The Dressmaker of Khair Khana: Five Sisters, One Remarkable Family, and the Woman Who Risked Everything to Keep Them Safe

The Dressmaker of Khair Khana: Five Sisters, One Remarkable Family, and the Woman Who Risked Everything to Keep Them Safe is the nonfiction debut of American journalist and author, Gayle Tzemach Lemmon, first published in 2011. It chronicles the story of Kamila Sidiqi, a young woman living under the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, who became a fashion entrepreneur at a time when the rights of women were strictly limited. Lemmon traveled to Afghanistan to study women entrepreneurs in conflict zones; she was fascinated by Sidiqi’s story and met with her and her family over the course of several trips to Afghanistan in 2005. Exploring themes of religion, women’s rights, determination and adaptability, and Afghani culture, The Dressmaker of Khair Khana was a bestseller and received overwhelming acclaim upon its release. It was praised for its in-depth portrayal of Afghani culture and its fascinating central figure.

Plot Summary

The book begins as Lemmon quits her job to earn an MBA focusing on international development. Seeking out female entrepreneurs in war zones, she travels to Kabul, Afghanistan in 2005 to study successful women making a living in the aftermath of Taliban rule. This is where she meets Kamila and her family. In 1996, Kamila is 19 and plans to be a teacher. Her father, a former military official, has encouraged her to study and pursue her dreams. However, the Taliban begins taking control of Afghanistan, one province at a time. Taliban forces begin brutally beating women who don’t conform to their standards of modesty, something Kamila’s older sister Malika witnesses while taking her sick son to the doctor.

Soon, women are banned from attending school and working, and cannot appear in public without a burka and a male escort. Although Kamila’s father tries to instill compassion in his daughters, he is soon forced to flee the country due to his ties to the previous government, and his daughters are left to fend for themselves in a hostile environment. Stuck at home with no male escort, it is especially hard on Kamila’s younger sister Saaman, an elite academic whose college career has been derailed. Kamila organizes a neighborhood book swap to allow Saaman to keep reading. She later hears of women running businesses out of their homes, and she considers sewing clothing to make money.

The sisters learn that their father is safe in Pakistan, and their mother and brother Najeeb leave to join him there. Kamila, with her younger brother Rahim as an escort, leaves the house to obtain materials and secure orders for her wares, a very dangerous mission. Using the alias “Roya,” Kamila obtains orders from local tailors, and she designs valuable dresses with the help of Malika, a skilled seamstress. Soon, demand eclipses their ability to produce dresses, and Sara, a local widow, becomes their first employee. Kamila hires other local women to work as seamstresses and comes up with the idea of starting a covert school in the Sidiqi home.

Hiring young women as apprentices, Kamila teaches them tailoring skills and allows them to earn a living in secret. When Kamila is hired to design dresses for a wedding, it’s a tall order, but she and her team manage. The wedding turns out to be for Taliban loyalists, and the bride tells the Taliban that they can trust Kamila. This makes it easier for Kamila to run her business and conceal her school. Mr. Sidiqi returns home briefly and is amazed by what his daughters have accomplished. He is on his way to Iran with Najeeb as they seek to avoid the Taliban.

In 1998, two women from UN Habitat recruit Kamila to be part of Community Forums, which aims to help Kabul residents learn business skills. It is a dangerous job, and Malika is upset, believing Kamila will put their family and business in jeopardy. Kamila takes the opportunity and learns more about the poverty and despair that has hit Kabul since the Taliban’s takeover. In 2000, Kamila is a successful entrepreneur and community leader. She’s on her way to attend a UN Habitat training session when the Taliban board their bus. Kamila’s fast talking convinces the Taliban soldier that they’re going to meet her brother. She later learns that a friend of hers was arrested in a separate sting.

In 2001, the US Army goes to war with the Taliban over their harboring of Osama Bin Laden and the 9/11 attacks. Kamila’s family huddles underground during the bombings, praying. In November, 2001 the Taliban withdraws from Kabul. The country is in chaos, but Kamila is determined that this is the beginning of a brighter future for her family. In 2005, when Lemmon meets Kamila for the first time, Kamila has become an official in Mercy Corps, a global aid organization, and continues to train women entrepreneurs in Afghanistan.