TIRUPATI: Two-and-a-half decades on, Mamatha Reddy continues to carry forward the legacy of renowned Kalamkari paintings and artworks using natural dyes.
Mamatha Reddy, 56, has built a reputation for herself in saree making with unique designs using natural dyes in the age of screen prints and chemical colours.
“I started my journey in the ’90s with an investment of Rs 500 and one painter that later translated into a workshop which employs nearly 45 artisan families,” she said.
“Under Kalam Creations workshop all artisan families are well settled and get work in all seasons now,” she added.
Fondly called the ‘King of Kalamkari’ by prominent Indian designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee, sarees designed at Mamatha Reddy’s Kalam Creations are popular among several fashion designers such as Sashikant Naidu and Gaurang Shah and Bollywood actress Vidya Balan. Also, her sarees found their way into popular fashion shows across the country.
Mamatha Reddy, a native of Tirupati, belongs to a middle class family. Her father worked as a railway section engineer. She developed her penchant for Kalamkari art and paintings in her late 20s when she visited an expo in Tirupati and noticed an artist drawing Kalamkari paintings.
“Initially, we started making cushion covers with zodiac signs using natural dyes. It became an instant hit and later turned to saree making in which we failed,” she said.
“I wanted to revive the world-famous Kalamakari artwork using natural dyes. Unlike manufacturers from Banaras and Surat, who duplicate screen prints of original Kalamkari paintings and use chemical colours, killing the Kalamkari art to earn fast money, at my workshop, we use only natural dyes,” Mamatha Reddy said.
She explained, “We make natural dyes from vegetables. We produce black colour from palm jaggery, yellow from pomegranate branches and pink from hibiscus flowers.”
“While the Kalamkari art is evolving in contemporary times and the craze for it is growing with each passing day, some are willingly killing it,” she rued. After making greater strides in Kalamkari, an exclusive store is being opened in Hyderabad, where products manufactured at her workshop will be put on sale.