Kolkata's famed hand embroidery by the karigars doesn't come cheap as the world seems to believe, and anyway, machine embroidery these days is as good as hand work, says a confident Sadhvi Ganeriwala, all of 25.
Kolkata-based Sadhvi was recently in the city with her mother Amita G. for an exhibition of their collections at the Keya Lifestyle Boutique. Needless to say, her ethnic collection is rich in embroidery.
Fascinated by her designer mom, Sadhvi decided she wanted to be one too A textile designer course at NIFT added to what had already been embroidered into her being.
“But my mum's taught me much more than college has,” says Sadhvi, but not before explaining how technical knowhow definitely helps.
“But creativity and practicality is what's needed.” Sadhvi wanted to actually export home accessories once she was done with NIFT. “But when I graduated, the market was in such bad shape, I decided to join my mother instead,” says Sadhvi.
Wearing one of her own creations — a beige dress with an intricately gold-embroidered midriff — the leggy Sadhvi shows off her eponymous label aimed at the young party-hopping generation. Her range is largely Indo western wear, some casual, some club wear , and some cocktail dresses. She also does heavily-worked salwar suits and ghagras for bridal wear.
Sadhvi's love for flowy fabrics like georgettes and chiffons is obvious. As also her love for bright reds, deep greens, blues, and wine shades. Appliqué and cutwork, spare embellishments and layering with nets seems to work for the short dresses and kurtis she creates. “I like to change the construction of a garment and am inspired by the Bandhni tying technique,” she says. And to do this, she uses accessories near the shoulders to great effect — flowers, sequins — anything that bunches up and then lets fabric flow. There's an off shoulder number that catches my eye — very Hollywood-red-carpet-like.
Unlike what is normally believed, Sadhvi says people no longer want a Bollywood-inspired look. “People now prefer a sober and stylish look.”
Her largest chunk of clients are 16 to 35 year olds.
“Sixteen?!” I ask in exasperation. “Yes, school-going kids like my party wear. I had a lot of clients in that age group last December, in time for New Year's,” she says.
Fashionistas in Delhi and Mumbai are ideal clients, says Sadhvi, because they hate repeating their clothes, are fashion-conscious and have great spending power. But Bangalore is where people are bolder and go more for western clothes, she observes.
For those who missed the exhibition, there's good news. Sadhvi will soon be moving to Bangalore and her clothes will hopefully be available in the city.
