Maria B, which is a prestigious Pakistani brand, is owned by Maria butt. Maria Butt has been really vocal about the Palestinian cause. She has taken over social media multiple times and praises Palestinians for their ground-breaking sturdiness.
She went on Instagram and announced her collection by saying “a tribute to the enduring spirit of our Ummah Falesteen”. She later on added that she won’t be making a single penny from this collection. The revenue generated from this collection will be donated to the Palestinians.
The collection itself is completely inspired by the Palestinian culture. 2 piece, 3 piece and T-shirts as well as jewelry and accessories. Every single piece is adorned with some kind of Palestinian recognition. Palestinian map, the use of the watermelon as well as the use of keffiyeh is seen throughout.
Earlier than that, Pakistani artist Nomi Ansari also launched a campaign that was meant to raise awareness for the Palestinian cause. But he didn't make any claims for the earned money to be donated to Palestine. He named his campaign “Threads of hope” as to keep the Palestinian’s enduring spirit alive in our hearts.
People have responded to the collection in a rather skeptical way. Even though a lot of people supported Maria B’s attempt to help the Palestinians, many were unconvinced of her intentions. People went as far as saying that she was capitalizing on a tragedy. And her claim towards donating all the funds to Palestine didn't seem as thorough because donations in those territories have been blocked due to restrictions. Every coin has two sides to it. Pakistanis have donated around 240 Billion Rupees this year which proves that we are doing everything we can to support our Palestinian family.
The controversy was further alleviated when one of the designs by Maria B were claimed to be plagiarized and originally belonged to a Turkish artist Hacı Balina Atölye. The design was a Palestinian boy under the rubble with olive trees around him .Maria B. was accused of stealing from another artist and using it in her collection.
The controversy further spiraled when Maria b went on Instagram and called it an “unintentional oversight”. She was of the idea that everyone goes through a million images everyday on social media and it is common for such things to happen. She also added that the young artist is happy to collaborate with her on such a noble cause. We later saw Atölye post a story of Maria B’s collection and caption it as “my artwork in Pakistan”.
Even though her efforts towards supporting this noble cause are appreciable, it is true that she used another artist’s design without her consent. Everyone has an opinion on this unique yet thought provoking collection but it inspires other Pakistani designers to speak up about Palestine. Palestinians and their strength during this massacre is something that will be remembered till the end of time.
Wrapping it all up, there are a few doubtful things about this collection. Stealing from another artist added to the mix of skepticism. But it is undeniable that the best way to raise awareness is to talk about it as much as you can. Many people respect and support her creative yet noble designs. Her collection has people talking about Palestine and its cause and it is even more admirable if these funds reach our Palestinian Brothers and Sisters.