In A OF HER OWN League

While chikankari’s ubiquity in Indian fashion has made the craft famous, it has diluted the art form because of commercially-made iterations that do little to help its original artisans, the karigars. Ashwini Arun Kumar talks to ANJUL BHANDARI, the Lucknow-based couturier who works with fourth-generation Awadhi craftsmen to create pieces that preserve the embroidery’s authenticity

For the 35th anniversary of the multidesigner luxury fashion store Ensemble, Anjul Bhandari launched Gulha-e-Rang, her SS ’22 collection featuring her one-of-a-kind jama-inspired anarkalis, saris, ghararas and lehengas. They came in icy confectionery hues, and were inundated with chikankari, and embellished with Swarovski crystals and kaamdani work. Some of the most influential names in Indian fashion dotted the ground floor of the three-storey vintage building, and, yet, the focus was on a group of artisans who were showcasing traditional kaamdani embroidery live. As their nimble fingers worked the metallic wires into delicate floral motifs, they drew our attention towards the vanishing art form that few remaining craftspeople have the necessary skills to create.

Still, while Anjul says Gulha-e-Rang is an ode to the karigars who helped create the collection, it’s important to note that her other collections are too. She had been working with artisans for over a decade before starting her eponymous couture house in 2010. “My mother-in-law was a social worker who strived to uplift the women in the rural parts of Lucknow,” says Anjul. “Long before the pandemic arm-twisted everyone to work from home, we had people creating embroideries for us from their homes so they could make ends meet. My label is an endeavour to continue her legacy and celebrate my love for fashion and art.”