“It is for a good cause,” I tell myself and splurge on a linen sari. “This for my daughter who loves big earrings,” I say and fork out some more money.
Get your excuses ready before you visit Shrishti 2016, Crafts Council of Tamil Nadu’s flagship exhibition. Suguna Kalyana Mandapam, the venue of the exhibition, is already bursting at the seams and it has barely been open for an hour.
Pallav Chandra and his wife Mithu are explaining the intricacies of weaving to a customer, as I try unsuccessfully to look away from a bright red sari. They have a stall called Shoi (Signature) where linen saris in the good honest colours of nature lie waiting to snare you.
Pallav has an NID background and, after a long stint in the corporate world, decided to design textiles in Kotagiri. He gets his designs woven into saris and stoles in Bengal where he works with clusters of weavers. He admits that the weavers in Bengal mostly live in penury and he is trying to help by bringing them regular work.
The conversation goes a long way in mitigating my guilt. In fact, the funds that Srishti raises goes towards providing a platform for craftspeople to bring and sell their creations directly to the public at the Crafts Bazaar, the other wonderful event CCTN brings annually to the city. So knock yourselves out!
Many of the craftspeople have also come visiting and patronage would go a long way in ensuring that these exquisite handicrafts do not fade away. Kartik Manna and Palash sit quietly in their stall called Shunya. On the wall is a Batik dupatta that shows a swirl of water with fish swimming in it. It is obvious even to untrained eyes that it must have taken much pain, time, patience and love to create it.
Kartik and Palash are from Medinipur in West Bengal. Stoles, dupattas, saris and salwar fabrics in Batik is what they make. It is their first time in Coimbatore and they hope people will appreciate their work.
Is Batik yet another disappearing art? Kartik and Palash say ‘no’. So far, so good and, with more patronage and awareness about how much of hard work goes into it, they hope it will be around for the next generation to appreciate as well.
Instead of sitting around and bemoaning the loss of traditional work and doing nothing about it, Mayank Anand and Shraddha Nigam say they decided to go to the Kahla weavers in Kutch for their beautiful natural fabric. Mayank and Shraddha have brought a collection of elegant and hip clothes made in the traditional fabric.
No saris? “We have not brought them. We feel that unless we show the potential of these age-old fabrics to be as contemporary as you can make them, they will die out. We wanted to showcase how trendy and modern these fabrics can look,” says Sraddha. Mayank adds that, while they have seen young people still wearing saris in Coimbatore, it is almost non-existent in the North.
Thankfully saris are doing brisk business at Srishti and linens seem to be the flavour of the day. Several stalls offer gorgeous colours and textures. You can match the saris with ready-to-stitch-blouses if you want.
If you are in an expansive mood, there are beautiful earrings and other accessories too. Don’t miss Desi Soul whose collection is affordable and eye-catching. Light-as- air Ajrak saris and fabrics are always favourites and Ajrak Aurangzeb has them in plenty.
It is nice to see some familiar stalls. They are like old friends. Even nicer to see new ones. Canningo from Delhi has interesting table linen made of a special fibre that is easy to maintain. They have curtains and some funky bags too.
There are 60-odd stalls at the exhibition and each offers something exciting. There are fashionable and fun ready-to-wear, scarves, stoles and funky accessories.
Do walk around a couple of times before you make up your mind. Sometimes something you missed the first time may catch your eye in the next round. But don’t hesitate too long.
I fell in love with another gorgeous linen at Susha’s. By the time I could locate my husband for his opinion, someone else grabbed it. Don’t let that happen to you!
