Sohum Sutras

If you are following me on Instagram , probably you are more updated about my travels and activities. If not, do follow and let us stay more in touch. Of late, there is an upsurge of interest in saree in fashionistas. Designers are experimenting with weaves and textiles of this unstitched drape. Saree pacts, saree stories, etc are on the rise. Women are joining saree groups and bonding with them. The woven saree status has found a new high. Sarees are coming out of grandmother's closets and are being proudly worn. Designers and weavers are collaborating. Raw Mango Chanderis, Anavila linens, Abraham & Thakore Ikats, Gaurang Shah's handlooms are being talked about. In this category is also a hidden gem- Bailou. They have never walked the ramp and their creators never advertise. Bappaditya Biswas is Luddite- thankfully. His Bailou sarees seduce you to caress, run gentle fingers over them and hold them. You marvel at his creations and stand bewitched. His enterprise has a last...

Ministry of Textiles is reviving the dying art of Ikat. The cotton Telia Rumal saree has been created using natural dyes. The name Telia derives from 'Tel' meaning 'Oil' and is given to this craft as a large quantity of oil is used to prepare the yarn for Ikat weaving. By clay and wax wrapping, the finished fabric is readied, on which a weaver can devise an exact pattern before it is dipped in selected dyes. Though originating from Chirala, it is no more practised there. The celebrated sari flutters from the ruins of its heritage like the last flicker of hope. For Telia Rumal, the fast dying art of Ikat tradition, hope lies in the Integrated Handloom Cluster Development Programme sponsored by the Ministry of Textiles. Puttapaka, a village in Nalgonda where the art still thrives, is chosen as one among the clusters under this scheme. Thanks to the initiative, Telia Rumal saris, hitherto mere relics from the past, can hope to find a place in markets soon. Cooling pr...