BENGALURU: A traveller at heart, Emily Chakraborty explores nooks and crannies of the country. During these trips, she came across artisans who would be able to give a local look to a global design. The city-based designer, who runs Kaisori, has attempted to bring retail, crafts that are not easily available in urban spaces.
Collaborating with artisans from across India, Chakraborty, an advertising professional turned entrepreneur feels it’s her responsibility to sustain and socially uplift this venture. “The crafts of India are diverse, rich in history, culture and religion. It inspired me to support the cause of Indian craft techniques and organic products, and revive its culture across the urban landscapes of India. I am fiercely passionate about making India re-discover their love for art, organic products, that are completely hand made in India,” she said.
The store offers a wide range of handcrafted products ranging from soaps, sarees, jewellery, shoes, accessories, and home decor.With the philosophy love handmade, all it’s products are completely handcrafted without using any machines.”Whenever you enjoy a particular dish or wear a garment, it sinks to your senses, in terms of comfort.
That’s what I want my clients to experience,” she says, adding that her designs are pocket-friendly. “I don’t believe that handloom products are expensive. There’s expensive products but the idea is that this becomes the benchmark so that there’s no word called sustainability we use in future. Thus, it’s not expensive by the end of the day,” she added.
The story of sustainability is rooted at a grass-root level. “The idea is to create constant work and growth for the artisans, and make it a sustainable and socially-responsible venture. Crafts like Cherial masks, Kavad storytelling boxes, Varanasi flying gods and muchmore have made their way under our label,” she said, adding that dying art forms like Bundi miniature paintings have got new life.
“We try to create a story to revive the crafts. The meaning of Kaisori is that kai is hand so anything made from hand and Kaisori is Durga,” she explains about her venture which works with talent from West Bengal, Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Gujarat, through which more than 25 different types of crafts ranging across textile, accessories, wellness, home decor and art curios are covered.