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participated in an exhibition at the Pragati
Maidan in New Delhi.
Distinctive Patterns
Over the years, I kept up the family tradition
of weaving woollen textiles using hand-spun
yarns provided by local communities and in
turn providing them with woven textiles and
attire. For generations our community had
shared a symbiotic relationship with different
Kutchi communities as they provided us
with yarns and we provided them with their
traditional hand-woven garments, blankets and
fabrics. Members of every community, such as
married and unmarried women, wear garments
Seeking better opportunities for ourselves we
decided to migrate to another village. As a
result, my family moved to Bhujodi in Gujarat
in 1971 where my maternal uncle Vankar
Vishram Valji lived. He extended support to us,
helped us settle and under his guidance I was
able to pursue weaving. I initially took up a job
as a weaver, weaving textiles for others on a
traditional pit loom. Our relatives supported us
in our endeavour and in 1989, I started weaving
for myself by taking a loan to buy a loom. A
trader from Ahmedabad placed an order for ten
shawls. I was elated! I gradually built up a stock
of my woven textiles and started participating
in exhibitions. I got my first break when I
