MAKING A MARK

Chhapa is a brand that works with artisans and uses hand block printing techniques to give a contemporary spin to tradition. Bindu Gopal Rao writes about a young designer and her desire to bring back this art into the modern world

- Bindu Gopal Rao

The Apparel industry may be dubious for being the second highest polluter, but there are conscientious brands that want to change this. Chhapa is one such brand, moving towards a greener world, one block at a time. Shilpa Patel, Founder and Head Designer, Chhapa tells us more in this exclusive conversation.

WHEN AND WHY DID YOU START CHHAPA?

‘Chhapa’ means to leave a chhap (an imprint) in Gujarati. When a design gets stamped on any material using a wooden block, this process is called a chhap (thus Chhapa). Since I wanted to rejuvenate the art of the block print, I decided to have all my products revolving around this technique. This technique led me to name my company Chhapa. Founded in June 2013, Chhapa is based out of Ahmedabad and Jaipur. It has been seven years since its launch. I cannot believe how time has flown. Jaipur is where our workshop is located and most of the artisans who practise this block art print are from this region. Chhapa was founded as an avocation for creative work and for the conduction of experiments in the field of block printing. I eventually found a way to make a small contribution towards conscious fashion. A lot of artisans were on the verge of giving up practising this art because in today’s fast-paced world where most textiles are printed using high-end machines, such slow time-consuming methods are seldom given much opportunity. But I was determined to rejuvenate the art of block printing and give it a quirky dimension. This helped give the artisans more work, and helped us grow bigger.

WHAT IS THE USP OF THE CLOTHES AT CHHAPA? WHAT KIND OF CLOTHES DO YOU MAKE?