'MotherQuilts' Is Reviving The Traditional Art Of Quilting, Here's How

Upcycling is the new buzzword among conscious consumers and conscious designers. It is the act of taking something no longer in use and giving it a second life, a second function. Many refer to it as circular fashion, where waste material and finished products don't end up in landfills. But did you know that upcycling and recycling actually come naturally to Indians? And we are not just talking about repurposing old t-shirts as dusters or old bedsheets as floor mops. We are talking about traditional arts and crafts and weaving techniques that have relied on leftover scraps, rags, old unused cloth, and even threads to create something new.

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We are talking about Sujni embroidery from Bihar, Pipli applique work from Odisha, Kantha work from Bengal, Haryana's panja dhurries and Namda rugs in Kashmir. This is one such story.

Pune is the second-largest city in Maharashtra. Once the seat of the Maratha Empire, its rich historical past has made it a cultural hub of Maharashtra. A few kilometers away from the historic centre of the city, on Fergusson College Road, is a store called MotherQuilts which is keeping history and tradition alive in its own way - by making Godhadis or quilts.

Neeraj V Borate is the founder of MotherQuilts. A production engineer who eventually got into social entrepreneurship, Neeraj Borate's intention was two-fold - empowering rural women and keeping a traditional art form alive.

Sharing the idea behind MotherQuilts, the founder Neeraj V Borate called to focus on the problems in rural areas. He recalled,

When I was 11, my grandmother used to keep quilting. Once I asked her why she does it and she told me the story of quilts and said, “These patches are like family members and stitches between them are like bonding between them”. This story was stuck in my mind for a long time. I started working with two artisans who are highly skilled in traditional quilting.

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In 2015, Neeraj started MotherQuilts with a few of his friends and gradually got associated with over 350 artisans across nine states who are highly skilled in traditional quilting. He said,

We always wanted to give a sustainable solution, a design-driven approach and authentic products to the customers we are catering to. This is how MotherQuilts was born.

Godhadis are traditional hand-stitched patchwork quilts. The tradition of Godhadi making, most often from old sarees, is practiced in Maharashtra, Gujarat, Rajasthan, and parts of Madhya Pradesh.

Godhadi's colourful fabrics, intricate designs, and different stitching methods are examples of regional artistic expression. It acts as a physical representation of cherished beliefs, tales, and memories that have been passed down through the generations.

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The Maharashtrian tradition of Godhadi making recycles old sarees that once belonged to mothers and grandmothers. In earlier years, women would sit together in the afternoon with their old sarees and unused clothes and stitch the pieces of fabric together to make quilts for their children.

Godhadis passed down in this manner have significant emotional value. They construct a unique connection that endures for generations, carrying the warmth and love of familial ties.

In recognition of what the Godhadi represents to families, MotherQuilts has a campaign called Make Your Quilt (MYQ) where people can bring old sarees with memories to turn them into warm comforting quilts.

With the intention of bridging the gap between rural skilled Godhadi makers and people in cities looking for authentic quality products, Neeraj spent time understanding the process and the problems. There were inadequate market ecosystems, no market linkages, a lack of economic incentives, increased migration, and a lack of support.

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Neeraj brought the artisans together and provided them with work, resulting in an increase in their daily earnings. He said,

Our artisans used to earn Rs. 200 a day. But now, that they are working with us, they earn at least Rs. 350 a day. This is a huge change. It can lead to confidence building and social change - the equality that we are looking for.

There is better income remuneration for artisans, the promotion of rural enterprises in handloom and handicraft, and the generation of local employment at various points in the production and logistics chain, not to mention empowering rural women with livelihoods.

And of course, there is the fact that Godhadi is essentially the art of discarded fabric. Patches of old clothes quilted together layer by layer that might otherwise have been thrown away. It is a practice of upcycling for a sustainable lifestyle, long before either upcycling or a sustainable lifestyle became trendy.

Dhanashri Shinde, Cluster Manager at Mother Quilts said,

For me, the Godhadi holds many memories. Our grandparents would stitch Godhadis. So, as children, we learned to make them. But now, we don't get to see the craft of making Godhadis anywhere. So, we became interested in it.

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Two and a half hours from Pune is the hill station of Panchghani where Neeraj has initiated one such Godhadi making centre. The women here work on bulk orders, orders with specific requirements, each Godhadi given a different patch, look and feel. Neeraj explains to the women what the requirement is for each order, and sits with them while they do the stitching.

Making Godhadis can support the resurgence of regional economies, especially in rural areas. This can then promote local companies, draw local tourists, and revive old artisan industries.

Sangita Parthe, Regional Manager at MotherQuilts has been working with Neeraj since 2016. Sharing her journey, she said,

Neeraj Sir called and asked if we could make this Godhadi. I thought about it and took the order. They came to meet me. Our financial situation was initially bad, but now I don't have to ask my husband for money. Women work in the fields, under the sun and only earn Rs. 200 per day. Stitching Godhadis helps us earn Rs. 300 – 350. We make about Rs. 4,000 – Rs. 5,000 a month. Working here is better than working outside.

In its eight years of existence, MotherQuilts has now provided more than 350 artisans from nine states with sustainable employment opportunities. Since its founding in 2015, MotherQuilts has regularly engaged in the training of over 3,000 female artisans who have collectively hand-stitched more than 4,000 quilts.

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This has given hundreds of artisan families access to economic opportunities. Also, it has promoted digital literacy and brought artisans into the formal economy after years of exclusion.

Additionally, over 3,000 quilts worth of dead stock and discarded materials were upcycled, and the ‘Make Your Quilt' campaign used over 1,700 sarees, saving them from landfills and environmental degradation.

Dhanashri Shinde added,

We are looking for more women to join us. We should all work together. If women have no work or are sitting at home and are interested in working, they will also get to earn some money. My message to people is that they should support women like us so our quality of life can improve. We need your support to continue this art.

To maximise their impact, MotherQuilts is currently collaborating with other stakeholders, including the Yashwantrao Chavan School of Social Work, the Sahyadri Tiger Reserve Forest, the National Institute of Fashion Technology, and the School of Fashion Technology.

Future plans include training more women from challenging geographic areas, expanding the sale of Godhadis to at least 25 new countries, and looking for new affiliations and collaborations to popularise this traditional art with newer audiences.

Helping artisans gives Neeraj a sense of joy. While signing off he said,

I could at least help artisans and families who don't have any means of earning or alternative livelihood resources, which makes me happy. I think everybody who is socially conscious should contribute to making our world safe.

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