NIFT students to weave Tamil Nadu’s best for PM Modi
The department of Textile design and Fashion design are putting the exhibition together
By : ashmita gupta
Update: 2015-08-06 05:00 GMT
Chennai: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Chennai to declare National Handloom Day on August 7, 40 students from the National Institute of Fashion Technology are working on decorating the Madras University senate house building with a display of hand loom weaves from across the country.
According to officials in-charge of the preparation of Modi’s visit, there will be an exhibition of handloom weaves from all 29 states of India. That will be followed by a function at Anna Centenary Auditorium where Modi will declare August 7 as National Handloom Day on Friday.
Chandini Palani and M. Brindha, both final year students of NIFT, arrived at the university bright and early in the morning. They have been working on the exhibition for the past one-week.
They said the handloom weaves that will be on display include Ikats from Andhra Pradesh, Jamdhani from West Bengal and Orissa, Kanchipuram silks from Tamil Nadu, Phulkari embroidery from Punjab, among others.
The department of Textile design and Fashion design are putting the exhibition together. According to director Anitha Manohar, the National Crafts Council and award winning weavers will be part of the exhibition. NIFT faculty members and students will help with the display.
The decision to do the handloom project was taken in Delhi in June. The handloom commissioner then approached NIFT to help with the exhibition. Chandini is excited about being part of the project since she herself is interested in the tradition of handlooms.
Explaining how Ikat weaving is done, Chandini said the material is coloured fully before weaving and then the pattern is developed. She sees this opportunity as a chance to further engage with weavers working in clusters in Kancheepuram. This programme will help promote handloom, which often gets neglected, she said.