NGO empowers tribal women to display their textile creations
Mumbai: Clad in a bright pink saree teamed with a printed blue blouse, Pushpa Verma pulls her ‘pallah’ to her face and murmurs from behind the veil. She shows off a range of hand-embroidered dupattas, sarees, pillow covers and bedsheets. “I have worked on some of these myself,’’ she says.
Pushpa, who hails from Udaipur, was in the city with around 10 of her colleagues to exhibit her creations at Coomaraswamy Hall. Sadhna, a non-profit organisation that trains rural women in textiles and then employs them, kickstarted their three-day Mumbai exhibition on Thursday. The style of embroidery is mostly ‘takka’ or patch-work, which involves stitching overlapping cloths.
The organisation which started in 1988 with about 15 women, now has over 600 members, working as artisans and co-owners of the enterprise. “Apart from earning a livelihood for themselves and their families, they now play an important role as decision-makers and leaders,’’ says chairperson Neelima Khetan. She adds that significantly, Sadhna members were elected to posts of the Citizen Development Forum in Delwara after they took inclusive development steps and took charge of solid waste management as well as sanitation in the area.
‘‘The employees, comprising mostly tribal women work from home and can earn between Rs 500 and Rs 2,000 depending on the number of pieces and the kind of labour required,’’ says Sadhna consultant and textile designer, Jaya Bhatt.
Actor Waheeda Rehman, who was the chief guest, said, “I’m delighted to see that this is an allwomen’s team. The quality of work is fantastic and each saree is better than the other.’’
BOLLYWOOD TOUCH: Waheeda Rehman tries on a saree during an exhibition at Coomaraswamy Hall on Thursday