Crochet pillow covers, handkerchiefs, showpieces and other items were easily seen in every household at one time. In the changing times and the hustle and bustle of life, the woven items of Crochet had disappeared from homes and markets, but these days once again, people’s attraction towards clothes and jewellery made of Crochet has increased. Today we are going to introduce you to 52-year-old Vibha Srivastava living in Patna who is making beautiful and trendy jewellery from Crochet to children’s clothes, pillow covers. In Patna, she is known as ‘The Crochet Queen‘.
Speaking to Alpha News Call, Vibha spoke about how she took her hobbies and skills into a business over time and is now teaching other women as well.
Vibha says, “My maternal uncle is in Valmiki Nagar, which is on the Nepal border. In those days, there was no school and college in my maternal house, due to which I could study only till 10th standard. I wanted to study further but it was not possible. Instead of getting discouraged, I worked on my skills. There were many women in my neighbourhood doing crochet work. My mother was also good at this work. That’s why I also started learning all these things from him right from school time.”
However, even learning Croatian was no less than winning a battle for him. At that time there were not many facilities in his area. The situation was such that even crochet was not available for weaving in his village. So when he expressed his desire to learn this job, the problem was that he would have to go to the city to get to Croatia. His father was unable to go to the city. In such a situation, Vibha twisted an aluminium wire into the shape of a crochet and started weaving her dreams with the help of this. But she could not make it that good with her jugadoo crochet.
“Many times people would laugh at the things I made. I used to get very angry at that time and used to think to myself that one day I would also make beautiful designs,” she said.
Start making frocks
Vibha told that her marriage took place in the Chhapra district of Bihar and there also she started teaching this work to the girls nearby in the village. But as their children were growing up, they decided that they should go to a place where they could do well for their better future. Her husband was working in Patna and so she also started living with him along with her children. “But the expenses were a lot in the city, so I thought why not make my skills a source of income so that I can also contribute to the family. But didn’t understand how,” he said.
One day Vibha listened to the conversation of Usha Jha, president of Bihar Mahila Udyog Sangh, on the DD Bihar channel. She works to make women self-reliant. Vibha plans to meet Usha Jha and she succeeds in it. He told Usha Jha that she wanted to work but Usha was working more on Mithila painting at that time. But when Vibha tells him that she does a good job of crocheting, she asks Vibha to make a ‘baby frock’.
Vibha says, “Usha ordered the frock. I made a frock by buying wool worth Rs 80 from the market. I got 250 rupees for the frock and Usha told me that you already have the skills. work on this Later, with their help, I started getting orders.”
Soon the work of Vibha got underway. Along with getting orders for clothes, women also started coming to learn from them. She gives free training to women. She says that if a government organization calls for training, they are given a fee. She has taught this work to more than 1000 women till now.
Jewellery work started after clothes
He further told that many people started copying his work. So, he felt that he had to try something different and new. Then in 2012, he started making jewellery from Croatia. Today Vibha is known for its Crochet Jewellery. She says that she started with small things but today she is making new designs of jewellery using silk and zari.
Vibha also gets a lot of orders for jewellery. Some people get things made by ordering them directly, while many people buy and sell products from them. In this way, she is giving a means of employment to other people as well. Apart from this, 10 -12 women also work with them. He told that it is not possible for him to fulfil all the orders. That’s why she keeps other women connected with her so that her orders are fulfilled and women continue to get employment.
Chaya Kumar, who buys jewellery from Vibha, says, “I myself love Vibha’s jewellery. I not only take jewellery from them for myself, but I am also promoting it further. As an entrepreneur, it is my endeavour to promote such handmade things. That’s why I buy a lot of jewellery from them and make them available to the people ahead in my network.”
Vibha has also been awarded many honours for her art. She has received many honours like Karmaveer Award, Bihar Merit Award. These days she is giving free training to rural women to make them self-reliant.