Zainab Market's a favourite among foreigners for its Sindhi handicrafts

The handicrafts markets of the city, the biggest one of which happens to be at Zainab Market in Saddar, boast of all kinds of handicrafts.

There are metal handicrafts, truck art handicrafts with small truck, bus and rickshaw models, lanterns, etc, but the most handicrafts that you see here are the Sindhi handicrafts starting from the popular Sindhi cap, ajrak and ralli quilts to susi fabric dresses and suits, ajrak print kurtis, mirror-work bags, pouches and wallets, beaded keychains, ballpoint pens, bed sheets, embroidered chadors, decoration pieces and children’s toys such as palanquins, or palki, for dolls.

The market is very popular with foreigners, who buy lots of handicrafts for not just themselves but also as souvenirs for friends back home. They are also the ones who happily pay whatever is told to them as the cost for these things.

The local buyers, meanwhile, indulge in much bargaining, forcing the shopkeepers to bring down their prices. Then the shopkeepers too know how to get the most out of the merchandise.

For instance, only an expert would know the difference between a Rs500 and a Rs4,000 glittering Sindhi cap. “Yes, there is a big price difference between the machine-embroidered and the hand-embroidered Sindhi cap, which very few can tell apart,” one seller of Sindhi handicrafts smilingly admits.

The shopkeepers also have a way of winning the bargain debate with local customers. “This? I saw this in Hyderabad for almost half of what you are asking for it,” says a female customer. And the shopkeeper quickly responds by pointing it out, never mind if it is true or false, that what she saw must have been of a poorer quality therefore cheaper.

He may also challenge her further by asking her why she didn’t buy it in Hyderabad if she was getting a reasonable price there. Or continue with his theory of poorer quality for things such as the fabric material, thread, mirror, craftsmanship ... as if they themselves have the best quality!

An ajrak that is just a print is not an original and most definitely not a handicraft. Neither is the machine-embroidered Sindhi cap! Handicrafts are exactly that, meaning made with hands. And the people who make these know their crafts well and deserve top price for them as they are home-based workers who do not even get any other rights which factory workers get, such as gratuity or pension. They also have no fixed working hours. Then some of these handicrafts, such as the ralli quilts take a long time to make. These are really labours of love. Some are not even intended for sale as they get passed down generation to generation as cherished heirlooms.

Originally published in Dawn, October 21st, 2018