THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Is your idea of a perfect morning one where you sip on coffee at your breakfast table, as the sunlight streams in through the curtains? Then you must stock up on some lovely hand block-printed curtains from Bangalore-based design venture, Nihira, which turns one this month. Set up by college mates Nandini Krishnankutty and Rema Sivaram, from Thrissur, Nihira plays with mulmul, raw silk and burlap to create runners, cushion covers, saris, curtains and stoles strong on print power.
The handmade code
For the Christmas season, the duo have cushion covers and runners in red and black, with gold and silver prints. With their mulmul curtains—in sizes of seven feet (for doors) and five feet (for windows)—you can bring home traditional prints like paisley and flowers, with a contemporary twist. For lovers of quirk, there are drapes with vintage car prints, while embossed prints in gold echo the festival feel. When it comes to runners and cushion covers, Nihira’s raw silk fare stands out with its bright colours of royal blue, golden yellow and pink.
Krishnankutty and Sivaram work with a team of artisans from the North East. “We also bring influences from our travels in the North. Our linen saris are sourced from there, while our Kanchi cotton saris come from the South,” Krishnankutty explains. Their saris are unique in that they sport double-coloured and woven temple-inspired borders with prints running along half the length of the pleats.
When not designing and printing, the two are busy planning exhibitions of handmade products, which they curate under the banner Purple Fete. Having held events in Kochi and Thrissur, Thiruvananthapuram is next on the duo’s map and there are plans to expand the range to include coasters and stationery, apart from talks to retail through boutiques in Kerala.
Curtains start at Rs 650, cushion covers at Rs 400 and runners at Rs 400. You can place orders on facebook.com/NihiraIndia.