Crafted With Love

MINDFUL AND MEASURED, THE LATEST COLLABORATION BETWEEN PAVITRA RAJARAM AND JAIPUR RUGS SHOWCASED AT SALONE DEL MOBILE THIS YEAR CELEBRATES ICONIC CARPET TRADITIONS REIMAGINING THEM IN A CONTEMPORARY IDIOM

- PRAGNYA RAO

It can be an uneasy dance, between business and design. But with enough practice, you realise, it can be a synchronised symphony. Case in point, the collaboration between Jaipur Rugs and Pavitra Rajaram Design. Purposeful, poetic and proudly Indian, Majnun is a collection of carpets that celebrates ancient weaving traditions and generational craftsmanship. By forgoing trends in favour of the artisanal with timeless details, Pavitra has always taken the slower, but richer path forward. “Craft takes time. It needs to be absorbed; it has to be thoughtful, responsible and produced consciously. Slow design is a concept that builds on the fact that design must be savoured not devoured,” she explains. This commitment to her craft and a deep respect for the craftsmen and their work meant that the collection took about three years to complete. “You have to see the process through the maker; the aspect that craft is time sensitive and highly dependent on natural forces — be it natural pigments, water resources or climatic conditions,” she elaborates.