Introducing Stitches In Time’s Food Enterprise Project – Deshi Shad

Stitches in Time is a community arts, education and enterprise charity based in East London. They are launching an exciting new Food Enterprise Project – Deshi Shad –  with Bangladeshi women in Tower Hamlets from September to December this year.  The aim is to practically support innovative & creative ideas to help into employment people living in a borough with the greatest levels of inequality in the country. We are delighted to help them with their mission to demonstrate that Bengali women too can work in the food industry.  Find out more in an introductory video we helped to produce with Aida Khan of Shola Kitchen.

Much like the values of our Women in the Food Industry, the Stitches in Time food project aims to raise the profile of women in the industry by raising awareness of opportunities, addressing challenges, and celebrating achievements. Over the course of the project the charity aims to run street food market stalls, cater for private events, provide cooking lessons, and finally set up the first women run curry house pop-up on Brick Lane!  This will take place on the evening of 5th December 2019.

Their project has been designed for and by Bangladeshi women from the local area, who are incredible chefs with a wealth of knowledge about Bangladeshi cuisine.  With so much of the nation’s focus on South Asian cuisine, plus with the London skills shortages surrounding Brexit we applaud the project for wanting to explore the many business opportunities now available to those wanting to turn their passion into a career.

Most recently a number of women from the project visited Asma Khan at her female run kitchen Darjeeling Express – which was the subject of the award-winning Netflix The Chefs’ Table – to hear her supportive words & see her all female kitchen brigade. See the video above.

We were delighted to support their project and loved how many women including  Aida Khan,  Angela Malik, Dina Begum, Rukia Begum, Lorna Nanda Gangotra, Urvashi Roe, Asma Khan, Rosana McPhee and more have given their time and support on a series of workshops to highlight their work. It’s all about empowering women who are clearly great cooks but may currently lack the skills and business know-how to develop their talents.

You can find out more about Stitches in Time & Deshi Shad on their website and follow them on Twitter  @StitchesinTime_ or Instagram @stitchesintime_ here. 

Thanks so much to Aida Khan & Asma Khan for their time with the videos.  You can catch up with our interview with Aida Khan about setting up her new restaurant in White City Place and how her family were involved in the process.