WRAPPED IN KANTHA
Recycled and re-purposed threads for function and for adornment.
Women in villages across parts of India – Bengal, Bihar – and in Bangladesh have evolved a method of saving money, saving fabrics and re-purposing garments. Born of necessity, it seems so on-trend these days. What’s more it revolves around the simplest of embroidery stitches – running stitch.
Poor women in villages extract threads from the borders of worn out saris and use the threads to patch fabric pieces together to be re-used as lightweight bedding, or shawls, or quilts. This practice also evolved into decorative pieces - wall hangings and the like, often with traditional motifs - intricate floral pictures, or scenes of village life, or trees-of-life. The density and intricacy of the end-products, works of art as well as functional, belies the simplicity of the underlying running stitch.
Shamlu Dudeja was once a model, a maths teacher, author of maths text books, chair of The Calcutta Foundation – philanthropist - founder of SHE (self-help enterprises) and more, as they say. We found her online back in 1999. She took us under her wing and had us to stay at her home in Alipore. Shamlu is the source of many stories and fascinating insights into life in Calcutta/Kolkata – two chapters in my book actually – and you’ll also find some photos. We have watched Shamlu’s stitchers at work in Shantiniketan, a town where a number of her kantha workers are based, about four hours drive from Calcutta. But these nimble-fingered embroiderers can be found in many small villages in Bengal.
For two decades we have pursued kantha in many forms. We’ve bought hundreds of stoles and scarves. We commissioned them in sizes to suit western women, not used to the more voluminous shawls and dupattas that adorn Indian women. We also used kantha stitch details on shirts, dresses and tunics. We bought gudri stitched bedding and clothing. We just love it!
Shamlu has almost single-handedly been responsible for kantha’s revival and promotion in India and its subsequent adoption by Indian fashionistas as well as in France and Santa Fe – places where Shamlu has tirelessly worked to extend awareness of kantha embroidery.
Two decades later, when it came to producing my new book: ‘A Touch of India’ I had an idea. I sent the designer a photo of one of my silk kantha stoles, purchased in Calcutta from Shamlu. Then I sent a photo of the stole wrapped around a book with a photo of a niche stuck on with blu-tak. Sue and I love niches almost as much as we love kantha. And so it seemed a perfect fusion for the cover. My graphic designer changed the colours and added all the necessary typographical details. Later the printer suggested we add some silver to the ‘border’ of the book, reminiscent of the lush Indian saris that often use silver or gold thread in their borders.
And so A Touch of India emerged wrapped in Kantha! A book with a sari border.
