MY HERITAGE MY PRESERVE

My heritage my preserve is an initiative to create a discourse around recognizing forms of everyday heritage. In a country like India, heritage prevails in everyday living traditions. Over the period of time we have disconnected from our own forms of heritage. Through this campaign we aim to provide a platform to people to come forward and connect to their own heritage and provide for a moment of pride. The initiative would shape in the form of social media campaigns, learning circles, writing articles, sharing photos etc. The Institute has identified four core areas of intervention namely Textile, Food, Music and Literature as a part of its everyday heritage conservation, continuity of its tradition and practice and promotion. Though this has been widely recognized in recent years, its significance, its contribution to the character of our social-historical environment and its potential/agency to transform local communities are still remains under-explored and undervalued. There is an urgent need for people’s movement and participation in the field of everyday heritage, a rigorous detailing and archiving of cultural memory and institutional platforms to tap into the transformative power of everyday heritage. Initially, the Institute will focus on everyday heritage in textile contextualizing the spirit of “Awalkhana”, which in the discourse of textile history and heritage, denotes samplers created by women of Bihar who practised Kashida (the most ancient and traditional form of intrinsic art of thread work and embroidery known to be practised in Bhojpur region of Bihar, Irkal in Karnatka and Kashmir). In Bhojpur, Bihar, this typically is referred to as Bharua Kasida or in local parlance, dusooti ke kadhaai. This sampler, typically a piece of cloth housed a diverse range of traditional motifs, designs and patterns self-imagined, conceived and hand-embroidered by women. It acted as a master chart that young girls could refer to and imitate designs in order to attain mastery over the technique. This master chart was created with the intent to preserve, conserve and transfer the everyday art to the generation ahead. In short, to keep the tradition alive.