JOIN USHer love affair with textiles began as a kid and during vacations, she would be engrossed in embroidery work. With a Master’s degree in textiles and clothing, she comes from a family that was into cotton trade. A passionate designer, Vijayalakshmi Nachair always wanted to work with the handlooms and says, “It took me 15 years to finally achieve this goal!”
Now the director of Appachi Eco-Logic Cotton and the creative director of brand ‘Ethicus’, an organic and ethical fashion brand, she will be displaying her collection ‘Love Story’ at Raintree on Sankey Road in June. Hailing from Pollachi, she found the right support in her husband Mani and indulged in contract organic farming. From here, she started her journey to promote and help revive the handloom tradition. Her brainchild ‘Ethicus’ was born in 2009.
Her search for the purest form of fabric took her to many handloom centres in the country after which she decided to establish her own loom shed and a design studio. “We bought old, solid, handlooms and set up a loom shed with 42 handlooms within our factory,” she informs.
Known for her wide collections of saris, her new collection, ‘Love Story’ is a varied ensemble of quirky saris that mostly attract the youngsters.
“My last collection was inspired by the rich Chettinad culture and I wanted to do something different this time. I want more youngsters to experiment and start wearing saris. That’s how ‘Love Story’ was born,” she explains. Based on the theme of love and romance, the collection takes its inspiration from “chocolates, music, Yash Chopra movies, lace, Taj Mahal, roses and the colour red.” Moving away from using tones on tones, her collections have ‘jamdani’ motifs of butterflies to signify romance with cupid arrows and tulip gardens. Unique when it comes to designs and colours, she says, “When in doubt, wear a sari.”
“I have always followed this rule and have never gone wrong. Saris are perfect for any occasion be it wedding, pooja or party. Fashion now demands not just following a tradition but has lot more to do with colour, layout of the sari...even the sari blouse is no longer a simple garment.”
With the belief “fashion is not an accessory to self-confidence”, she says, “While it is important to design and create beautiful products, the designers need to value their supply chain. The story behind a designer’s label is as important as the designs.”