bead jewellery
Keeping Kalbeliya tradition beaded together
Twice a child bride, Sushila Nath – a single mother of three now – makes a living rearing cattle and working as a farm labourer. But her passion is preserving her tribe’s Kalbeliya jewellery and dance and making it commercially sustainable.
Kalbeliya beadwork hanging by a thread
Most famous for their ‘snake charmer’ dance, the Kalbeliya tribes have another precious legacy they are desperate to preserve and earn a livelihood from - the unique bead jewellery that is part of their costume.