BRAND PROFILE
Design and the Essence of Life
Self-taught designer Saumya, co-founder of Sutra Crafts, works closely with phulkari
embroiderers to create contemporary apparel. Brinda Gill engages her in a conversation.
“About two and a half years ago, I was at the
Dastkari Haat Samiti and happened to stop at
a stall where a woman was working phulkari
embroidery. I was completely mesmerised
watching her so immersed in stitching on the
reverse of a fabric. A little later, she turned the
cloth around and showed us neat motifs on its
main face. Though I had seen phulkari before,
I had never seen one like that. Through that
demonstration, I simply fell in love with the craft
and instinctively knew I wanted to work with the
technique,” says Saumya, owner of the label
Sutra Crafts, which works with textile artisans in
different parts of the country.
THE CALL OF TEXTILES
As a part of her Master of Business Administration
(MBA) course, Saumya worked on a project
related to the impact of foreign direct inverstment
(FDI) in craft retail with the Foundation for MSME
Clusters, an NGO involved in the promotion of
MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises)
through cluster- and value chain-led development.
The project included interacting with about 150
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I APPAREL I
December 2019