EMPOWERING THE LOOM

Handlooms are the roots of the Indian fashion industry, and the role of artisans and weavers has always been significant. A few designers and startups are now helping them reach their audiences in a more direct manner

-  By Sanika Achrekar

Over the years, India's public position as a textile-rich industry has received more recognition through our presentation on a global scale and the world becoming a smaller place, thanks to social media.

Handloom has always had its place in mainstream fashion, with prominent designers such as Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Manish Malhotra including block prints and weaving techniques in their collections.

At the Spring/Summer 2022 Milan Fashion Week, designer Vaishali S, who focuses on Indian weaves, showcased her latest collection, Ancestral Threads - a more wearable and mature collection that included West Bengali silks, lavish silks and cotton from Maheshwar, Karnataka, and the famed Kota Doriya. In fact, on the international front earlier this year, Dior's creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri and Karishma Swali, Mumbaibased Chanakya ateliers and Chanakya School of Craft, collaborated for Dior's haute couture Spring/Summer 2022 show in Paris to showcase art installations, featuring award-winning contemporary Indian artists Madhvi and Madhu Parekh.

"The Indian textile industry is one of the mainstays of the national economy with significant potential for both domestic consumption and exports. Currently, this sector alone contributes six per cent of the GDP. It is the second largest employer after agriculture, employing nearly 50 million people directly, and close to 70 million indirectly," adds Amitesh Chandra Mullick of Aditri Looms and Craft, a New-Delhi-based platform established in 2018 with the aim of showcasing the rich cultural diversity of India through its handloom heritage.