This shawl depicts Pashtun identity, embroidery, calligraphy, and tappay (songs) entwined to carry memory and the enduring spirit of Pashtun culture in the diaspora.
Master of Design
This project attempts to revive Pashtun identity through a velvet shawl intertwining Pashtu language, memory, and design. Created with laser etching and digital embroidery, featuring tappay (Pashtu poetry) representing Pashtunwali rendered in calligraphy chosen by community participants and transformed into motifs. The engraved tappay and embroidered codes form a living narrative of Pashtun values, women’s voices, and cultural resilience, pioneering a contemporary expression of tradition within the Pashtun diaspora of Aotearoa
