Celebrating the labour of love and care
Golpo Kantha, a re-imagination of the kantha with stories of care and community, is a collaborative art exhibition by Maliha Mohsin and Humayra Kabir. They came together to document stories of women who are exceptional for their feminine and emotional labour, but are often ignored by the society. The name of this project brings together the Bangla words Golpo, meaning 'stories', and Kantha, a traditional quilt crafted by women, femmes, and caregivers all over Bangladesh for their families. The kantha is usually used to embroider stories and art. Embroidery, as a craft, has been traditionally gendered as feminine and considered unimportant, but essentials such as the kantha are some of the most visible products of such feminine work.
The women featured in this exhibition are all people that Maliha came across in her life in Dhaka. Humayra, a graduate from the Faculty of Fine Art, University of Dhaka, made all the paintings of the women, which in turn were converted into kanthas by women from Maliha's family's neighbourhood, who make kanthas for a living. Maliha's mother, Shahin Akhter, is the co-ordinator of the project, which was built through a British Council grant. The organisers intend to take the show to more accessible spaces for the public to engage with.
Golpo Kantha, which will run till March 21 at Jatra Biroti, also features an interactive art space, where viewers are encouraged to pin answers to questions such as, "What does care mean for you?" and "What do you care for?" These questions prompt people to take a step back and question their roles in caring for the community that they want to see improve. The five stories featured in the exhibition are on Farida Begum, Rubaiya Ahmed, Anannya Banik, Shabana Naved and female tea workers.
Farida Begum is a female cricket coach who had an unfulfilled dream of playing cricket for the National Women's Team and yet, did not let that stop her. She not only coached young aspiring cricketers – aged between eight and twenty, but also took care of them, brought them into her home, fed them and saw to their needs. Owing to the lack of resources and attention given to women's cricket, Farida Begum took it upon herself to provide as much support as the girls needed. Nine of the girls under her guidance went on to play for the National Women's Cricket Team.
Rubaiya Ahmedis an animal rights activist and founder of Obhoyaronno, an animal welfare organisation. She was behind the passing of the recent Animal Welfare Bill 2019. Advocacy takes a huge strain on people's mental health, as dealing with bureaucracy in Dhaka is a challenge of its own. Subsequently, Rubaiya feels that there is an important need for activists to often take a step back, to reevaluate the needs of the community.
Anannya Banik is a transgender (hijra) feminist social worker. Having grown up in a family who would not accept her, she left her home and found a community, which nurtured her. Her community voted for a new name for her and she began a new life. Now, she owns three beauty salons in Savar and promotes employment opportunities in the community.
Shabana Naved is a member of the Urdu speaking community. Maliha remembers her as the woman who never allowed her to be left hungry. It was always part of Shabana's culture for generations to see women coming together in times of crisis. Whether it is in the aftermath of a death in the community or the uncertainties a country faces during political unrest, groups of women would come together, grind spices, prepare food all night long, feed everyone the next day and finally eat together, before heading home.
Golpo Kantha also highlights how the majority of our tea workers are women who continue to successfully resist occupation, alongside striving for better health care, wages, maternity leave and other matters.
"The intention of our exhibition is to expose that the labour of love and care is just as impactful as working for survival, and in a way, challenge the social norm of overlooking the importance of these moments of kindness and passion," concludes Humayra.
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