We are blessed to live in a country where we can find different types of handicrafts from north to south & east to west. Every state of our country has different crafts to offer. And so many of these handicrafts and Indian craftsmen-women are directly or indirectly connected with our fashion industry. We can see these crafts in so many designer collections. Like -
1. Intricate Hand embroideries (like- Chikankari of Lucknow, Gota from Rajasthan, Kantha from Bengal, Phulkari from Punjab, Kashida from Kashmir, Kasuti of Karnataka, Pichwai of Rajasthan, Banjara, and many more)
2. Types of Saree/ handloom weaving techniques (like – Banarasi of Varanas, JamJamdani, tant of Bengal, Chanderi of Madhya Pradesh, Muga saree of Assam, Nauvari of Maharashtra, Bomkai of Odisha, Kasavu of Kerala, and[1] many more)
3. Dyeing and printing techniques (like –Kalamkari of Andhra Pradesh, Ajrak of Gujarat, Bandhni of Rajasthan, Bagh of Madhya Pradesh, Sanganeri and Dabu of Rajasthan, & many more)
(Picture Credit – Pinterest)
INTERNATIONAL DESIGNERS TAKING INSPIRATION FROM INDIAN CRAFTS:
Not only our Indian designers but also many internationally celebrated designers took inspirations from our Indian crafts and motifs like- Alexander McQueen, Marc Jacobs, John Galliano, Saint Laurent, and Michael Kors.
● Louis Vuitton (In 2010) made a collection inspired by the Indian festival Diwali from Banarasi brocade and created ready-to-wear dresses.
● Alexander McQueen (In 2008) took inspiration from India's royal heritage and costumes to make his fall collection with peacock motif, stone embellishments, and elaborate embroidery works.
● Inspired by Indian Royalty & Maharajas; Chanel made Bombay-Paris collection which has metallic sarees[2] , embroidered jumpers.
(Picture Credit – blog.jaypore.com)
INDIAN DESIGNERS TAKING INDIAN HANDICRAFTS TO THE INTERNATIONAL LEVEL:
So many Indian designers are working to revive dying Indian handicrafts, handlooms, and embroideries. And helping craftsmen to showcase their talent on international platforms. As well as trying to contribute to the Indian Village economy. Here we are going to see a few Indian designers showcasing their collections on International platforms.
1. RAHUL MISHRA IN PARIS HAUTE COUTURE WEEK:
He is the first Indian to showcase couture at Paris Haute Couture Week in 2020 & made history. This fashion week is considered among the top three fashion weeks in the world. The theme of his collection was ‘Jungle’. Which is inspired by the 2005 Dreamworks animation Madagascar Movie & Henri Rousseau’s painting The Drama. He had also taken inspiration from underwater landscapes and tropical flora, the polluted landscape of New Delhi.
Rahul Mishra is a proponent of ‘Made in India ‘couture, his collection features the finest of handwoven, hand-embroidered, and handcrafted garments. His focus was to push ancestral craft techniques in a new direction. Each of his couture pieces takes almost 3000 to 4000 hours to handcraft. He has more than 1000 artisans from the Indian craft community for his work. Mishra’s artisans live in their own homes, in their village as his objective is to create jobs in the villages. According to him if the villages are stronger, we’ll have a stronger country, a stronger nation.
(Picture Credit – www.vogue.com)
2 . VAISHALI SHADHANGULE IN PARIS COUTURE WEEK:
Vaishali Shadhangule is the first female Indian designer to present a collection at Paris Couture Week. She owns the label Vaishali S. She had been invited as a guest member to showcase her collection at Paris Haute Couture Week 2021. Her label is known for creating wearable art with weaves from different parts of India. Her brand focuses on traditional handwork techniques with modern, innovative methods.
In one of her interviews with TOI, she maintains that this time she wanted to go all out in showcasing her creativity. There were Haute Couture gowns but with a Vaishali S twist. According to her a lot of International Designers took inspiration from Indian thread work and get our Karigars to make their collection. This time she wanted to show the global market that India has a lot more to offer through her collection of 25 garments.
(Picture Credit – Pinterest)
2. EHA SETHI THIRANI IN PARIS FASHION WEEK:
Esha Sethi Thirani is a Kolkata-based designer who has debuted her collection at Paris Fashion Week 2018. The name of her collection was ‘ Qalamkar ‘. In which we can see our home-grown art form Kalamkari. She aims to revive this dying art of India. You’ll be surprised to know that this art form was introduced during the Mughal era.
She is one of those designers who is working to showcase the power of Indian handcrafts on International Platforms.
(Picture Credit – missmalini.com)
GRASSROOT BY ANITA DONGRA :
The label Grassroot was very special for Anita Dongre. She had launched this label to make handcrafted designer affordable pieces that will resonate with every woman. The collections of Grassroot combine contemporary silhouettes with traditional techniques like Bandhni, Ajrak, Block printings. She is the first Indian Fashion Designer to open a flagship store in New York. Her main aim was to design beautiful clothes which hold a purpose.
This label is for those women artisans in Villages who are constantly creating Indian crafts. According to her, she wanted to tell stories behind each craft through her grassroots label and also wanted to introduce those a person behind each story.
(Picture Credit – Pinterest)
SABYASACHI MUKHERJEE AND H&M COLLABORATION:
Every fashion aspirant of India was waiting for this massive collaboration of 2021 with the Sabyasachi Mukherjee x H&M collaboration. Which was launched on 12 August 2021 in 48 markets worldwide.
We all know Sabyasachi Mukherjee for his Vibrant and ethnic collections and also the beauty of his handcrafts in every piece of his garments. He had been doing couture for the majority of his career. But this time he has made a ‘ready-to-wear’ collection taking inspiration from Indian textiles and prints with whimsical and fluid silhouettes that bring relaxed sophistication to everyday life.
The theme of the collection is ‘Wanderlust’.
(Picture Credit – Pinterest)
6 . MASABA GUPTA AND NETFLIX COLLABORATION:
Lastly, we are talking about one of the most uncommon collaborations with Indian designer Masaba Gupta & Netflix. Masaba is known for her quirky prints. Her label is popular for its Indian proud diffusion.
In 2020 Masaba debuted her acting career with Netflix. In this series, we can see the complex relationship with her mother, past marriage, creative blocks, the ups and downs of running a fashion business, the reality of the fashion business in India.
(Picture Credit – Pinterest)
● WHAT WE COULD EXPECT FROM OUR UPCOMING DESIGNERS:
we can say there are many more art forms of India that are dying slowly during the period because of many reasons. We need more designers who are willing to revive those crafts and proudly present them in front of the whole World.
● WHAT WE COULD DO AS A CONSUMER OF THE FASHION INDUSTRY?
We are living in a decade where most of the people are running after fast fashion and because of them we are not only compromising with the quality but also decreasing the fair wages of craftsmen. So we as constant consumers of fashion can choose what to support or what not to. We can do our bit and support more Indian textiles, crafts and encourage Designers to work more on this.