JOIN USWho would not like the glint of mirror-work on a mishmash pattern of bright colours? The thought brings alive the memory of beautiful clothes from Gujarat. Add to these exquisite embroidery and what you get is a piece of a souvenir to be cherished for generations. Much like what Amitabh Bachchan promotes in the Gujarat Tourism ads!
Quite literally, few hand-embroideries done on sarees, stoles, kurtis, mufflers, shawls, chaniya cholis, potlis, handbags and wallets displayed at Shrujan Hand Embroidery Exhibition, will never die out, even if the fabric does!
What started as an experimental initiative by Chandaben Shroff in 1969 during a severe drought has now provided livelihood to women from the region of Kutch. Moreover, the organisation has revived the almost extinct hand embroideries known to only specific communities in this region.
While other organisations are trying to incorporate contemporary designs, Shrujan aims at encouraging the womenfolk in rural areas to revive the traditional motifs. “We once asked the women to sit together and draw their traditional motifs which are vanishing. The result was a collection of 1100 panels that are now displayed in a small museum like set-up and which is also used by the new generation as a reference,” informs Shelly Gera, the marketing head at Shrujan. The same is taken from one village to another and referred to as ‘Design Centre on Wheels’. “This encourages the younger lot to learn their ancestral hand-embroidery rather than head into other professions,” adds Hiral Dayal, one of the trustees as she opens up a beautiful green saree with intricate embroidery and patch work, “this particular piece was chewed by a goat so we redesigned it and here it is now looking prettier than before!” Difficult to believe that the story is true!
A little help from the organisers and one learns that the exhibition displays sixteen different hand embroideries namely – Aari, Aahir, Chakan, Gotanv, Jat Fakira, Jat Garasiya, Kambira and Khuditebha, Katri, Kharek, Mukko, Neran, Pakko, Rabari and Soof.
Each has a story behind it, some more interesting than the others. But the significant point is that each is pursued by a particular community including some nomadic tribes of Gujarat. And if you like any work then pick it up immediately because, “the karigars forget the count once they complete an embroidery and it is difficult for them to make another one with the same design! Even with the same set of colour threads, a different pattern emerges each time,” says Hiral.
Much like an artist with a pallet of colours, the women sit down to create their artworks and make sure to do more than one garment at a time, to avoid the monotony of seeing the same colours! The exhibition cum sale is on display at Aga Khan Hall till July 25.