Bagru has been reimagined by Anavila this season, as she offers the six-yard drape with the aim of restarting the conversation around its versatility.

By Asmita Aggarwal

There has been a change in the mindset of the exploding young population of the country to more mindful buying, less is more, thrifting as well as respectfully moving on to handlooms. For Anavila, who has completed her ten-year journey, in the landscape of fashion, it has always been about craft elevation.

There has been a sustained conversation about the pricing of handlooms, where many consumers still don’t understand the importance of working with hands, eight-hour shifts and providing livelihoods to millions, especially women, who dominate this sector. Abandoning the need for power looms, Anavila, believes this art form needs reinvention, patronization and working consistently with clusters to create value. “I look at cluster development, finishing and aesthetics, maintaining quality standards and engaging with artisans so that the craft is updated,” she explains.

The idea is to design a global product, if we can invest in a stole from Hermes why not replace it with a batik or tant from Shantipur. Anavila is working with Bardhaman West Bengal, as well as Phulia where her much-loved linen is woven, but for FDCI X LFW there is an homage to Bagru from Rajasthan. “We all own a Paithani and Kanjeevaram, there are few artisans and huge demand, but in West Bengal we updated the existing weaves,” she admits. Eleven years ago, when she first came to Phulia, they used to make only cotton saris for the local population, the designer urged them to try linen, the looms and psychology had to be adjusted, but the saris won huge popularity across all age brackets. “In the same cluster, the looms increased to 20, then other villages seeing the demand joined in too,” she explains.

This newness infused resulted in the resurgence of the sari, worn with unique blouses, even sneakers and the word classic has now been redefined. “So many options young girls have now to choose from, so they can’t say they are looking like their grandma or mothers any longer,” she laughs. The sari is also a democratic ensemble you can wear it individualistically.

Indian designs are finding confidence in their own voice, we gave yoga and ayurveda to the West, and now they are teaching it to us, let that not happen to the sari, she further adds.  Bagru that’s why became her passion, the mud resist technique almost 300 years old, was getting mechanized, some were screen printing it also, so she went back in time to maintain its purity combining it with Sanganer. The motifs have also been reimagined, and till today Anavila is not offering the pre-draped sari, and this has been accepted in totality by a legion of fans.

Soon to launch her line for home, she is also managing waste effectively by creating stoles, bags and potlis as well as dolls. “I still remember eight years ago I participated in an exhibition in Rome, three Italian girls came, bought and wore our saris proudly. Frankly it is a global silhouette as you can personalize it,” she concludes.