Nadir Wighio, a master woodblock maker, is the only old craftsman, who along with his three young cousins, supplies blocks to the entire ajrak-making industry. All the 70 Sindhi shawl workshops, located in different towns of the province, completely rely on Nadir’s woodblocks as there’s no other way as well as vendor where they can be sourced from.
BUSINESS
Nadir Wighio, a master woodblock maker, is the only old craftsman, who along with his three young cousins, supplies blocks to the entire ajrak-making industry. All the 70 Sindhi shawl workshops, located in different towns of the province, completely rely on Nadir’s woodblocks as there’s no other way as well as vendor where they can be sourced from.
This small group of craftsmen engaged in block-making, originally belong to Saeedi Mosani Village near Mehar Town in Dadu district. They migrated some 25 years back and settled in Bhitshah artisans’ colony, Matiari district.
“Other than my family members, there are no skilled craftsmen, who can do this work. We are the last of the Ajrak-printing woodblock makers in Pakistan. For generations, these crafters have been working from dawn till dusk every day to carve out elaborate patterns on the wooden blocks. Each one of them usually takes a week or two to make a new set of 5-7 blocks separately to earn a livelihood that hardly helps him make ends meet for his family,” Nadir said.
According to these artisans, their work comes to a halt as the sun disappears in the west, because they fear working in the dark, even under the light of electric bulbs, may harm their eyesight. “This is a work that taxes your eyesight even in the daylight as it demands pinpoint concentration. So you have to save your eyes for tomorrow to survive.”
Nadir was born and schooled in village Saeedi Mosani in Dadu Distric. He discontinued his education after finishing primary school.
Looking back, Nadir said he had just passed the fifth- grade when his father, the only bread-winner of his family, died. After this devastating blow, his maternal uncle Ustad Wali Muhammad Wighio, a woodblock making legend, adopted him and took him under his wing. Nadir Wighio devoted himself to the art of woodblock making, and after four years of hard work under the eagle-eye of his uncle, he himself became a master of the trade.
“It was the beginning; my true mastery took at least 10 long years of work to come. It needs passion and a continuous effort to learn. We are ready to transfer this skill to others to save the traditional industry, which engages hundreds of artisans now,” he said proudly.
“New designs are emerging in market and they have to switch hands as per need. Presently, it is a challenge because these artisans do not have an option other than our family to produce these items. We had never expected such an overwhelming demand of woodblocks.”
Despite his meagre education, Nadir is likely blessed with an eidetic or photographic memory. He claims to have been able to memorise every intricate detail of the patterns only after looking at them once and can reproduce the exact copy on a piece of wood with his simple iron tools. The immensity of his works can be approximated by the fact that he can’t even reckon how many blocks with how many designs he has made in his life.
“Besides the art designs, I can design a variety of flowers, stars, moon, sun along with every symbol used in ajrak printing like common birds, pigeon, peacocks, sparrow; animals like goat, cow, camel, elephants, horse; reptiles like cobra, crocodiles etc. It is up to the clients’ choice. I can only make one block in two days after working eight hours a day.”
They work manually with traditional tools to make the holes, patterns, and designs as per the market demand. They do not use electric drills or other common machinery used in carpentry. For this, they justify that it is a care-intensive work, which can only be done with the help of these tools. That is why nobody can replicate these blocks through original work.
Nadir buys wooden blocks from the local market. Before sharpening/smoothening them, he cuts the woodblocks to the right measure. “We can easily spot any defects in the raw wood. Our valued clients do not except any defects, thus we have to be careful. This is the only way trust is built, and we do all that it takes to make our work transparent,” he said.
“Once I was given photographs of 50 males and females at a private institution in Karachi. I was told that these images are to be made into designs on woodblock. It took me six months to carve those human portraits. I was showered with praise after accomplishing that feat. Since then, I have designed logos, symbols, and maps for many other institutions.”
There is a serious need for a new breed of master artisans to save this cultural identity of Sindh. Nadir said some young men did come to him for training, but only a couple or more learned a little and are now trying to continue this art at two workshops in Bhitshah.
“It is going to take years before they will be able to master this rare art,” Nadir said.
The writer is a staff member
