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4
THE WARP OF MY LIFE
I am tied
To the warp
Of my life.
Some call it
Karma
Some call it
Genes
Some
By other names.
I do not
Fight it.
I do not
Unravel it.
I dye the weft
With my dreams,
I pluck on the
Multiple chords
Of my warp
Weaving
My dreams.
My aspirations
My inner thoughts
Till it resounds
As a Raga
Of all longing.
And I,
The warp
The weft
All merge into
The eternal ocean.
Of our Universe.
JASLEEN DHAMIJA, 1975
J
asleen Dhamija’s life embodies the rich and vibrant
textile heritage of India. She has years of knowledge,
understanding and experience on the subject. For over
six decades she has been a pioneer in the research and
revival of the textile traditions of this country, as well as
Iran, Africa, Central Asia, theBalkans andSouthEastAsia.
Since the time India achieved independence, Jasleen has
been documenting and working with handicrafts and
hand-woven textiles. She did this by studying gazetteers
researched by the English District officials and gathering
information from scholars, master craftspeople and
traders. Through her commanding personality, her
eloquent oratorical skills and her highly evolved sense
of aesthetics, she has inspired and mentored countless
young scholars, imparting to them her unique vision of
India’s textile legacy.
Jasleen was born in Lahore in 1933. Her father,
Manmohan Singh, was a remarkable entrepreneur and
opened a hotel in Anarkali bazaar, a bus company, a
bakery and a bank. They lived in a large
haveli
, as a joint
family. Her father was passionately fond of music and
dance and encouraged his daughters to study these
JASLEEN DHAMIJA A JOURNEY THROUGH TEXTILES
Jasleen in Abbottabad dressed in her aunt’s jewellery, 1937
arts. Jasleen was taught dance. It was unacceptable for
girls to learn music and dance in those days, and his
colleagues mocked him saying, “He is making singing
and dancing girls of his daughters!”
Unfortunately, due to economic failure caused by the
Great Depression, the bank collapsed and the family
lost everything and returned to Abbottabad in the
Hazara district (now in northeastern Pakistan). It was
a provincial town but strategically located on trade
routes and known for its fine embroidery of
phulkari
and
bagh
. Jasleen recalls growing up in a large family,
with a doting mother and an older sister who inspired
her. Growing up in the years immediately leading
up to India’s independence, her family was actively
involved in the Freedom Movement. Probably her
most memorable moment was Mahatma Gandhi’s
visit to their home in 1938, accompanying him at age
five on walks in their garden and being introduced to
his message of a self-sustaining nation through the
importance of spinning and wearing khadi. Another
influential figure was the Sikh poet and spiritual leader
Bhai Vir Singh, who lived in Amritsar and whom the
family would visit each year. The third, was the gift
of a beautifully embroidered pillow cover, made in
anticipation of her wedding, by Hazra Bibi, a woman
from Swat who worked in their home. These images
have stayed with Jasleen all her life, making a strong
and lasting impression on her.
In 1940 her family moved to Delhi and the city has been
her home ever since, apart from a short residence of six
years in Ahmedabad from 1983-89. It was during the
years of attending the PresentationConvent at Kashmiri
Gate and later Miranda House, that Jasleen became
interested in handcrafted products. At times, roaming
the bazaars of Delhi, picking up colourful block-printed
fabrics or brocaded materials. Other times fashioning a
bag or a lampshade, she would sell these to the Central
Cottage Industries Emporium located at the old WWII
barracks on Janpath. A trip to South India proved