Musafir; Journeying Through Liminal Space

Musafir is a deeply personal exploration of transition, identity, and cultural integration. This two-part project reflects my own journey of navigating between spaces—both physical and emotional—as I moved between cultures.

Part 1: Artifacts – Stages of Gradual Integration
In this segment, I created three artifacts representing the three stages of cultural assimilation:

Emergence – Silk whispers of home, adorned with hand embroidered Chikankari’s tender touch. Pleats unfurl the layers of my heritage, deep and unshaken.

Confluence – Lace-like cuts and creeping threads weave my story—roots reaching, identity shifting, a quiet merging of past and present.

Entwinement – Pleats reverse, cultures entwine. Inked in tradition, sculpted in modernity—a tapestry of two lands, folded into one.

Each piece combines traditional Indian embroidery with Nottingham lacework, bringing together heritage and modernity. I used laser-cutting, pleating, and embroidery techniques to symbolize the layering of experiences.
The fabric pleating setup, which I personally explored and executed, adds depth and dimension, mirroring the complexities of cultural transformation.