Fashion fraternity does its bit for weavers in India

Weaving in India has a very long tradition. But in the last few decades, the demand of woven sarees has depreciated, resulting in skilled labour having to take up petty jobs to meet their ends.

And a few members of the fashion frat have taken this seriously and extended their support by getting the weavers to weave sarees under their label to make it a rage again.

Fashion designer Sabyasachi Mukherjee, known for his penchant for weaves, had said, “I want to restore the timeless woven sarees, bringing together the skilled weavers from around the country.” The collection of woven cotton sarees was known as Save a Saree collection. In order to make it popular amongst the masses, the price point was kept very reasonable. They were specially organised by Sabyasachi to promote weavers in India.

Also recently at Delhi Fashion Week we had designer Wendell Rodricks present the Goan Kunbi sarees, in order  to protect the dying tradition of Goan weavers.

Designer Nikasha Tawadey feels designers like Sabyasachi and Wendell are helping the Gen Next designers to tap into these markets and not only emerge with organic designer wear but also help revive the weaver communities, “It’s a phenomenon that is slowly catching up in India. What’s better than the beautiful handmade sarees which are exclusive and elegant? Once masses realise how fashionable these sarees look, it will automatically create more demand and enable more and more  weavers to join work.”

Designer Masaba Gupta took a cue from Sabya’s initiative and is sticking to her favourite patchwork in handloom silk and cotton. She says, “Weaves are just a beautiful segment and there is much one can do with the woven khadi, silks and cottons."