In a colourful ocean of saris, sails cultural impresario Shobha Deepak Singh, at her latest exhibition of heirloom weaves called Vastra Shobha. As she settles the pallu of a deep maroon and black Benarasi sari that is depicted in one of celebrated painter, Raja Ravi Varma’s work of a Maharashtrian lady, at the National Gallery of Modern Art, she says with pride, “Antique weaves are our antiquity. Their attractiveness is irreplaceable. This particular sari is an ode to that.”
History is testimony to the glory of saris. A version of this popular drape dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization between 2800–1800 BC wherein women wore a version similar to it. Honouring this legacy, Singh has brought out close to 200 antique Chanderi, Bandhni and Benarasi saris from seven of her large trunks to showcase her creative curation of this ancient craftsmanship.
There are more than 100 handwoven dupattas, in addition to Abhas kurtas that she’s collected from her travels all over India. There is a pink kalidar kurta that is a genuine Abhas dating back a century. “The word Abhas has come from aba, a word commonly used in middle-eastern countries, which means a top garment or a mantle.
The Abhas Kurta based on an age-old traditional classical cut and style, is basically a kalidar kurta without a slit on the sides, with a lose flair. It hangs lower than a normal kurta,” she explains. It all began when Singh started collecting torn antique textiles. She did that for 25 years, and then restored them. “I come from a family that appreciated textiles and understood their relevance. So, preserving them came naturally to me. We were encouraged to wear saris from an early age. I got my first sari when I was 16,” she says.
Singh has been a collector for over 60 years now. She proudly tells us about the two saris that she purchased herself when she was young. “One was a beautiful Patan Potala, now 60 years old. The other was a blue double-sided silk sari that I still find great pride in owning,” she says.
Ironically, she hardly wears saris on a daily basis these days; she puts them on only on special occasions. But, she patronises handlooms in support of the weaving tradition. If ever she gets the time, she would like to undertake a sari appreciation course to make people understand the many weaves. It’s high time handloom, particularly saris, shine as India’s wearable heritage.
Vastra Shobha: Till December 15
Time: 11 am to 6 pm
At: Kendra lawns, Shriram Bharatiya Kala Kendra, Mandi House