Kashmiri women have talent in abundance and left no field where they have not marked their special position. After Apparels, bakery, Administrationetc, now the women of Kashmir are exploring the field of footwear.
Meet Nusaiba Bhat, “The Jutti Maker of Kashmir”
Her schooling was from Presentation Convent Higher Secondary School which was followed by her Bachelor’s in Commerce from Navakadal College. She did her Masters in Finance and Control (MFC) from Kashmir University.
She started her professional career at Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) Mumbai. After that she worked as a credit officer at India Infoline Finance in Delhi.
She got married in September 2017 and then stayed back in Kashmir. She then took up diploma courses in designing, pattern making, garment construction, art of footwear making etc.
Since childhood she was always curious about fabrics, she had a habit of feeling and understanding the intricacies of various fabrics. With this curiosity she traveled across 8 states in India to find the best quality fabrics & leather which goes in making of a perfect and comfortable footwear. With all her learnings and experience in hand she decided to create her own brand which she named “Cilwana”.
In June 2018 she started with a WhatsApp group, followed by an Instagram page and received overwhelming response for her work. Now she has started her clothing line as well.
CIlwana’s objective is to have top notch quality Juttis and clothing available to customers. She hand pick each and every product that goes in making the footwear as well as her clothing line.
Cilwana recently tied up with Tul palav as well, they are the footwear partners for many of their campaigns.
Soon Cilwan will be introducing Kashmir craft Aari work and Tilla in Juttis.
The special about Cilwan other than its hand picked material and using Kashmir craft, they have got own Kashmiri artisans involved. They are hoping of making it big globally for this segment.
They thought of putting their products on display so that people could have a feel and touch of their products, the quality and designs. They also have a wide variety of apparels focusing mainly on pure Lucknowi chikenkari with hand embroidery of Mukaish, Gottapati, Pita work etc in their store
In five years they want to be on top in our industry. They would love to be a brand to which others can go for ideas and strategy.
Readers can buy by getting in touch with them on their Instagram page (Cilwana Studio) or by visiting their store at Radio Colony, Rajbagh
