Empowering women

The region of Gujarat has nourished various tribal cultures since the earliest periods of history, and it is the women from these cultures who have helped relieve the monotony of the region's arid landscapes with their colourful handicrafts.

The Okhamandal taluka of Gujarat is home to 200 self help groups (SHGs) of men and women. It is from these communities that the appliqué handicraft under the 'Okhai' brand name has been created with the support and guidance of TCSRD (Tata Chemicals Society for Rural Development).

These SHGs mainly comprise Rabaris, Vaghadis and Ahirs. The most prominent of all, Rabaris are a semi-nomadic tribe known for their survival and adaptation in the arid regions of Gujarat and Rajasthan, pursuing a pre-agrarian, pastoral lifestyle found mainly in the Kutch and Saurashtra regions of Gujarat. The Rabaris today lead a quaint, colourful and rugged lifestyle, which finds a manifestation in the embroidery and crafts made by them. The motifs of their old world custom are replicated in the intricate embroidery patterns which they create on a wide range of objects such as garments, bags, household decorations and animal trappings that highlight the important events, rites and values in their lives.

Girls traditionally embroider blouses, skirts, veils, wall hangings, pillows, purses and kothalo, which are dowry sacks, as their contribution for their dowries. It is only recently that this form of art is being used commercially too. The various forms of artwork of Gujarat are appliqué, heer bharat, kathi and bead work. Of these, the work of appliqué symbolises the integral part of the decorative needle work done in Okhamandal. It is based on patchwork, in which pieces of coloured and patterned fabric are finely cut in different sizes and shapes and sewn together on a plain background to form a composite piece.

The handicrafts are sold at the retail showroom in Mithapur — the township of Tata Chemicals set up in the Jamnagar district of Gujarat — which is proficient in fulfilling both individual as well as corporate orders and are branded as OKHAI. The handicrafts centre has also successfully taken part in many exhibitions in the state of Gujarat. The various products made here are ladies and gents kurtas, shawls, skirts, aprons, carry bags, sling purses, mobile covers, bedsheets, cushion covers, bolster covers, carpets, table cloths, curtains, phone mats and a host of wall hangings like chakdas and thorans.

Over 450 women of the various Okhamandal villages and a team of trained tailors are currently part of OKHAI. The OKHAI women are guided by a full time designer who transforms the original art form of the women into designs with variations in type of patch, cloth, embroidery, styling and colour combinations in order to cater to a market that not only appreciates art but also is abreast with the latest fashion trends. Thus the final product is a combination of the traditional art form of the tribal women and the designer's designs keeping in mind the present consumer tastes and preferences.

TCSRD plays a pioneering role in encouraging the art of handicrafts. With its support today the OKHAI women spend their time making colourful and aesthetically-unique pieces of appliqué work for commercial purposes, which provide them sustainable sources of income leading to their economic empowerment. The entire initiative works on the philosophy of 'no profit no loss' and is dedicated to the cause of social upliftment of the women of this region and proliferation of their art form to the rest of India and the world.

The Okhai brand is a powerful statement by the women of the Okhamandal villages — a statement that empowers them, a statement that gives them and their region an identity, a statement that not only makes people notice this beautiful form of art but also appreciate and patronise it.