Bappa and Rumi design all the products that Bailou makes. And they have very different ideologies! They have different tastes, and mannerisms, and lean towards different aspects of textiles. Rumi says she is more inclined towards embroidery - that she always has been. Bappa, on the other hand, is more inclined towards print. But they both agreed on the fact that nothing was going to take the spotlight away from the weaves.
Solution? They set up a printing unit in Phulia, where they block-print on warps. And in terms of embroidery, they've introduced sequence, tassles, high twis-yarns etc to the weft.
The son of one of the weavers now runs the printing studio. He also has a unit of six looms under him. He learned the technique of block-printing from Bappa, and now manages it on his own. As for the embroidery, the women in the weavers' families make the fancy yarn. For a metre (depending on how many sequins or tassles are added) they are paid about Rs.1.50. As a result, the weaver is profiting more than he had before, and more than he had imagined.
Bailou calls it 'GLAMORIZING THE HANDLOOM'!
It's quite simple really. You just have to want it bad enough!
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1 comment:
Nafisa, Please put up some pictures of where you've been and what you're seeing. that will give everyone a clearer picture.
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