Rehana Begum, a national award-winning chikankari expert, is a master of all the 35 stitches that comprise the traditional embroidery style.
A native of Lucknow, where the textile decoration style has its roots, Rehana Begum’s family has been involved in the art of chikankari for the last three generations.
Trained by her father Hasan Mirza, an expert himself, from the age of 13, Rehana took to the thread work with immense hard work and dedication. “My father was an accomplished chikankari artisan and the first person to win a national award, in our family. We have been passing on the work to the next generation in our family,” she says, speaking on the sidelines of the World Crafts Council summit in Chennai.
Tracing the evolution of the form of embroidery in the last century, Rehana says that though nawabs were the foremost patrons of chikankari, the thread work has continued to be an integral part of fashion and tradition even today, long after the regime of the princely rulers.
“Earlier they used to wear chikankari topi (caps) and the angarkha (men’s tunic). Later it went on to become popular with sarees, suits and kurtas. Today there are even tops and jumpsuits with chikankari work,” she says.
As part of an initiative undertaken by the All India Handicraft Board, Rehana also trains people in the art of the thread work. Anokhi Chikankari, an enterprise run by her to make garments with both elaborate and simple chikanakri work, has over 8,000 workers. She was awarded the Shilp Guru Award by the Government of India for her outstanding work in the field.
Pointing at her works on display at the summit, she explains the efforts that went behind making each piece. “This saree in blue took me close to three years to work on. Look at the delicate designs on it. You might get many similar works in Lucknow, but nothing close to what I have done. This is art,” she signs off.