खुशबू

Pictorial representations and literary accounts of jewelry from the Mughal era abound, for the wearing and appreciation of jewels and gems was considered an art in itself. The memoirs of Jahangir, for instance, record his decisions to wear certain pearls or rubies for important occasions, but the practice was not limited to royalty alone—travelers to India noted the quantity of jewelry worn by all members of society. Because very few of these pieces survive, most seventeenth-century jewelry is known only from paintings and written descriptions; extant pieces from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries are much more numerous. This particular necklace, composed of diamonds, rubies, pearls, and imitation emeralds set in gold, might represent work for a new class of patrons, the British in India.

In Dhaka I met Bibi Russell, designer and vigorous defender of the handloom weavers, whose craft has made a unique contribution to Bengali art and tradition……..She wears a dramatic blue and green saree, hand- loom cloth, which cost 145 taka - itself the most eloquent tribute to the beauty of the work of people she wants to rescue from the demoralisation we saw in Shahjatpur. [X]

“The garments industry is here only for cheap labour. They say we cannot produce the fabric. It is a lie. I show nothing that I cannot produce here.” Bibi Russell quoted in [X]