Pochampally Handloom Park launched its Ikat art mela at YMCA Narayanguda on Tuesday. A wide range of products are available for sale including all kinds of home linen, dress materials, sarees and bags.
The sarees come in materials like silk and cotton and are handmade by weavers. Apart from the modern collection, traditional weaves like Telia rumal, Pan Patola and Nari kunj are the highlights of this collection.
Telia rumal literally translates to ‘oily handkerchief’, taking its name from the process – the yarn used to make these kind of sarees is dipped into oil before weaving to give it a shiny finish. These sarees are priced around `5,000.
The colourful and vibrant Pan Patola and Nari Kunj sarees are made using Patola silk. Hand woven, the Patola cloth’s design is evolved with the design of each thread. Different colours and patterns are matched on the horizontal and vertical threads while weaving, resulting in the desired design.
Completely designed and weaved by artisans at their factory at Nalgonda district, Pochampally Handloom Park supplies their merchandise to franchises like Good Earth and FabIndia. “We usually have a mela every month to ensure that our products reach not only our retailers but even the public,” says Devender, one of the organisers of the mela.
At the stalls, apparels like shirts for men, small bags, scarves and kurtis are available besides the usual sarees and bed linen. The price range of the entire collection starts from `100 and can go as high as `20,000.
Talking about his interest in handlooms, Damodar Seetha, CEO, Pochampally Handloom Park Ltd, says, “There was a time where the demand for handlooms went down to a negative. There was a lot of unemployment that prevailed among weavers which resulted in suicides.” This moved him to do something about it and he devised a strategy where he took a study of what the customers wanted. “The designs were old fashioned and outdated. We employed designers and started manufacturing products according to the changing trend,” he informs of his initiative to revive handloom products.
The mela will be on display till April 21 at YMCA Narayanguda from 11 am to 7 pm.
