G ourab Gan guli

Brinda Gill: How did you get drawn to the craft of tie-dyeing? Abdullah and Abduljabbar Khatri: We hail from a family of Khatris who are traditional tie-dyers involved in bandhani work, as tie-dyeing is called in Gujarat. For generations, our family has lived in Khatri Chowk, Bhuj town, Kutch district, Gujarat. Due to a decline in the demand for that craft and the opening up of other employment opportunities, our great-grandfather, then grandfather and father, took up other occupations. However, the women in our family were always involved in tying cloth for others. This cloth would be later given to dyers to complete the process. As our community was involved with the dyeing process, we were aware of the craft and the technique from childhood. We instinctively loved the process of tying and dyeing cloth; the way patterns – created by hundreds of roundels dotting the fabric – would be revealed on the cloth post-dyeing and after the knots were removed, and then the wonderful texture of tie-dyed cloth. After attending school and college, we would spend time in the dyeing workshops. In our teenage years, we started tying and dyeing cloth to earn some pocket money. We loved it so much that we later took it up as full-time work! Meanwhile, the government encouraged craft and tourism to Kutch, encouraging and supporting our work. Our father was happy that we had formal education and were taking up the craft with hands-on experience and awareness of the outside world. BG: Did you attend any workshops? AK and AK: In 1998, a natural dyeing workshop in Bhuj was conducted by the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. We participated in the workshop, and this experience reinforced our faith in the future of our craft. It also led to new connections in the craft world, apart from the business connections we had established with traders. AK: The devastating earthquake in Bhuj in 2001 was a setback for us. However, Abduljabbar was called to the National Institute of Design for a workshop organized by the Shibori World Network. This was a good learning experience; experts including Yoshiko Wada noticed his work. Seeing our interest and dedication, she introduced us to dosa, a company based in the US that specializes in handmade garments. Soon, Christina Kim of dosa started working on a collection of cotton tie-dyed clothes with us. This experience gave us more confidence and a new outlook for us. We started looking at higher-value work than the opportunities offered by our local market. BG: Please tell us about your work. AK and AK: Tying knots has traditionally been given to women, while men have traditionally done the dyeing work. We continue this tradition. The dyeing work is done at a workshop we set up in Bhuj. As our work expanded, we founded SIDR Craft in 2006.

The word sidr refers to the sacred Sidr tree that has been revered for centuries. We work with about 300 women artisans who work from home in and around Bhuj. We give them the cloth and design drawn on it, and they tie the knots and return it to us for dyeing at the workshop. They make very fine knots by pinching a very tiny part of the fabric for each knot. The designs are intricate, which means the knots are very close. The women are trained to work these knots and can make fine knots that result in neat designs post-dyeing. 4

Image right: Injiri