KHETA, an embroidery exhibition of lesser-known reversible quilts made by Shershabadi women from Bihar’s Kishanganj district, will be held at the National Crafts Museum & Hastkala Academy, Bhairon Marg, Pragati Maidan, New Delhi, from March 4 to April 3, 2022, from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Originally settled in the Malda district of Bangladesh on land given by Emperor Sher Shah Suri (who ruled from 1486 to 1545 A.D.), the Shershabadi community has migrated along the rivers and settled in Kishanganj and neighbouring districts of Bihar and Bengal in India.
Delicate yet densely patterned with vibrant colours, the Kheta embroidery is a kind of quilting (the art of stitching layers of fabrics) that has survived the onslaught of time and shares a similar origin with other recycled quilting techniques, “Kantha” of Bengal and “Sujni” of Bihar.