Apparel March 2020 Apparel March 2020 issue | Page 38

FEATURE
A Regal Show
The 5th Walking Hand in Hand fashion showcased the theme of Royal Textiles of India and was
presented by CDS Art Foundation, Ahmedabad. Brinda Gill gives an account of the show...
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I APPAREL I
The Royal Textiles of India, a fashion event
showcasing the highest level of craftsmanship by
Indian textile artisans, was recently held at Lukshmi
Vilas Palace, Baroda. The show that was presented
by CDS Art Foundation, Ahmedabad on January
11, 2020, aimed to introduce the audience to some
of the finest textiles that were stitched for royalty.
“The aim of the Royal Textiles of India show is to let
the audience know that India can produce some of
the most beautiful textiles, as were once handmade
for royalty,” said Asif Shaikh, co-founder of CDS Art
Foundation, Ahmedabad.
This fashion show of textile crafts, created
through collaborations between designers and
master artisans travelled to New Delhi. The new
textiles were showcased on February 29, 2020
at Sunder Nursery, a 16th century park complex,
near Humayun’s Tomb.
CDS ART FOUNDATION
CDS Art Foundation – stands for Craft Design
Society. Founded in 2016, by Ahmedabad
March 2020
– based textile stalwarts Villo Mirza and Asif
Shaikh, CDS aims to start a movement to take
beautiful, handcrafted Indian textiles to the world
stage to share space with the best global textile
and fashion brands. H H Maharani Radhikaraje
Gaekwad of Baroda accepted Directorship of
the CDS Art Foundation at the Royal Textiles
of India show. The foundation endeavours to
showcase the role of established, yet unnamed
master textile artisans who have been pushing
the boundaries of their skills and craft for a very
long time.
FASHION SHOWS
Since its inception, CDS Art Foundation has
been organising Walking Hand in Hand fashion
shows annually, to help promote artisans. The
latter group, work with leading designers to create
collections of draped and garments that have
been stitched based on a theme. The venue for
each fashion show is chosen to resonate with
the ethos of the foundation and the theme of the