Tribal woman sets new trend with 'Potli'

Rangareddy: Taking the traditional craftsmanship beyond the ambit of rural areas, the woman folk of Tribal thandas in the Rangareddy district are now making a killing out of their legerdemain skills more independently by weaving glittering fabric craft items that are even attracting fashion connoisseurs.

Though there are hundreds of such craft items accustomed in the traditional tribal life and traditionally crochet by the tribal people, but the colourful sling bag made up of fabric studded with cowrie shells is the most attractive one among all the artful fabric crafts that sets a new trend among the women and girls from all walks of life and especially from well off families.

"This enchanting slinging gift pouch called 'POTLI' is one among the several other fabric craft items put on display during a workshop being organized in a conference hall of Tribal Welfare Department (TWD) in the city last month. Visitors were fascinated with the way this particular gift pouch is being prepared by the tribal women who were cut especially for these sorts of traditional tribal stuff from their young," informed Dr Dyavanapalli Satyanarayana, Curator, Nehru Centenary Tribal Museum (NCTM), Hyderabad.

Tailored by a tribal women Laxmibai of Yellamma thanda of Manchal mandal in Rangareddy district, this multicolour sling bag Potli is a new improved version of the earlier one called 'Kothli' used to called among the lambada local parlance. The potli became a cynosure during the event that soon attracted many fashion connoisseurs in the city and became the talk of the town.

"We used to make fabric crafts and other items since the last 25 years but the Potliis something special among all the other items. We mooted an idea of gift pouch to set a new trend at ceremonies where people can use it to gift money or something special to the receiver," said elated Laxmibai, the women behind the concept of attractivepouchPotli, a new trendsetter in the craft world.

"Though there are nearly 200 women presently involved in craft making since the last 25 years but I used to pick up making Potli independently since the last five years along with a team of five other women folk in the village," explained Laxmibai who studied only till 7th class before being introduced herself into the realm of traditional craft making.

Though there is a long drawn history behind the journey that transformed the Kothli concept into a new version of Potli' she said, adding that "All that begins about 25 years ago when Satyawathi, member of Craft Council of India (CCI) first visited the tribal village of Yellamma and hands an idea of commercializing the legerdemain skills of womenfolk to make them financially independent.