Rajasthan: Project to revive quilt craft among Kalbeliya population

JAIPUR: The Kalbeliya community is well-known for its dance and music but little do people know about its quilt-making skill. Efforts are being made in the state to give them a mode of employment through this skillset.
‘Kalbeliya Craft Revival Project’ has been initiated by an NGO, Kota Heritage Society (KHS) and some concerned citizens. It has been sponsored by the Indian Institute of Craft and Design (IICD), Jaipur.
Madan Meena, convenor of KHS, who has been researching the nomadic community, said, “These are one of the most marginalized communities in the country. Most of them live outside the village due to discrimination. Pandemic has only worsened their condition as all the cultural programs were cancelled and they had no work to do. So, I thought to promote their quilt-making craft that is unique to their community. Interns from NIFT Jodhpur and Kannur also helped on the project,” said Meena.
A Mumbai-based designer, Geetanjali Gondhale was roped in, who helped in crowd funding to develop a base for this project. Later, Pallavi Singh, a student of IICD, Jaipur made it her graduation project. She also stayed with the Kalbeliya community members in Bundi for two years to get the quilts made.
Pallavi Singh said, “We paid Rs 350 per day to women artisans for making the quilts. They prepare these quilts with waste clothes in seven to eight layers, but we gave them good quality cotton clothes to be made in four layers.”
Mewa Sapera, a Kalbeliya woman said that she could have never imagined that their quilts could be sold.