Rolex Enterprise Award for gujarat embroidery artist

SINGAPORE: Chanda Shroff, a septuagenarian homemaker who revived a dying traditional form of hand embroidery in Gujarat's Kutch region, on Wednesday bagged the $ 100,000 Rolex Awards for Enterprise, becoming the first Indian to win the prestigious prize.

Shroff, who runs an NGO 'Shrujan' in Bhuj region of Kutch, was among the five persons -- three women and two men -- selected for the biennial award instituted to recognise contributions to science, technology, environment, exploration and cultural heritage which has helped expand knowledge base.

A native of Bhuj, the 73-year-old housewife has been working tirelessly to preserve various forms of hand embroidery which were on the verge of extinction in the face of large-scale mechanisation and the advent of synthetic fabrics.

"She has spent almost 38 years, half of her life, to teach village women the exquisite craft which we will not be able to see even in Tokyo or Milan," Rebecca Irvin, director of the Rolex Awards for Excellence, told reporters here while announcing the awards.

Started off as a small self-help group providing raw materials and technical assistance to a handful of women to create a sustainable means of income for them, the activities of Shrujan has benefitted over 22,000 women from 120 villages spread across Kutch and helped conserving the exquisite craft of Kutchi embroidery.