July 14-18

This period was spent in Lucknow, a city associated with a rich Muslim culture during the 18th and 19th centuries. Several talks were given by notables of Lucknow providing important background to Lucknow’s artistic, literary and religious traditions. This was followed by visits to Lucknow’s mosques, temples, imambaras, the British Residency (the site of the so-called Mutiny of 1857-58) and even houses built by the Europeans who provided Lucknow’s Muslim rulers with European goods. The workshop also went to a Hindi movie, giving students insight into popular Indian culture. Some of us visited a popular Muslim shrine where once again we heard qawwali performed. Highlights of this tour included dinner at the home of Dr. Salim Kidwai, one of our contacts in Lucknow, who provided the students with home-made delicacies of Lucknow’s famous cuisine. Another inspiring highlight was the visit to SEWA, a cooperative of women workers who are involved in the Chikan tradition of Lucknow. Chikan is a type of embroidery particular to this city. Here under the guidance of Rana Banerjee, poor Muslim women are able to improve their status in society by earning a decent wage and learning to read and write as well as educate their children. The spirit of these women, who are taught to respect all the religious and cultural traditions of India, was truly inspiring.

~Cathy