Zaina

Zaina, an all-women-led social enterprise that works with small communities of craftspeople in faraway places affected by decades of violence, faces a complex process with many challenges. It brings products derived from traditional crafts and knowledge, sourced from villages across the Valley in Kashmir, India. The brand helps generate incomes, sustain livelihoods, and preserve age-old handcraft techniques. A decade of work in the Valley in the space of artisanal development, with the idea of reorienting Kashmir's craft to a modern context, has ensured that each product developed has a design with utilitarian value and a contemporary aesthetic. This has resulted in a series of designs interpreting the 600-year-old crafts of Kashmir, such as papier-mâché, walnut wood, copper, and embroideries in the home and lifestyle space, which includes home décor, lighting, dining accessories, toys, bags, home furnishings, garments, and jewelry.

Purpose

Zaina stands with a vision to put the crafts of Kashmir back on the map of global contemporary design, using traditional and fair-trade practices. The brand believes that good design is at the core of making its crafts and the livelihoods of artisans sustainable. These crafts—and the stories that come with them—form the foundation of each Zaina product. The organization is a celebration of the crafts and craftspeople of Kashmir, contemporized yet retaining Kashmir’s unique traditions and skills. Its endeavor is to bridge the gap between creatively rich Kashmir and the contemporary Indian and global customer by bringing customers a choice of well-designed, skillfully crafted products from the Valley. The brand strives to discover the best designs from artisans and craftsmen in Kashmir, deliver them at exceptional value to customers, and remain focused on fair-trade practices.

People

Zaina's parent organization is commitment to Kashmir, which has been working in Kashmir since 2011 through its end-to-end entrepreneurship-building and mentorship program. It has been creating sustainable craft enterprises and livelihoods for the hundreds of artisans they, in turn, support. The brand has impacted around 300 artisan families involved in craft, with their monthly incomes improving and becoming steady through these interventions. Their artisans have become agents of change in Kashmir, especially the younger generation of craftspeople, who have set an example by taking up traditional crafts as a means of employment. They remain purposefully engaged, staying away from militancy through meaningful involvement in their work. There is also greater self-confidence and improved self-esteem in their work, positively impacting the overall mental health of a community facing decades of strife. Its work with languishing crafts has been a step toward reviving dying craft practices.

Planet

Kashmir’s handcrafted heritage has always drawn inspiration from the environment. Traditional craft techniques of Kashmir have deep-rooted upcycling practices, which are distinctly reflected in Zaina’s range of products. All their handmade products conserve natural resources and ensure minimal to zero carbon emissions, thereby protecting the planet.