'Bhumika'- Role of gender in the handicrafts of India

Mridushi Singhal

IR2022

'Bhumika' aims to focus upon the role of gender in the crafts of Gujarat and thus with the help of five different narrative outputs it highlights the importance of gender in these crafts. The five narrative outputs including the game design, narrative mapping, crafting my life, storybook and field visits show a strong connection with the role of gender due to the color scheme and the theme.
Thus, I present to you 'Bhumika'-a narrative portfolio taking you through my journey of perceived thoughts and ideas about the role of gender in these crafts.

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The exercise was based upon designing a game on the handicrafts of Kutch and Surendranagar. 'Yarn Ni Yatra' is a game based on the wool handicraft of Kutch and it aims to educate the children about the process involved and the resources needed to make the cloth. For the game, packaging, rule books, thematic booklets, components and boards were made.

All the components for playing a game involving currency notes, tool cards, rate cards, tokens, pins, stage tiles and game boards

The spreads for the rule book show how the game is played and also tells the player about the objective of the game with its components. The thematic booklet on the other hand gives detailed insights into the wool craft process and educates the children about the history of the craft.

The process of the game also involved making of poster, postcards and packaging for the game with a defined color scheme.

Map made for the field visit to Kutch and Surendranagar based on the role of gender in the five crafts, i.e., Patola, Tangaliya, Wool weaving, Ajrakh and Tie & Dye. The top half shows role of women with a red background while the bottom half shows the role of men in a black background.

The postcards show the roles played by gender in the craft. The role of women is illustrated with a red background in all the crafts and shows motifs of the crafts behind it, while the role of men is depicted with a black background showing the same motifs.

The exercise involved understanding of a traditional narrative craft form of India. Focusing upon Pattachitra Scroll Painting, the emulation shows the craft in its original form while the canvas depicts my life during the lockdown created with original Pattachitra motifs, borders and style.

'Who will be the Ningthou?' is an illustrated storybook for children based on a folktale of Manipur. The illustrations are inspired by the works of Laura Watson.

The semester also included various workshops like Mata ni Pachedi, Gond Painting and Ajrakh. The final output of these workshops are shown here along with the process.

Field Visit photos of Kutch and Surendranagar along with some images of the research done.