BAZAAR

CRAFT-BASED TEXTILES—NOWHERE EXCEPTINDIA IS THEIR PRESENCE SO KEENLY FELT ASPART OF A BURGEONING FASHION INDUSTRY.It doesn’t matter if your budget stretches to the heights ofa couture gown by one of India’s top designers, a zardosinumber from one of the popular boutiques in Delhi’s LajpatNagar, or a fresh kurta churidar outit from one of India’sdomestic retail chains: You will hear the same refrain—craft, craft, craft. Whether handloom or surface decoration,India’s fashion weeks are obsessed with craft. Glossy magazinesdedicate regular editorials to handloom, juxtaposing it withluxury handbags and incorporating it into internationaltrends. It’s a subject of national pride and the object ofmyriad government initiatives and funding. But who winsand who loses in this game of textile patriotism? Which begsthe questions, what is ‘craft’ and why is Indian fashion soconsumed by it?History provides a clue: In the post-independence era, a newmood of optimism sought expression through the materialculture of architecture and public visual culture. Nehrufamously envisioned modernity through massive structuralengineering projects: Dams, roads, and even a completecity—the Corbusier-designed marvel of Chandigarh.Yet others (their mettle forged as freedom ighters, their visionof India’s future steeped in Gandhian philosophy centered invillage economy) saw Nehru’s tectonic vision as emulative ofWestern standards of modernity.They wanted something diferent,something uniquely ‘Indian’, andsurely that was to be found in therural traditions of making and India’srich heritage of textiles? It’s this visionof a uniquely Indian modernity thatdrove legendary activist Pupul Jayakarto set up a raft of institutions devotedto nurturing craft in the 1950s. Todayher reputation is mythical amongstadvocates and historians of craft. Thoseof a certain age and milieu go misty-eyed at the mention of Jayakar’s name.Her intention was a ine one, but itsexecution became inseparable fromthe circles of power and privilege that``````deine the leafy avenues of Lutyen’s Delhi. To advocate forcraft is a privilege of the few. As Indian fashion has grown,so too has the clamour to be seen to advocate for a craft-based perspective. It confers the sheen of moral status, there’sa whif of money, aristocracy even. And in a market wherebridal designers invent imaginary crests and shoot lookbookssaturated with imagery of maharajas and maharanis, noblesseoblige is all the rage.Which brings us to one of the inherent problems withcraft, its enmeshment in centuries-old relations of caste andpatronage. It’s a thorny problem seldom addressed by craftadvocates. In conversation with a redoubtable advocate I wastold that even though, of course, caste is a terrible thing, “itdoes give communities a certain structure”: Cue MarxistMillennial facepalm.Can fashion with its glamour and promise of democraticaccess for all to a shining modernity, provide the answer?What to make of the trend in recent years, of designersmaking the penultimate grand gesture of bringing artisansalong with them on catwalk ramps to take a inale bow.What to make of this extravagant virtue signaling? Whenthe lights dim and the metaphorical curtains come down,then what? Is that craftsman paid more and do we rememberhis or her name alongside that of the star designer? Whatare their children’s prospects? What if their children don’twant to be artisans, what if they want to be an astronaut,computer engineer or even a fashiondesigner? Does anyone pursuethese questions as the applause andlights fade and the artisan ‘props’return to the shadows?Whenever craft is mentioned, whydo we take it for granted that craftmeans a fair livelihood, when no onereally questions what a life enmeshedin craft-based labour really means.Does it mean self-determinationor drudgery? How can we separatebetween caste and vocation? As wegaze on yet another fashion spectaclethat puts craft at the centre, thatquestion should be at the forefront ofour minds. ■``````Politics, caste, and couture—columnist Phyllida Jaycovers it all as she traces India’s obsession with craftHistory providesa clue: In thepost-Independenceera, a new moodof optimism soughtexpressionthrough thematerial cultureCRAFT CULTUREPhyllida JayBazaarSTYLE