Apparel August 2019 Apparel August 2019 issue | Page 74

FABRIC SPEAK
SILK FOR PEACE
Following in the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi, Kusuma Rajaiah’s ahimsa silk, which is crafted
without the killing of silkworms, has become a movement in the fashion arena. Anurima Das
talks to the man behind the discovery.
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I APPAREL I
Ahimsa silk, better known as peace silk, is
nothing short of a revolution—a scientific
breakthrough that has given birth to a fashion
movement. What started way back in the 1990s
as an experiment by government officer Kusuma
Rajaiah has now become a cause the fashion
fraternity the world over accepts and embraces to
end the cruel killing of the silkworm species. process or the cocoons are dropped in boiling
water when they are ten days old, before they
metamorphose into a moth. This is because
the silk is believed to be the finest at this stage.
However, the making of ahimsa silk follows a
different model—one which believes that beautiful
silks can be created even without the killing of
the worms.
HOW IS SILK MADE?
Silk is traditionally made from cocoons of the
silkworm (scientific name: Bombyx mori). The
pupae in these cocoons are killed via a steaming CURBING VIOLENCE
Kusuma Rajaiah has over 40 years of experience
in this industry. He conceived this idea when he
was approached by Janaki Venkataraman, wife
August 2019