high quality of Kutch embroidery, appliqué and patchwork products that reflect the cultural identity of each community.

There was a long presentation of the textiles practised by the numerous tribal groups in Kutch. One of them is the nomadic Rabari tribe, which moved to the Kutch region in the 13th century. When the tribal elders banned the elaborate embroidery work made by women 15 years ago. Qasab has since been in dialogues with the community elders to give opportunities to the Rabari women to collaborate with designers to apply their appliqué skills and earn an income to support themselves.

The next post will be about a Rabari village woman who became an award-winning female entrepreneur loved by the celebrities in Bollywood…

Kutch textiles: Kala Raksha centre for embroiders

Posted on April 22, 2019 by Toothpicker

When I was doing my workshop at Somaiya Kala Vidya, the founder Judy Frater mentioned that she had co-founded and ran another Trust before moving to Somaiya Kala Vidya, and she said that the centre is located in a beautiful and tranquil environment just outside of Bhuj. Luckily, we did pay a visit to the Kala Raksha Center in Sumrasar Sheikh village, which was designed by Ahmedabad architect R. J. Vasavada. The Kala Raksha Trust was co-founded and operated by Judy, where she also established the Kala Raksha Textile Museum, and founded Kala Raksha Vidhyalaya, the first design school for traditional artisans in 2005. Although Judy no longer works for the organisation, the Trust and institution are still in operation, and visitors can learn about the Trust’s work in preservating Kutch’s traditional arts at its centre.

When we arrived at the centre, we were all captivated by the round buildings and the surrounding environment. The buildings are based on the traditional round bhungas, though using contemporary materials and technology. Like the traditional structure of artisans’ villages, the centre is modular, comprising separate bhungo units arranged with local landscaping to create an inviting atmosphere. The units include office, workshop, resource center, museum, shop and guest house, and they are all fully electrified with photovoltaic solar power.

Like I mentioned in the previous posts, many of the Kutch textiles originate from Sindh (now Pakistan), and their traditions and techniques were brought over to West India due to the migration of nomadic tribes. There are numerous styles and techniques practised by different tribes, but one of the most prominent technique is embroidery. Embroidery can be seen on marriage costumes, wall hangings, quilts, and cradle cloths etc.

Kutch is particularly renowned for its mirrored embroideries. Most of these were traditionally stitched by village women, for themselves and their families, to create festivity, honour deities, or generate wealth. Embroidery also communicates self-expression and status. Differences in style create and maintain distinctions that identify community, sub-community, and social status within the community. At Kala Raksha, they work with six distinct hand embroidery styles: the Sindh/Kutch regional styles of suf, khaarek, and paako, and the ethnic styles of Rabari, Garasia Jat, and Mutava.

Today, the organisation work with about 1,000 artisans/female embroiders from seven communities in 25 villages of the desert district of Kutch. Artisans are brought to the center, and under the guidance of trained coordinators, work is distributed to insure fairness, while prices are set by the artisans themselves. The final products are sold through the shop at the center, some selected shops and at exhibitions held outside Kutch. We love the high quality products sold at the centre esp. the embroidered chess and snake and ladder sets, and it gave us an opportunity/excuse to go on another shopping spree as a way of supporting the Trust and the artisans.

After the shopping, we visited the artisans’ residence where we saw two female (possibly mother and daughter) doing some hand embroidery at home. This is a far cry from the sweat shop environment that you normally see on the news! I think India, Pakistan and Bangladesh need to have more NGOs like this to not only preserve the traditions but also help artisans to support themselves and not be exploited by the greedy employers and unethical fashion companies from the West.