NID joins hands with NGO to promote Kala cotton
AHMEDABAD: Before the emergence of Bt cotton, Indian textiles thrived on
indigenous varieties of cotton used by people in different parts of the
country to suit their local needs. One such variant was Kala cotton,
found in a most of Asia and Africa — a coarse and short-staple strand
which was grown in large parts of Gujarat as well.
Its is tenacious and more responsive to dyes. However, it’s not easy
to work with. Right from cultivation to creating yarns, it requires
more effort compared to more mainstream crops.
Four artisans from Kutch-based NGO Khamir worked closely with a group of 12 students of National Institute of Design
(NID) in Ahmedabad to experiment with the material. While two groups —
consisting of one artisan and three students each — worked on cotton,
two opted for sheep wool acquired from Kutch. The project was part of
the coursework of the design programme.
Salonee Pathak, one of the students who participated in the
two-month long initiative, said it was a learning experience for both
students and artisans. “The idea was to create a sustainable future and
empower people by providing them with a means of livelihood. We observed
extensive weaving techniques and experimented with new designs,” she
said.
The team members said that all the clothes were made completely on loom,
without any wastage, with natural dye and multiple functionality.
Juhi Pandey, director of Khamir, said
that the basic idea behind Khamir is to sustain local culture and
tradition and Kutch’s stitching and fabrics are very much part of the
extended identities of local groups.
“Earlier, children of the artisans
used to get inducted in the same family vocation but now time is
changing. We are encouraging the young artisans to get exposed to global
trends and new ways of designing to reach out to newer audience. The
initiative at NID was thus strategic to providing them a new
perspective,” she said.
Both NID and Khamir officials said
that commercialization of the products is in the pipeline as multiple
stakeholders have shown interest in taking the idea further. The
indigenous cotton and wool, apart from being sustainable and providing
livelihood to the traditional practitioners, are also better suited to
the local climate, the officials said.
Source: The Times Of India, India Monday, 16 April 2018