THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: When advertising a product like sarees, the norm is to go for young models. Another widely prevalent norm is that of fractured relations between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law.
Saraswathy Gopalakrishnan and her daughter-in-law Paarvathi Kiriyath Bharath, however, have defied both stereotypes.
Saraswathi, 55, models the sarees created by Parvathi for her boutique at Hyderabad called ‘Braid De’. The pair plans to launch the boutique in the capital soon.
Saraswathy is the youngest daughter of popular south Indian actress Lalitha, one among the most famous Travancore sisters (Padmini, Lalitha, Ragini). Travancore sisters were noted actors ,dancers and performers in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi films.
Just like her mother, Saraswathy is also a multi-faceted artiste, which stretch far beyond her modelling skills. She is an expert in dancing, drawing and painting, besides the Mridhangam.
On the other hand, the Thiruvananthapuram-based Paarvathi is the daughter of Malayalam director Balu Kriyath, as well as an accomplished fashion designer in her own right. After completing her MBA from Amritha School of Business, she pursued Fashion Designing from the National Institute of Fashion Designing, Hyderabad, after her marriage with Saraswathy’s son Bharath Gopalakrishnan. Later, she started ‘Braid De’.
“Paarvathi insisted that I be the model as only both of us know how much effort we took to complete each work. I truly feel proud to be the model for my daughter-in-law’s work” says Saraswathy.
Infact, even before Paarvathi came to the family, Saraswathy had been working on Kalamkari and Madhubani designs on sarees. She adopted a family from North India for doing these works, which were then sold only to relatives and close friends. With the arrival of her daughter-in-law, the duo fecided to expand the idea.
The timeless art of Pen Kalamkari and Madhubani have been given a fresh look in various fabrics by Paarvathi.
“I selected Madhubani and Kalamkari because, these traditional works are seen very rarely and are difficult to do. And these paintings are done in natural dye, and the process is long. We have adopted some families and individual workers to do these works, “ says Paarvathy.
“One of my highlights is pen Kalamkari and Madhubani in our traditional Kerala sarees. which give a new and different look, “ She adds.
At present Paarvathi works on and sells her designed sarees to many branded companies. Other than Madhubani and Kalamkari, the works also include mirror and fabric works. Paarvathi’s new innovations are Denim on Sarees with suhani pittie jewelery work on top of denim.
“Since suhani pittie is too costly to afford as a jewellery, I am bringing this on sari with a different concept for youngsters,” said Paarvathi.
About choosing her mother-in-law as the model, besides partnering with her in the venture, Paarvathy says, “Amma is multi-talented and my inspiration”.
One of my highlights is pen Kalamkari and Madhubani in our traditional Kerala sarees. which give a new and different look
— Paarvathi, fashion designer