Reclaiming the Needle: Hyderabad Artists Transform Embroidery into Social Critique

From Tradition to Resistance

In the hands of a new generation of Hyderabad-based artists, the needle has transitioned from a domestic tool into an instrument of socio-political commentary. These practitioners, often graduates of leading regional institutions like Jawaharlal Nehru Architecture and Fine Arts University (JNAFAU) and Hyderabad Central University (HCU), are dismantling the stereotype of embroidery as mere ornamentation.

Dulam Sahetya, a JNAFAU MFA graduate, utilizes thread to navigate the complexities of femininity and bodily trauma. Raised in Karimnagar’s Baopeta village, where menstruation was shrouded in silence, Sahetya consciously chose a sanitary pad as her first canvas two years ago. This act of reclamation, which includes mixed-media works like Silent Cells, seeks to transform shame into visibility. Her current practice has moved into sculptural realms, using repetitive stitching and beads on handmade paper to mimic organic forms such as follicles and wounds.

Ecological and Agrarian Narratives

For Sayuri Bhanap, textile art serves as a platform for environmental and gender-based discourse. Currently featured in the A Place to Begin exhibition at New Delhi’s Champa Art Gallery through August 14, Bhanap repurposes discarded fabrics to critique patriarchy. She employs a diverse technical repertoire, including:

• Sashiko: A traditional Japanese stitching method.
• Kantha and Chain Stitches: Classic techniques used to address modern geopolitical conflicts.
• Appliqué: Blended with embroidery to trace historical patterns from the World War era.

Anukya Katuku explores the intersection of climate change and rural labor. An artist from Chinnaodela, she draws on her upbringing in an agrarian family to highlight the dual roles of women in the fields and the home. Currently engaged in a project for Mumbai’s Space118 Art Foundation, Katuku utilizes transparent mesh fabric and rice paper. One of her recurring motifs involves the use of old saris, reflecting how farmers in her region repurpose clothing as fences to protect crops from wildlife.

Preserving Architectural Legacies

While others focus on social reform, Badabagni Srivani uses embroidery to document fading history. Native to the Rayalaseema region, Srivani employs meticulous French knot stitching on silk to recreate the architectural splendor of the Vijayanagara Empire. Her work serves as a tactile archive of temples and sculptures that currently lack formal patronage. Though French knots are often categorized as a basic technique, Srivani’s large-scale depictions of historical sites require immense precision and labor-intensive repetition to achieve their sculptural quality.

Through these varied lenses, these artists are proving that embroidery is not a relic of the past but a vibrant, evolving language capable of addressing the most pressing issues of the present.

Source: The Hindu – Entertainment