PM Narendra Modi gifts Kutchi art to Danish queen, joy crowns artisans

AHMEDABAD: PM Narendra Modi on Wednesday gifted a Rogan artwork to Margrethe II, the queen of Denmark. The piece was created in Nirona, Kutch, by Abdul Gafur Khatri, an artist who has won a Padma Shri. The images of the gift were shared widely on social media.
Talking to TOI, Khatri said that it was great news. “Earlier, a piece was gifted to the US president at the time, Barack Obama.” Khatri added: “Every time a high-profile person gets such a gift, our inquiries rise manifold.”
Was the piece, depicting a tree of life, commissioned? Khatri said that they get inquiries for VVIP gifts and they share some concepts.The ones liked by the patrons are created and sent. “We never know for whom a piece is created. All are special for us,” he said.
Another piece, a Kutchi wall hanging, was gifted by PM Modi to Mette Frederiksen, his Danish counterpart. The art is indicative of Kutchi embroidery, said experts.
Earlier, the PM had gifted Sedali, a sitting desk made in Surat, to German chancellor Olaf Scholz. The state’s artisans and NGOs working with grassroots organizations said that the gesture of the PM is bringing little known art to the global stage.
They said the PM’s act will surely provide an impetus to the art forms and open up an international market for the products.