When my mom gave me an embroidered saree many years ago, I got interested in the various forms of embroideries from all over India.

So during one of my visits to my parents, who are in Gujarat, when mom asked me what I wanted for my next anniversary, I said I would like a black saree with kutch embroidery done in red. She looked high and low, but didn’t find anything interesting in the readily available ones.

Then my SIL suggested that she’d talk to her designer friend. Now, this designer works in collaboration with a social worker, who trains and helps women from low income groups, to do embroidery work in their spare time to enhance their family incomes.

The long and short of it is that my mother gave a black saree to the designer, who recommended that pink thread-work would look better than red, chose and printed the motifs on the saree and the women at the NGO, worked in their
magic with their hands.

I treasure this outcome of all the collaborative work.