CHENNAI : It is an experience I will never forget,” says sustainable fashion designer Vino Supraja, the excitement in her voice palpable. Fresh off the runway of the London Fashion Week (LFW), Vino recalls showcasing her collection, ‘Purisai’, an ode to Therukoothu. The owner of the sustainable clothing brand Vino Supraja is one of the few designers from Tamil Nadu to propagate sustainable fashion. In her endeavour to take the message of sustainability and the art form to a global platform, she was supported by theatre actor Vaanmadhi Jagan, who donned the role of Dushasana and performed Therukoothu on the ramp. “The response to our art form Therukoothu was really good; they found it different from what they have experienced so far. Therukoothu costume has a number of colours on it. Those many colours on one single person was mind-boggling for the audience,” shares Vino.
The garments in the collection take inspiration from the costumes of the art form. “The main inspirational elements are the strokes on the faces, the stripes of their big skirts, the tassel on the crown and the salangai. They were things that struck me as a child. Therukoothu costumes typically have only ropes to tie. In my collection, barring a few garments, none of them have buttons or zips,” she shares. Prints are the USP of Vino’s collections; she had written ‘Purisai’ in Tamil in her handwriting and printed it on the fabric. “We also had a print of the face of Palani Murugan anna (a veteran performer), hand-sketched by me, and converted into textile prints. It is my tribute to the great artiste," she adds.
Arts and the artistes
For the LFW, Vino — who has her roots in Vandavasi — had to refrain from audio or video presentations to explain her collection. She chose to bring a live performance on stage, albeit for a minute. Once the producers agreed, she approached Kannappa Sambandhan, a performer of the Purisai Kannappa Thambiran Therukoothu School. “I approached Kannappa Sambandhan ayya requesting him to choreograph something for just a minute and with a single person. Therukoothu is often a group performance, a long story told overnight. I wanted something for one minute that will still reveal the flavour of the art form to the audience who are new to it. Sambandhan ayya was excited. Along with Palani Murugan anna, he chose the song; they asked about the runway’s dimensions, the points Vaanmadhi would stand and pose, her entry and exit. The steps were choreographed in such a way that the whole costume and expressions are seen. When she walked people were spellbound. We had also recorded the music in a sound studio,” she says.
With a background in Bharatanatyam, Vaanmadhi was as excited as Vino to present Tamil Nadu’s native folk art on a global stage. “It was a humbling experience to learn this form for the sake of performing at London Fashion Week as a way of showing the collection. Purisai’s costumes, make-up and the colours they use are unique, extremely dramatic and tasteful. The colours do more than just attracting the one who is watching. It creates the character and magic of binding the audience to something dramatic and holding them to the performance,” notes Vaanmadhi. The rehearsal for the performance had Vaanmadhi and Vino visiting Purisai nearly every weekend in July. “Though it was one minute it had to be impactful. I had to learn a few basic adavu (steps) and some intricate adavu. It was not just about the footwork or the body movement but to pull off the attitude of a Therukoothu performer was definitely challenging. We had to wear the whole costume while practising,” she says.
Growing up, Therukoothu was a major form of entertainment for Vino, who lived 10 kilometres from Purisai. “I had this idea for almost a decade #PurisaiInParis. I was waiting for the right opportunity. If we are going to make a collection inspired by such a rich heritage, it has to be presented in a great place. I felt London Fashion Week was the right stage to present it,” says Vino.
A sustainable switch
For the first five years of her career, Vino was excited about runways and red carpets. It was during one of her post-graduation classes in Fashion Marketing in Dubai, she learned about fashion pollution. Coming from a family where her father practiced medicine, and also took care of agriculture, Vino felt guilty about adding to Mother Earth’s stress. “I consciously wrote my path. I knew the journey was going to be a rocky road. I knew I would be selling my philosophy rather than selling clothes,” she says. Vino’s garments are made using organic cotton and ado-free dyes. She procures fabrics from a group of weavers from Chennaimalai in Erode.
She believes that India is the largest sustainable sourcing hub, but the sources are not well organised. The realm of sustainable fashion is riddled with challenges, including convincing customers to make the switch. Vino is making use of every tool she comes across. While she has a book to her credit, she collaborated with Vaanmadhi in April this year for a solo theatre improv at the Fashion Revolution Week in Dubai. “Vino wanted to take her idea of sustainability in the form of theatre.
We decided on solo theatre improv taking the core ideas of what Vino Supraja stands for and the message the brand tries to put across. Before the fashion show started, I performed as Mother Earth talking to the people on earth. It was well received and we performed thrice in four days,” says Vaanmadhi. After a successful show, Vino is back to her design table. “Somehow my passion, profession and purpose aligned in one single line now so this alignment gives more power to the message,” she signs off.