By Eleanor Mikkimchi Sangma
When you step inside Daisy Christine Momin’s home, you can feel the essence of Garo culture in every nook and corner. Hardwood floors, wooden beams and rustic walls are embellished with décor reminiscent of traditional tribal architecture. An echo of the rural in the urban writes Eleanor Mikkimchi Sangma in this review.
Daisy Momin is an entrepreneur, an artisan, a designer, and a repository of knowledge on A.chik culture and traditions. From reviving the dying arts of pottery, natural dye and loin loom weaving to receiving major recognition from the Indian fashion industry, Daisy has built a legacy that celebrates the Garo tribal heritage. Her artistic journey can be traced back to her childhood.
“Every single member of my family has been an art enthusiast for as long as I can remember”, she says. In their own way, they’ve always been inspired by art. Daisy herself grew up making flower crafts and macrame art. “My siblings and I were influenced by our parents, and encouraged further by the free atmosphere they brought us up in”, she tells me. They had the freedom to create whatever their little hearts wanted and make a mess anywhere. She recalls days when her brothers would make huge banners inside the house and leave the floor a colourful mess of red, yellow and blue. There were no consequences, nothing holding them back. Her parents cultivated in them, a love for art since childhood.
However, she was more inclined towards kitchen work and household chores, while her brothers used to stitch clothes for kids. Her parents convinced her to help her brothers out with their work and start earning for herself as well. That would lead her to design a flower bouquet and a bridal headpiece for her sister’s wedding, which would eventually lead her to start a business of wedding accessories. Accessories were available in Shillong and Guwahati but back in those days, travelling was a whole day’s ordeal and not as easy or fast as it is today. She started the business with the intention of cutting the travel time short and helping people. “I initially started on a small scale for people I knew, but word soon spread across Garo Hills”, she says. She was self-employed for the next two years before she applied for a government job following her father’s retirement.
Growing up having made macrame lampshades and wall hangings, Daisy wanted to experiment more with the art. In 1994, she started making a macrame dresses. However, her work would keep her from focusing on her art. Her college-going niece was the one who would come home after class and work on the dress. “She wanted to participate in a fashion show which was being organised by the Ladies Club”, she recalls. She was against it, but eventually caved seeing how determined her niece was. The complete macrame dress, paired with the traditional pong (scoop made of dried gourd) on her niece’s hair and other wooden accessories won the judges over.
After that first show, Daisy started getting offers to participate in other pageants and shows. “What’s good about these shows is that a designer’s hard work gets appreciated by people in the industry”, she says.
In 1999, she got the opportunity to present her designs in front of a panel that consisted of Ritu Kumar and other well-known craftspeople. The response was overwhelming. For the show, she emphasised traditional designs. “They weren’t anything fancy, but that was the first time they were being exposed to the Garo culture”. The uniqueness of the designs caught their eye, and the designer received immense appreciation. Apart from showcasing the tribal culture, she also used eco-friendly materials. She had unconsciously cultivated a taste for sustainable materials from her mother who would always look for the best cotton or linen fabrics.
The experiences in these fashion shows sparked a sense of urgency in her to preserve and revive the traditional clothing of the Garo tribe.
Daisy feels that society has become highly Westernised in terms of clothing and fashion. It is evident in the way we look up more to Western celebrities dubbed as “fashion icons” for the most stylish fits. She says, “The importance of traditional and cultural clothing is fizzling out as we lose our grip on our heritage”.
While there are attempts to hold onto our history, the very core of it seems to have been lost in translation. In modern times, people are using acrylic fibres in the making of dakmandas. These synthetic fibres are known to bleed microplastics and pose risks to the environment as well as human health in the long run. She tells me she still has dakmandas preserved for over three decades which are made of good quality cotton. Talking about modern designs, she says the flower patterns which adorn the clothing are not related to A.chik culture in any way. “Flowers such as the rose and tulips are not native to our land”, she says. She prefers geometrical designs such as diamonds and crosses which are signature patterns that take shape in the process of weaving. These patterns have been prominent in the traditional Garo attire for ages.
In an attempt to preserve culture through her designs, the artist is incorporating Garo motifs featuring dikka (earthen pitcher used in the preparation of traditional rice beer), lao (gourd) and pong into her dakmandas. For the same reason, she has been working for decades to revive the traditional re.king or e.king and gana ripok.
“Our A.chik culture is fading away with our youth being unaware of the intricacies of the culture and traditions of our tribe”. She feels this is the right time to work towards their preservation.
Last year, the Meghalaya government announced plans for a Garo heritage village where the arts, crafts and traditions of the tribe will be showcased. Located in the village of Chibragre, which is easily accessible even to the urban population, Daisy is of the opinion that people who might want to learn about the same do not have to travel to remote places any longer. The project aims to preserve and educate people about the tribal culture.
“If our youth can cultivate an interest in our own customs and traditions without leading an extremely Westernised life, it will help preserve and promote Garo culture immensely”, she adds.
Over the years, the artisan has been recognised for her contributions to the revival of Garo art forms and traditions. Her creative process has allowed her to go back to her roots, which has, in turn, allowed her every creation to carry the ethos of the hill folk of Garo Hills.