Razia Somro: A warrior at heart

Razia Somro is a resident of Bhit Shah Sindh. She has been working with Ajrak making and their raw materials. She talks passionately about the art of Ajrak making. The generational knowledge she has accumulated over the decades can shine through when she talks about the art of Ajrak making. She knows every detail about the process and the art. Her whole family is involved in the craft. Her husband, her seven kids are as involved as her.

It’s my life, she says about the craft. I lived my whole life making Ajraks, she says. But everything has changed. The water for the treatment has become scarce.  It’s either flooding or very little water. Climate change is affecting these small businesses in the area. Now they have to travel to far places to treat the products. Water bodies are becoming distant every season. The cost of making an Ajrak are increasing without the market prices going up.  The economy isn’t helping either. The material used in the Ajrak making has become so expensive. It has become impossible to maintain the art and survive at the same time. Her family has been going through hard times and she is looking for a way out of this