ISLAMABAD: Home-based artisans from across the country showcased their hand-made products in a one day cultural mela at the Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA) on Sunday.

The Sakafat Mela was hosted by Sakafat in collaboration with Rural Support Program Network and the EU funded Sindh Union Council and Community Economic Strengthening Support.

The festival featured a seminar, a theatre play, and a craft bazaar offering a variety of hand-made products including embroidered clothes, jewellery, home decor items, bags, truck art, dolls, chunri dupatta and traditional food. There were also stalls for palm reading, face painting and henna application.

Most of the stallholders were young girls or housewives who work from home.

Bisma Noor, a resident of Islamabad, has established a business of selling traditional khussas online. She had set up a stall of the colourful footwear at the festival.

Talking to Dawn she said starting a business was hard at first as she had to work with artisans from far flung areas like Faisalabad, Multan and Lahore.

“Now that the business is somewhat established, the operation is a bit easier. I run my business online which needs a lot of time,” she said.

Mohammad Yousaf from Peshawar was showcasing embroidered clothes made by home-based workers from various areas such as Tharparker, Swat, Cholistan and Balochistan as well as India.

Saba Saeed, a visitor to the festival said it was good to have such events on the weekends so that more people can enjoy the colours of Pakistan’s culture and heritage.

“I never miss opportunities of enjoying traditional food, wonderful handmade products and loud folk music. I also purchased a loom weaved hand bag from a stall set up by a girl from Abbottabad. Its vibrant colours are amazing and it is hard to find such products in the market,” she said.

A seminar on poverty reduction through women empowerment was also held at the PNCA auditorium where speakers discussed factors responsible for gender based biases and solutions for such issues.

The seminar was followed by a theatre play titled Roshniat, which was performed by True Theatre. The play was addressed the issue of early marriages in Pakistan.

Main character in the play, Nilo, was shown to be facing various health issues due to early marriages and was shown to be a victim of domestic violence. It followed Nilo’s life as she starts a career as a social worker.

The event also included many cultural performances such as an attan by Khanzada Asfandyar Khattak and Sufi songs by the Bakshi brothers, among others.

Published in Dawn, June 25th, 2018