It seems like the whole world is looking to India for its exquisite handlooms. Just ask Rajib Debnath, a sixth-generation muslin weaver from Kalna, West Bengal, who is sought after by fashion houses like Chanel and Gucci, or Pollachi-based Vijayalakshmi Nachiyar of Ethicus, an eco-conscious farm to fashion brand, whose handwoven fabric is favoured by the likes of designer, Donna Karan, who visited her store during her tour of India a few years ago.
In 2015, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London event held an exhibition titled The Fabric of India, which was an exploration of India’s diverse handwoven textiles.
On the field
The number of designers working directly with weavers and reviving their intricate weaves is quite substantial, but for our weaves to return to their former glory, there’s still quite a long way to go. Every way you look at it, power loom fabrics are much cheaper and faster to make, and takers for handwoven garments are niche and their numbers, paltry.
So what is the way forward?
“We need to nurture weavers with fair wages and support to ensure a thriving handloom industry,” shares Pavithra, but she believes that “Handlooms have and will always continue to exist.”
Hyderabad-based designer Jyoti Reddy, who had her first tryst with the Assamese weave, eri silk, around 15 years ago and has since taken her designs to exhibitions in New York and Paris, remarks that over a couple of years, she has seen an increase in curiosity and awareness of handlooms, new-found pride in our heritage and interest in preserving it. “The power loom destroyed traditional Indian weaves. Now, we can encourage the remaining few weavers to continue and train other young people. A consistent market distribution system that absorbs handloom products in different price ranges can make it less niche.”
While we’re debating changes that need to be made to draw more craftsmen into the fold, one can only conclude that the method of creating these garments too warrant certain adjustments to make them more relevant to the modern consumer. “The handloom industry is going through rapid change. The future is in niche, innovative and quality products. It has to be fashion-forward,” offers Vijayalakshmi Nachiyar.
But no one puts it better than Raw Mango’s Sanjay Garg when he says, “I can’t tell the future, but I can tell you what I want to see: handloom being worn and bought because it represents good design, not only because it is only ‘handloom’. I’d like to see handlooms producing something that other textiles can’t. To achieve all this, there is still a lot of work to do, and not necessarily from designers alone. The media, government and weavers all have a role to play.”
Right foot forward
Designers aside, young minds have woken up to the dangers of losing our heritage weaves:
GoCoop: An online marketplace where handloom and handicraft co-operatives and artisans can connect directly with buyers.
Inde’ Loom: A maker-to-market handloom collective and online boutique that works directly with weavers and artisans to upskill and train them, ensuring fair practices.
Fabric Monde: An online store selling handloom fabric to designers and brands. Their products range from fabric made with cotton, linen and bamboo to silk, hemp and jute.
Loom People: A source for hand-woven, sustainable textiles from Gujarat. and Assam.