You just need to look at Sujaya Mahesh to know that an eye for detailing and intricate patterns comes naturally to her. You can be sure she’ll be in an embroidered sari-blouse ensemble she made for herself, her large hand-painted intricate bindi will be on her forehead. It’s only natural that she took her passion for hand embroidery a few steps further and opened an embroidery school and boutique.
“I learnt a lot of embroidery from my mother. She used to give me and my sister ‘summer projects’ to work on and of course, at that time we would crib about it. But by the time I was in the 7 standard I was using the sewing machine to make my own clothes,” recalls Sujaya. She studied home science in college and then taught home science at Mount Carmel College till 1999. That was the time she taught embroidery as part of the course and did a lot of embroidery on her own saris.
A short stint in Hubli got her involved deeply in kasuti embroidery. She started getting work done for people as and when they asked for it. “I felt kasuti had not got its due and just to popularise it, I started doing exhibitions of kasuti work back here in Bangalore too.”
Once she moved back to Bangalore, she decided to set up her embroidery school. “I was sure I didn’t want to go out and work and I thought I’ll do something different.” That was in 2003 and she ended up setting up Sameeksha School of Embroidery. “Nowadays embroidery is not really taught, not even in schools. In India, there’s an attitude now that ‘Who’ll do all this in today’s age?’ But in Europe hand embroidery is still flourishing and in America, quilting is a big thing right now,” she concludes.
Once one learns the basics of embroidery it’s easy to learn from books, believes Sujaya. “And now with the Internet, you can learn so many more styles…it’s an art that can be learnt on one’s own once you pick up the basic. But the finishing, the colour combinations are something that you’ll have to learn as you go along.”
At her school Sujaya teaches Indian embroidery styles such as aari, appliqué, banjara, chikankari, Kashmiri, kantha, kamal kadai, Kutch work and phulkari. She also teaches embroidery traditions of other countries — Spain’s black work, Brazilian dimensional embroidery, British crewel work, thread work and ribbon embroidery (also from Europe), smocking and more. Apart from pure embroidery, she also teaches knitting, tatting and crochet — remember these from your school days?! After learning, students have to work on a project.
She rues, though, that very few people today treasure something that is handmade. “Everyday I get calls from people asking ‘Why don’t you do machine embroidery?!’ she says in exasperation. “People who are well read, well travelled are usually willing to pay for hand work,” she concludes. And adds that in a time when we are swamped with brands and identical clothing, this is what makes you stand out.
Her courses are attended by homemakers, folks from the IT industry, college students; she even ran a course for children recently — she’s taught students aged 12 to 70! “Those who learn either do embroidery for themselves and their families or come back to me and ask for work.”
Sujaya’s boutique stocks beautifully embroidered saris and readymade blouses, mobile pouches, potlis, kurtis etc (prices range from Rs. 500 for kurtis, Rs. 3,000 onwards for saris and Rs. 800 upwards for blouses).
She does custom embroidery and tailoring too. She’s even done work earlier for some of Bangalore’s famed designers. At her workshop in Hubli around 10 women help her execute the designs.
Her teaching fee ranges from Rs. 2,000 onwards for eight classes for each type of embroidery. For details contact: 25532668 or visit www.sameeksha.asia
