21:10
Unknown
Islamabad
The second exhibition/ pre-Christmas sale of patchwork ‘ralli’ quilts; throws; bedspreads; baby quilts and ‘kurtas’ in contemporary designs, handcrafted by the flood affected women of rural Sindh by the NGO Bichhuana, was as great a success as the first held last year at the same location — a private home generously opened up for this collaborative non-profit undertaking to help women of the rural Sindh to use their skill for a sustainable entrepreneurial activity.
The exhibition was fairly well attended, but many people did not know about it and missed out on a great opportunity to get a special gift for a friend or family member.
These beautiful items that will surely become heirlooms had been displayed draped on ropes around the lawn for customers to look at and choose. Hand made of three layers of material — patchwork on one side, plain cloth in the middle and a printed material on the other, joined together with tiny stitches, each piece is unique as far as colour and design go and make excellent gifts.
They are unique because the women are given material, which they can mix and match according to their own concept of traditional patterns and colour combinations that are never the same because they are not documented.
Speaking about their work, one of the young women involved in the project, Maliha Bhimji — the other is Tasnim Jaffer — said the 2010 floods brought the ugly face of rural Pakistan to urban doorsteps. “Opportunity knocked and we encouraged women housed at refugee camps to invest their time in making ‘rallis’ — traditional patchwork quilts — for a reasonable compensation,” she said. “Recognising the market potential of their product when fine-tuned, we took the leap of faith to work with them as they returned ‘home’ to nothing. While we are helping revive and preserve the dying craft of ‘rallis’, in essence we are empowering the women ‘quilters’.” The process is quite time consuming to ensure a quality product — material is bought, washed, checked for colour fastness, while the finished piece is examined for flaws and rewashed again and to make sure it’s run proof. The ‘kurtas’ on display were made by a boutique owner in Karachi who uses the same women to add zing to her outfits as they need more work than they are getting from the NGO at the moment.
Because the project is being run in collaboration with women in a small village near Dadu in the interior of Sindh where it is not possible for Maliha and Tasnim to go easily, they have the only Urdu speaking woman in the village, Khalida on board as a go between. Honest; fair in her dealings with the village women and dedicated to the welfare of her village, Khalida has proved to be a vital link in the enterprise.
Bichhuana and its quilters have come a long way, since the first exhibition in Karachi in December 2010; product variety, contemporary designs and improved technique have been introduced; over thirty families are being supported with 40% of the sales proceeds paid as wages to the quilters. Any left over funds are invested in their welfare as needed — health, education or home repairs. Bichauna ‘rallis’ have been made available to other cities of Pakistan and overseas through personal contacts and are now exploring regular customers in major cities locally as well as in the UAE, UK, and North America.
The second exhibition/ pre-Christmas sale of patchwork ‘ralli’ quilts; throws; bedspreads; baby quilts and ‘kurtas’ in contemporary designs, handcrafted by the flood affected women of rural Sindh by the NGO Bichhuana, was as great a success as the first held last year at the same location — a private home generously opened up for this collaborative non-profit undertaking to help women of the rural Sindh to use their skill for a sustainable entrepreneurial activity.
The exhibition was fairly well attended, but many people did not know about it and missed out on a great opportunity to get a special gift for a friend or family member.
These beautiful items that will surely become heirlooms had been displayed draped on ropes around the lawn for customers to look at and choose. Hand made of three layers of material — patchwork on one side, plain cloth in the middle and a printed material on the other, joined together with tiny stitches, each piece is unique as far as colour and design go and make excellent gifts.
They are unique because the women are given material, which they can mix and match according to their own concept of traditional patterns and colour combinations that are never the same because they are not documented.
Speaking about their work, one of the young women involved in the project, Maliha Bhimji — the other is Tasnim Jaffer — said the 2010 floods brought the ugly face of rural Pakistan to urban doorsteps. “Opportunity knocked and we encouraged women housed at refugee camps to invest their time in making ‘rallis’ — traditional patchwork quilts — for a reasonable compensation,” she said. “Recognising the market potential of their product when fine-tuned, we took the leap of faith to work with them as they returned ‘home’ to nothing. While we are helping revive and preserve the dying craft of ‘rallis’, in essence we are empowering the women ‘quilters’.” The process is quite time consuming to ensure a quality product — material is bought, washed, checked for colour fastness, while the finished piece is examined for flaws and rewashed again and to make sure it’s run proof. The ‘kurtas’ on display were made by a boutique owner in Karachi who uses the same women to add zing to her outfits as they need more work than they are getting from the NGO at the moment.
Because the project is being run in collaboration with women in a small village near Dadu in the interior of Sindh where it is not possible for Maliha and Tasnim to go easily, they have the only Urdu speaking woman in the village, Khalida on board as a go between. Honest; fair in her dealings with the village women and dedicated to the welfare of her village, Khalida has proved to be a vital link in the enterprise.
Bichhuana and its quilters have come a long way, since the first exhibition in Karachi in December 2010; product variety, contemporary designs and improved technique have been introduced; over thirty families are being supported with 40% of the sales proceeds paid as wages to the quilters. Any left over funds are invested in their welfare as needed — health, education or home repairs. Bichauna ‘rallis’ have been made available to other cities of Pakistan and overseas through personal contacts and are now exploring regular customers in major cities locally as well as in the UAE, UK, and North America.
Posted in: Islamabad
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