Crafted with care

Although it’s tucked away in Colaba by-lane (Mandlik Road,right next to Indigo),the shop catches the eye,for its beautifully dressed window.

The collection here is not all white and not all cotton—but it retains the aesthetics of traditional Lucknowi chikankari.

Owners Nagma and Sana Ansari,who show us around the collection,emphasise this point. “We’ve had a loyal clientele because we do things differently. It’s our philosophy that unless you experiment,traditional crafts are going to die out.” Though it’s a small space,the store is stocked with chikankari tops,tunics,dresses and dupattas. They are available in a myriad of colours and fabrics that it takes some time to go through the whole collection. The traditional white,cotton kurtas,of course,have a rack all to themselves. “The whites are popular,but people also love clothes in bright pinks and turquoise in fabrics like Benarasi silk.”

The Colaba store is only six months old (they have an older space at Hasnabad Lane,Santa Cruz) and was opened especially to cater to their south Mumbai clientele. “They told us they love the clothes,but going all the way to the suburbs was too much of a hassle. But as it turns out,some of our customers from the old store are showing up here as well,”says Ansari.

Ahilaya is run by three sisters—apart from Nagma and Sana,there’s also New York-based Farha. The siblings have a solid pedigree when it comes to chikan. Their father,Anwar Ahmed Ansari was a pioneer in opening Mumbai to the delicate beauty of the handicraft from Lucknow. “Our father used to sell saris made of synthetic fabrics,going door to door. Many of his clients were film stars and since such saris were dime a dozen,they advised him to bring something different. As he was from Uttar Pradesh,he knew of the Lucknowi chikankari,so he decided to sell that here.” The next thing Ansari knew,he was doing roaring business. The family currently owns their Santacruz store,First Lucknowi Chikan Conception,which was opened in 1960 and also runs the label Leaves of Grass,which retails internationally via Net-a-porter and Harrods.

The Ansaris believe in paying close attention to every detail of their business—they design the clothes,track down to fabrics and only trust a few families in Lucknow to get the work done. “You have to cultivate a personal relationship with the people you employ because you need people who’ll deliver unfailingly every single time.”

Even the interiors of Ahilaya receive the same loving attention—the lovely wallpaper in the changing rooms are imported from New York,because the sisters couldn’t find just the right ones here. “Call us crazy,but we wanted to ensure that whatever time our customers spend even in the changing room,should be memorable,” laughs Nagma.