SIDDI KAWANDI QUILT - Reflected LIght

Siddi Kawandi Hand Stitched cotton quilt.

'Siddi' refers to the ethnic group of African descent who create and specialise in these vibrant quilts, 'Kowdi' or 'Kawandi' is the Siddi word for the quilt itself.

Crafted using traditional methods passed down through generations of Siddi women in India, each Kawandi is a labor of love—meticulously pieced together from repurposed fabrics and hand-stitched with threads to create bold, colorful patterns that tell a story of resilience, community, and creativity.

Kawandi are often called patchwork quilts, but technically they are made in an appliqué technique. The stitches add a distinctive ‘rhythm’ that is regarded as the part of the ‘visual signature’ of the maker, along with the colours, designs, shapes and sizes of the cloth patches that individuals choose to use.

Each corner of the quilt has one or more folded square patches, which form a multi-layered triangle called a phula, or ‘flower.’ and are regarded as essential to a properly finished or ‘dressed’ Siddi quilt. A kawandi would be regarded as ‘naked’ without the phula.