January 2020 Edition Apparel January 2020 issue | Page 61

DESIGNER SPOTLIGHT
The purpose of Interlace, Gaurang says,
is to make people aware of and understand
how adaptable Indian jamdani-weaving is, and
about our continuing relationships with legacy of
jamdani today. There are limitless experiments
and new ways of challenging this status quo.
That is what Gaurang is trying to showcase
through the collection. A revivalist by nature, the
self-taught fashion designer has by far created
livelihoods for over 800 weavers across India
and has inspired them to weave art on fabric at
every juncture.
Gaurang Shah had been conferred with
the ‘Best Designer’ award at the 2012 Lakmé
Fashion Week. Moreover, he made his first
international debut at the Lavera Eco Fashion
Show in Berlin. “We set out to begin work on
fine khadi of 80 to 100 counts to make the fabric
malleable. We also wanted the fashion world
to think beyond ‘white’, a colour that is usually
associated with khadi. So we used vibrant floral
blooms, birds, butterflies, and foliage themes.
Each of the patterns was meticulously woven
using our hallmark jamdani-weaving technique,
in a combination of colours. The process was
“WE ALSO WANTED THE
FASHION WORLD TO THINK
BEYOND ‘WHITE’.”
wearisome and took immense amount of time.
Using the jamdani weaves with flowers, leaves,
and birds that had a varying tonal quality with the
colours gradually moving from pastels to darker
tones through the breadth of the sari was an
instant hit. We also leveraged the three-shuttle
technique to help us get different colours in each
border,” Gaurang says, while reminiscing about his
achievement.
Today, Gaurang’s khadi collection is one of the
most sought-after. Label Gaurang is available in
seven cities across India; in Mumbai, he sells under
the brand name ‘Vaya’. The designer operates
as ‘Brand Gaurang’ in Hyderabad, New Delhi,
Kolkata, Chennai, and Bengaluru. His pieces are
also available to customers in the United Kingdom,
the United States (US), the Middle East, Singapore,
Malayasia, and Sri Lanka through his portal and
social media.
Apart from this, recently, the designer has made
a foray into the international market with a new
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Ledbury Street, London.