Chapter 2: Zanana, unka Radio aur Chikankari Ki Dhaage

‘Zanana’ means women in urdu. The craft craved by the world owes its survival to women from Lucknow. 

It was 3‘o’ clock in the afternoon. The women in the chikankari craft centre had packed their stomachs with their lunches. Shabida along with Humaia and Zafa were working on a sky blue georgette cloth. They were working on the criss- cross stitch, also called shadow work, constantly making infinity loops in the air with their hand movement. 

To look at it from afar, chikankari is a symphony of monotony. But there are elements which help these women continuously do their work. Some centres have old radio setups for these ladies. They call it ‘ट्रांजिस्टर’. A typical workshop vibe with retro hindi songs and fine threads! Sometimes the signals for the songs used to break and sometimes the threads. 

As much as these ladies valued the craft’s constant revival, they also loved being able to gossip, sharing about their children and their husbands. Shaabida was once saying that she liked the independence that chikankari gave her. She used to have financial conflicts with her husband but now she could stand tall. She felt like a fireball!

Like every other craft, chikankari penetrates and roots into livelihood generation. Today this industry is responsible for giving more than 90% of its workshare to women. A token of thanks to Nur Jahan, who brought this craft across borders from Koh Mehr in Persia to India. 

Chikankari is a characteristic of a womb, brought by a woman, sustained by a woman.