Baloch Artists Demonstrate Craftsmanship At Virsa By Mahtab Bashir

Bold colours and fine stitches characterise Balochi embroidery, which enjoys worldwide fame. There are no less than 28 types of stitches applied in this art with mirrors as its integral part.

ISLAMABAD: As an important component of the on-going Balochi Cultural Festival at Lok Virsa, Shakarparian, artisans and craftspeople from remotest parts of Balochistan are creatively demonstrating their craftsmanship at the cultural pavilions.

Twenty master artisans including 13 craftswomen are participating in the festival. The crafts which these artisans practice include Balochi embroidery, leather embroidery on shoes and caps with traditional motifs, mirror work, Makrani patti, Qubtomar stitch, Galabatoon pokhtak, carpet weaving, marble mosaic and Kalat embroidery.

Balochistan is the largest province in terms of area. No other part of Pakistan can match the rich variety of stitches in traditional embroidery created by the women. The coastal belt of Makran alone boasts of more than 29 different stitches, each named after a flower, a leaf, a tree or a season. The Brahvi and Balochi style of embroidery is famous for its complexity. The Marri and Bugti tribes, who use mostly cotton thread on cotton fabric, produce the best-known and finest examples of embroidery.

Bold colours and fine stitches characterise Balochi embroidery, which enjoys worldwide fame. There are no less than 28 types of stitches applied in this art with mirrors as its integral part.

The embroidered triangular pouch on the front of a woman's shirt (pushk) is typical of Balochi, Brahvi and Makrani dress. A microcosm of variety in stitching, the difference of embroidery on the pushk identifies the tribe. "Kechi Doch" is the best form of embroidery, while others include "Jigs" of Marri Bugti tribe, "Hurmuch" and "Mosum", Balochi "Pushk" are brilliant. Silk thread on synthetic or cotton cloth is also used today.

Pushtun women in Balochistan wear a flared skirt (kamiz) with embroidered panels of satin stitch in silk, silver and gold thread. Sindhi influence is visible in mirror embroidery and other stitches where the Kirthar Range separates Balochistan from Sindh.

Among the Pashtoon stitches, "Gulabatun" and Khamak are famous. One can find Balochi embroidery on a vast variety of items including ladies dresses, bed sheets, cushion covers, tea cozies, tray covers, dining sets, table cloths, shawls, dupattas, Balochi caps, sari patti, jackets, belts, ladies purses, shoulder bags and many items of decorative ornamentation.

The nomadic Balochistani woman still produce the best work for her own family - the Pushk with their rich embroidery down the front, and that on the sleeves. The Pushk here is a loose shirt, often reaching to the ankles, with loose sleeves and having a long pocket (pandol) centred on the front lower half. No buttons are used in the collar. A string beautifully made to match its colour ties the neckslit called "Tool".

In Balochistan, "Chakkan" is leather embroidery, which is famous for its intricate design and most appealing colour scheme. The items on which leather embroidery is generally done include the upper part of ladies and gents shoes (Sartal), belts, upholstery, sheath (cushion covers), ladies purses, shoulder bags, spectacle covers and a number of similar items. This art is peculiar to Lehri (Kachi district) and Turbut (Makran district).

Among Balochi artisans, Malookan Bibi is a 50 years old master craftswoman of Balochi embroidery "Doch". From the remote town of Lehri, she learnt this art from her mother, now devoting 30 years of her life to the art of embroidery. She rapidly attained mastery in her art at a very early age and has been demonstrating excellence of her skill for the past 20 years at the National Festival of Artisans-at-Work organized by Lok Virsa annually.