Bharat Shah has collaborated with Himanshu Dogra to bring out their collection of Banarasi weaves, Nritya. In a conversation with A Mishra, they express their intention of working with the younger generation
With Modi’s ‘Make in India’ initiative, Banarasi weave has several steps a step forward. This time, Bharat Shah of Ekaya contributed to the initiative by collaborating with Himanshu Dogra of Play Clan. “I am from Varanasi and I want this weave to make a great comeback in the market,” Shah said.
In their collection, Nritya, they had silk lehenga, sarees and dupatta on which they had woven different mudras of classical Indian dance forms. “We didn’t want to do the same zari embroidery in our collection so, we selected dance mudras from our Indian classical dance forms,” Dogra pointed out.
On the collaboration with Play Clan, Shah said, “It is very enriching and an exciting partnership for us. With the use of strong illustrative graphics from Play Clan, Ekaya is now further exploring new dimensions. They understood that woven saris are not just for the older Indian women, but also for a younger audience.” Shah continued, “The concept behind showcasing Banarasi lehenga was to connect with the younger generation so that they look past the garment as being only for their mothers and aunts.”
For the collection they have used bold and vibrant colours, keeping the younger generation in mind. Paired with golden blouses, the mudras were weaved at the bottom of the silk lehengas. Dogra shared with us that soon they will be showcasing their cotton collection. “We are looking forward to bring our cotton collection very soon. We have started with silk and now we will move towards cotton sarees.”
Since Shah hails from Varanasi and trying to preserve the rich textile heritage, he chose weavers from Varanasi to wave the entire collection.