Women across Kashmir are engaged in the crafts of spinning and hand-embroidery, often to provide additional income. In other cases, as a result of years of conflict and harsh living conditions in this Himalayan state, there are thousands of widows and half-widows seeking part time employment to enable them to survive without being reduced to begging alonside raising their families.

Working from home or in small women’s sewing circles, these ladies are immensely talented in the art of hand-embroidery. The atmosphere in these groups changes from hour to hour, from meditative devotion to girlish banter, jokes and singing.