Tribal needlecraft: Threads of life, hardwork, victory

Crafted so perfectly and with such precision that very often, tribal hand embroidery from the region is easily mistaken for machine-made designs and motifs.
"These are the traditions passed on by mothers to their daughters as part of their cultural values. But over time, the younger generation is losing interest in it and so we are making every possible effort to keep it alive," says Heeral Dayal, from Shrujan, a body formed to promote and preserve Kutchi hand embroidery.
The 44-year-old-organisation recently showcased products including sarees, garments, bags and home furnishing all sporting embroidery motifs and designs spun by around 3,500 tribal craftswomen from over 100 remote villages of Kutch.

The 16 types of embroidery used by Shrujan in sarees, kurtas, wall hangings, quilts and dresses have survived years of change and technological advancement.
"A pool bank of motifs, embroideries, techniques, fabrics have been collected into 1100 panels, which is referred to as Design Centre on Wheels, which is taken from one village to another," says Shelly Gera, marketing head at Shrujan.
Those who display interest, especially from the younger generation, are given samples of clothing or handicrafts to observe and learn the intricacies.

"To boost their confidence, we put up a exhibition of small items like mobile cases, belts and wall hangings made by them," says Shelly.

There is an option for school students, starting 7 or 8 year olds, to spend one to two hours at the training centres after school hours learning basic embroidery.
The craftswomen from Kutch act as both embroiders as well as designers making all creative decisions such as choosing fabrics, colours, design, cut and layout of a piece.
"Since most of them are not educated enough to remember the exact calculations and stitches they did on the last piece, each new piece turns out to be unique and exclusive," says Heeral Dayal.
Such handcrafted products, she says are very popular among the people living in metros.

"We have a very good clientele in the metro cities especially Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai. People want comfort with an ethnic and traditional element in their clothes and homes", she says.
Over the years, the organisation has modified its products basing itself on demand.
"Sarees, both heavy and for everyday use, were our speciality as many women, both married and single preferred wearing traditional apparel. But now they have been replaced by kurtas because they are being preferred even by the elderly crowd for" points out Heeral.