Apparel November 2019 Apparel November 2019 issue | Página 68

DESIGNER SPOTLIGHT
JYOTI’S INITIATIVE HAS
BENEFITTED A LARGE
NUMBER OF ARTISANS
AND FAMILIES IN ASSAM.
and eri-linen) and garments. In this way, she
created fine, mill-spun yarns that yield consistent,
luxurious fabrics for a spectrum of Indian and
Western garments.
NEW EXPRESSIONS
Jyoti says that the silk takes on colour beautifully.
Ereena’s eri silk is woven with yarns dyed with
natural or azo-free chemical dyes, by weavers in
different centres in and outside of Assam.
Over the years, through collaboration
with weavers and textile artisans, Jyoti has
successfully created new expressions of eri—as
the yarn is woven in different ways, counts, colour
combinations, motifs, and patterns—merging it
with traditional Assamese weaves and lending it a
look that she says takes Assamese textile artisans
by surprise.
She also designs and collaborates with artisans
for surface designs (such as shibori, block
printing, and even screen and digital printing) as
well as different embroideries. “The collaborations
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I APPAREL I
November 2019
have spanned many weaving techniques.
Ereena’s sari collections include eri ikat saris, eri
Uppada saris, eri jamdani saris, and also saris
and fabrics made from eri zari tissue,” she says.
In addition are eri stoles and shawls, eri throws,
eri crochet, eri knit, and eri baby and home lines.
Jyoti predominantly operates from the
Ereena store in Hyderabad but her designs
have takers all over the world. Her pieces are
sold in multi-designer stores and exhibitions
(like the International Folk Art Market in Sante
Fe, New Mexico) all over the world. Aware
of the importance visual appeal holds for the
wearer (before they know the backstory of the
humaneness of the garment), she designs and
conceptualises attractive eri silk fabrics and
garments for them, propelling people in different
parts of the country to start wearing eri, which
was otherwise largely confined to the Northeast.
Ereena’s naturally dyed fabric is currently put up
at the Salvatore Ferragamo Museum, Italy, as a
part of its Sustainable Thinking exhibition.
SOCIAL IMPACT
Jyoti’s initiative has benefitted a large number of
artisans and families in Assam and different parts
of the country. Thanks to her label, the textile
itself has seen wider awareness and appeal. The
Fabric Plus factory (which spins eri and other
silk yarns) employs about 250 women artisans.
“The local women employed at the factory used
to traditionally hand-spin the eri yarn to weave
fabrics for garments. Now, they hand-guide this
yarn into spindles, which yields yarn with a more
consistent texture. This, in turn, makes the silk
commercially viable too,” Jyoti says.
Jyoti sources yarn from the Fabric Plus
factory and supplies it to handloom weavers
and textile artisans all over the country. “Our
collective has had quite an impact socially as
it has empowered a large number of women;
85 per cent of our employees is women. More
than 12,000 marginalised rural cocoon rearers