For 20 years, she has been sniping threads, putting them through the eye of the needle and gliding it through the fabrics with artisans of applique works every morning at her workshop. Because Sharda Mahapatra shares a special bond with Sui Dhaga (needle and thread.) But, one fine morning a random call from an unknown number brought a new turn to her tale. Sharda, who owns two retail outlets of applique merchandise in Bhubaneswar and Puri, couldn't believe what she heard over the telephone. It was a call from Yash Raj Films. The marketing team of the production house offered Sharda a contract for stitching the film's logo.
A call to remember
"I thought someone has played a prank on me. They were asking me to sign a contract. I was suspicious about the caller's intention. Initially, I thought it to be a fraud call. But, when I browsed through the Internet and got to know about the film Sui Dhaga, I started believing what I heard," she shared.
Thereafter, Sharda agreed to be a part of this film that seems to be promoting various art forms of the country. Later, she took some members of the film's crew to Pipli to let them interact with the artisans and shoot a video to promote the applique art.
No script, please
The video features Sharda too. She has been shown speaking about the art. But, not a single phrase used for the dialogues are scripted. The production team from Yash Raj asked me whether I will need a script for the video. I declined their proposal. I need not learn phrases to speak about the art that has become an indispensable part of my life now. I work with them everyday. We eat from the same plate, she said.
A month-long process
As the video approaches its end, Sharda is seen saying: apse agar yeh sui dhaga cheen lenge toh aap kya karoge? (What will you do if anyone snatches the needle and thread from you?) It was at this point that she had actually broken into tears during the shoot. Sharda and her team of artisans had spent one month for designing the logo. I used to communicate with the production team via video conferencing. They gave us the measurements. I had to design the motifs and fit them accordingly as per their discretion. It was a tedious and lengthy process. If they didn't like the colour combination, I had to redesign, she recollected.
The awesome art
The logo that she designed for the film has motifs of stylized animals, village scenes from tribal communities and other geometric motifs. On four corners of the fabric, there are motifs of temples and mirror work in the shape of earthen lamps. I have used five contrasting colours for the patchwork, she added.
The machine challenge
Though Yash Raj's tag sounded fancy, Sharda faced a tough time in convincing artisans for making this logo. I wanted to make this logo special. I went to Pipli so that I could work with the artisans there. To my surprise, everyone declined my offer as I wanted the work to be done using human hands. The artisans in Pipli have turned to machines since the past 10 years. Finally, one artiste Devananda agreed to let his artisans work for me, she said. And, these artisans once again picked up the needle and thread to sew the motifs.Interestingly, Sharda hails from Kerala. She learnt the art from her Odia mother-in-law. Since then, she has showcased the art in 20 countries at various exhibitions.