Indian arts in all their glory stem from our decades of rich history and tradition. Each art form born as a means of expression through various media –– painting, carving, performative, clothing, and more –– lives on and presents itself in various ways in our daily lives even now.
Craftsmanship that was so highly regarded years ago finds itself peeping through India’s wondrous villages and a few people are still skilled enough in it. In different forms such as embroidery and dyeing, these craftspeople reinforce the importance of maintaining India’s artful integrity.
A few homegrown brands and labels are celebrating this and we wish to celebrate them. Here are three Indian enterprises with traditional craftsmanship at their core.
I. Morii
From Gandhinagar in Gujarat, Morii was born to combine the past and the present, and traditional craft with the contemporary. It is a hand-painting and hand-embroidery label by Brinda Dudhat, with Morii Clothing soon to come. With skilled women and artisans working from the villages of India, Morii’s vision comes to life only because of them. Their strong relationship with their makers makes it possible for beautiful wall art and home furnishing to come to life.
Find Morii here.
II. The Colours Of Nature
Based out of Auroville near Pondicherry, The Colours Of Nature brings traditional dying practices to the fore. Founder Jesus Ciriza Larraona came across a small village and family that work with indigo fermentation dyeing. Since 1993, they have been keeping this process alive and have continuously been working on it to evolve it to a point with no defects. Now an eco-friendly process, master dyer Kumar ensures quality across the board.
The only by-product here is compost and now The Colours Of Nature also keeps these practices up with several colours.
Find The Colours Of Nature here.
III. Tilla
A design studio based in Ahmedabad by Aratrik Dev Varman focuses on handmade Indian textiles and craftsmanship. With mindful design and slow production, their inspiration comes from nature, and their work also comes across as an ode to it. The brand has now expanded from clothing to textile, interiors, installations, and more.
With innovative and exciting Indian craftsmanship at its heart, Tilla screams homegrown pride.
Find Tilla here.
If you enjoyed reading this, we suggest you also read:Craft, Heritage & Couture: Diva’ni Pays Homage To India & Pakistan’s Artisanal Legacy