A designated day for celebration of the Indian textile heritage is an unprecedented concept that was initiated under the Lakme Fashion Week banner a while back. In the beginning, the work showcased on that day oscillated between garbled and tedious but a short span of time the vocabulary has found a refinement of understanding and deep appreciation.
The sustainable fashion market was shackled in traditional ‘zari’ saris and shapeless garments. A spate of talented designers with deep understanding of the weaves and a repertoire of clever cuts shifted the premise and shattered the correlation between handlooms and the ‘jholawaalas’. Now these garments are regarded as the preferred clothing for uber chic and style icons.
‘Sustainable Fashion and Indian Textile Day’ at Lakme Fashion Week has been the meeting ground of these designers from the varied parts of the country and the dazzling, glamorous runway. The empowered set of patrons of sustainable fashion now has an address.
The first show #MADEINASSAM, three diverse protagonists of Assamese heritage weaves had come together to showcase the myriad appeal of this textile.
*The first on the runway was Aagor by ANTS craft, an NGO that since 2002 has nurtured about 150 marginalised tribal women weavers of strife torn areas by teaching and providing weaving work, health care so as to afford them the freedom to stay with their families.
Keenly feeling the disparity and distance in the growing commercial success of textiles and the absence of Northeastern offerings, Pranami Kalita started her label Pariah to bridge that gap showcasing garments skilfully crafted from traditional, luxurious silks like Paat, Eri and Muga.
Anuradha Kuli of – Naturally Anuradha is an Award Winning Master Weaver with 25 years of intense hard work behind her and has risen from grass roots to a space of nurturing a growing community of weavers. She is a revivalist of forgotten weaves and boldly works with natural dyes and hand-spun Eri threads to offer saris that have an exceptional appeal. Vintage embroidery revivalist Purvi Patel teamed these saris with contemporary cut blouses.
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