Silk Route public charitable trust presents Summer Loom fashion and lifestyle exhibition on 9 June
As we make headway towards a “new” fashion defining our changing needs and identities, pausing and reflecting
on where the current fashion comes from…is an unlikely NGO, Silk Route. It is started by Kashwin Sahaiya, a NIFT design graduate and ISB MBA post graduate, and Ranu Sahay, a lawyer and a law faculty.
Kashwin Sahaiya
Ranu Sahay
Silk Route is a public charitable trust that was started to provide a free and easily available selling platform to artisans from the various craft clusters of India. While brands have brought in convenience and a certain amount of prestige, anything made by hand is a single edition characterising love, personalisation, and uniqueness.
“I am not sure how brands make people feel special…there can be thousand other people wearing your Tory Burch bag or your Armani jacket…no one else in the world can be wearing your custom made Khadi jacket or your chikankari tunic color coded, patterned, and stitched specifically for you” – says Kashwin. A large part of Silk Route’s focus is on made to order. But that’s not to say that it does not have ready made products – in fact most of its exhibitions display readymade fashion that can be customised as per request. But these products are handmade, so the uniqueness and personalisation can still be guaranteed to great extent.
While offering “unique fashion” is the idea, the main goal of Silk Route remains to revive handloom and handicraft. Ranu Sahay quotes – “the main threat is not the machine; rather, it’s the lost memory of people wherein they’ve forgotten the value of handicraft”. Silk Route hosts regular exhibitions where the artisans can participate free of cost and as much as decuple their pocket price without large chunks of prices being eaten by elements of a long supply chain quintessential of the fashion industry – comprising middlemen, distributors, whole sellers, retailers, etc.
“Maker to market” – that is the core essence of Silk Route.
Silk Route is launching their foray into the B2C space with a launch party, rather a walk-in exhibition, where you can meet the founders and the participating artisans themselves. A few designers, also participating in the exhibition, and engaged in sustainable clothing deserve a special mention:
– Moral Fibre: The Ahmedabad brand focuses on ethical sourcing and decentralized people based production. Their pet fabric – timeless and versatile Khadi! Website: https://moralfibre-fabrics.com/
– Label Radhika Chandna: Making use of sustainable fair trade practices while making clothes, Radhika Chandna offers contemporary, classy and trendy collection. What makes this label different from so many others is ghat it offers made-to-order clothing and you can be sure no one else is wearing what you are! Website:
https://labelradhikachandna.com
– Little Hippie: Founded by Shalaka Kulkarni, the label is focused on kids wear and makes use of skin friendly organic cotton in vegetable dyes. Rest assured regarding your child’s safety and aesthetics. Profile on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/little___hippie?igsh=ZGNkbjR1cGZwZzh4&utm_source=qr
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You can listen to the stories of artisans and designers, meet the founders and like minded people, or simply beat the heat with some air conditioned retail therapy. Catch them anytime 2-10 pm on the 9th of June, at MPH Hall inside Kamani Auditorium in Mandi House, New Delhi.
