Heritage Craft, Global Heft

A slew of luxe brands is championing India's craft heritage on the international stage, swiftly solidifying the country's status as a creator of artisanal couture

- SIMI KURIAKOSE

IN A CATALOGUE OF developing nations acting as close-lipped contributors to Europe’s uber-elite maisons, India’s name would be scribbled in invisible ink. Inputs of the subcontinent’s skilled craftspersons are an integral—and oft-ignored—part of production processes for luxury labels like Dior, Isabel Marant, Chanel and Hermès (to name a few).

That tide has been shifting in recent years. India’s artisanship truly came to light in March 2023 at Dior’s grand Pre-Fall show at Mumbai’s Gateway of India, which aimed the spotlight on karigars of the Chanakya School of Craft—helmed by founders Karishma Swali and Monica Shah—under the stewardship of then Creative Director Maria Grazia Chiuri. This watershed moment was an acknowledgement from the West of the silent labour behind Indian craft.

Earlier this year, British brand Vivienne Westwood followed suit with its own Gateway show that celebrated India’s heritage textiles.

Such newfound interest in Indian craft is honour delayed. Long before organised fashion, India was the global textile capital—a tag it lost, not least because of colonial plunder. Diving into history, couturier Rahul Mishra explains that the momentum of our textiles was such that “our chintz was banned in France” and partially in Britain in the 17th century to safeguard domestic industries.

In recent years, India has reclaimed its legacy as a market of craft connoisseurs. Now, it is rising up the rungs of the global luxury ladder to secure a spot as a leader. A clutch of designers is taking the Indian story to the world and is being feted at flagship events where its craft was but a footnote. These designers are not just shaping legacies as global powerhouses; they are weaving an India-proud narrative.