Hands that Rock the Loom

HandsofIndia’s (HOI) forte lies in hand-embroidered textiles,chosen from different corners of the country. An exhibition at Aga Khan Hall,Mandi House,promises a few firsts from them that includes crafted Chanderi saris from a 150-year-old sample. They will also present a new range of handwoven saris from Nuapatna,Orissa,famous for their thread work,made from a single count yarn. HOI is an artist-led initiative by sisters Malyada Goverdhan and Ramya Rangacharya,which preserves handicrafts tradition through an agile technology-driven network. Based out of Vrindavan,the duo has been working with various artisan groups since 2004.

Technology and infrastructure improvements have gone a long way in helping them collate and network with artisans in the last five to six years. For instance,they compiled embroidery motifs from different parts of the country into a booklet. Their artisan centers have a copy of the motif booklet which has easy reference numbers and is categorised into borders,neck design,western motifs and body designs. When a cloth is send to them for embroidery,it goes with the motif number for the apparel. The colour and the stitch is left to the artisans. This way,HOI introduce new motifs every year and the artisans feel motivated to work. So,while they meld crafts,they don’t tamper with the original format. For example,phulkari is done with raw silk threads as it always has been,they haven’t moved to woven threads. They continue to use phulkari on khadi silk (which was the tradition) or on handwoven Mangalgiri saris in cotton from Andhra Pradesh.

HOI is co-hosting the exhibition with Vastram and .

The exhibition is on from March 23rd to 25th,9.30 am – 9 pm.

Contact: 09845227919