The World Through a Needle’s Eye

A variant of mokash,badla involves more intricate embroidery with beaten metal threads and can take between six to eight months to complete each individual piece. Mahajan has given the time-consuming embroidery a modern twist by limiting it on the surface of the fabric rather than on both sides to maximise comfort. While it’s largely limited to her couture,and by extension,her bridal line,it’s had oblique effects on her pret line too.

In the few months that she has begun work on this,her export orders have surged. Heavyweight boutiques such as Anthropologie (UK),Harvey Nichols (UK),Bloomingdales (US) and Aqua Girl (Japan) have commissioned bulk orders not just of the badla-embroidered ensembles,but also of her extensive block print line. Mahajan plans to unveil her rejuvenated couture line in August this year,ahead of the wedding season. With so much going on,she says,nurturing the fast-dwindling set of karigars is her prime target. “The attrition rates are tremendous. In my factory,we have a capacity of about 300 people,but we still face a 10 per cent shortage every month. It’s easier and better-paying for them to be a guard or a driver or even do a clerical job than toil away at a job that has limited income and little respect,” she says.