Transcript

The notion of Kora emerges from Khudrang meaning “self colour” or “natural, as you are”! 

This segment reflects an understanding that in India, white (unbleached) fibre is really a palette of colours. Different natural fibres, when twisted unevenly - a manner that is characteristic to hand spinning reflect and refract light in a way that contributes to the overall perception of texture of a fabric. Hand spun cotton and silk can range from gossamer to coarse. Very often poetry is the only descriptor accurate enough to describe the range of emotions within the white spectrum: the white of the jasmine bud, the white of the sea foam, the white of wind kissed clouds, the white of a tiger’s claw.

The design of kora textiles, further influenced by the times they were made in, are indicative of how design and its history influence the use of process and materials, which in turn can sway skill.

Mahatma Gandhi 
It is the essence of the interplay of fibre, translucency and robustness that paves the way of these interventions. Witness the silhouette of Gandhi woven with the words of his favourite bhajan with  single count spun yarn and gold thread (design usage promoted post the industrial revolution.) The skill involved here shows that cotton, which is often susceptible to breaking when woven with gold, has been used to highlight words of Mahatma. The sheerness and translucency of the fabric is experienced by the falling reflection as you can see on the wall, this is the result of highly refined jamdani created by weavers from Venkatagiri, Andhra Pradesh. If we were to study this down to the twist of fibre - hand spun yarn reflects light in such a manner that the softness of light is inherent with the texture of the fabric.

This rendition of Gandhi was originally designed by The Dastkaari Haat Samhiti for the Akshara project - yet continues to be woven within the Venkatagiri cluster we work with. A fine example of how in search of our Indianness - perhaps the artist, craftsperson and designer have amalgamated identities, as reflected in this work.

Angrakha 
On the other wall, is displayed a Angrakha woven in fine muslin, from the archives of The Registry of Sarees. Believed to be about 120 years old and hand spun, sourced from an Awadhi family that were courtiers at the time of the Nawabs. Their particular preference towards wearing stitched silhouettes, popularised by the Mughals, led to the introduction of Angrakha that today remains an important Indian sartorial tradition. Imbibing these historical narratives while appreciating the geometric construction allows us at Yali to develop products that reflect a sensibility that is empathetic to a disciplined use of fabric. Observe keenly that the way light is dispersed in all the pieces and is weightless is a salient design intricacy that can be attributed to process, materiality and skill!

Bandi Jacket 
Also displayed is a Bandi jacket hand woven in Tussar silk. There are four types of silk that exist- Mulberry, Tussar, Muga and Eri. Among these except  for Mulberry, the other three are wild silk varieties indigenous to India. Yali has created this Bandi jacket to commemorate the role of this silhouette in shaping the national identity, popularly also as the Nehru jacket and today the Modi jacket. A highlight of how textiles and silhouettes become means of identification. The perfect interplay of khudrang (pure shades) of tussar adds to the diversity of materiality.