‘To preserve India’s endangered crafts heritage, the obvious solution is to ensure markets’
- Madhu Jain
- Madhu Jain
Madhu Jain is a craft revivalist
and textile conservationist. Her forte lies in developing textiles in
distinctive combinations of variant weaving traditions for creation of new
textiles that are high on quality and design. Today she is recognised for her dedication
towards the handloom sector. Her work in revitalizing and reinvigorating dying
crafts has won her wide appreciation and international recognition. Her Bamboo silk IKAT weave is the first of
its kind in the world. She has notably
indicated Bamboo as the textile of future.
Madhu Jain launched her career in
1987 with a mission to revive the Indian handlooms sector to further the cause
of swadeshi. Her contribution has been
in serving the twin functions of adding to the nature fibres and textiles by
revitalizing the handlooms industry and assuring livelihoods to the artisans
segment. She did this by combining
distinctive combinations of different weaving traditions from two states or
regions thus coming out with quality textiles in association with Master
weavers.
As an authority on finer aspects
of textile crafting, Madhu introduced bamboo as an alternate eco-friendly
textile and after putting in 15 years of Research and development, she came out
with Bamboo Silk Ikat which is entirely a new kind of textile that is being
hailed as the Textile of future.
India with a rich 2000 year old
tradition in textiles is unique in many ways. While designs, patterns and fabrics
continuously evolved in various regions through history, innovations and
weaving techniques have undergone various changes over the years. Madhu Jain as
a specialist in creation of new weaves has experimented with Ikat from Odisha,
Kalamkari from Andhra Pradesh/Telengana, Mekhla Chaddar from Assam and Andhra
Uppada. She was excelled in figurative
Kalamkari which has been accomplished by incorporation of new features in the
traditional craft by use of influences such as Raja Ravi Varma paintings. Madhu
also specialises in creation of new weaves and textiles which are organic and
hand woven.
India being the second largest
bamboo producing country in the world has a big scope in terms of tapping this
material as a sustainable and eco-friendly textile material for the future.
Madhu’s passion for eco-friendly bio-degradable textiles has led her to
introduce Bamboo as an alternative textile in India. Moreover, the bio-degradable element of
bamboo and its ability to leave negligible ecological footprint as compared to
factory manufactured textiles is UV protective and has proven anti bacterial
properties. This concept was first demonstrated and introduced in the year 2003
at the 7th World Bamboo Congress.
Thereafter various experiments and fusions have been done with its
integration with Khadi, cotton, chanderi and wool. Today Madhu has refined the bamboo-yarn to
precision and has succeeded in infusing it with silk ikat blend which is a
first in the history of textiles.
Madhu’s efforts have also been
directed at reviving traditions through sustained support for weaver
livelihoods. Towards this she has
painstakingly worked with NGOs and SHGs in rural areas for ensuring markets for
skills that are passed on through generation of cultural linkages and
inheritances. Madhu’s efforts at
popularising traditional textiles have brought about a 500% growth in the
Kalamkari sector. Her interventions have
also altered the landscape and supply chain of traditional textiles that could
alleviate the problems of the artisans by insulating them from vagaries of
fashion industry markets by ensuring steady volumes of work to the artisans.
Madhu Jain launched her first
fashion label in 1987 to revive handlooms sector and thereafter she worked with
BRAC Bangladesh for next two years in reviving Nakshi Kantha and reintroducing
Dhaka Musin which has disappeared from India after partition. Her works were showcased in Ms. World Pageant
at Seychelles in 1997 where she had dressed up 15 contestants. In 2000 Madhu became the Associate Designer
Member of Fashion Design Council of India.
She launched Project M with noted film celebrity Milind Soman to take traditional
Indian textiles onto the world stage.
This was made possible with her Kalamkari collection at Singapore
Fashion Week. In 2004 she introduced bamboo based textiles at the 7th
World Bamboo Congress and later in 2005 embarked on Kashmir Project to restore
lifelines of local artisans by sourcing, developing, marketing and popularising
Kashmiri design in Kashimri handicrafts which were later presented to four
leading museums in New York. Madhu then
became Member, Culture Committee, South Asia Foundation that promotes
understanding between SAARC nations through crafts and culture. She has also won several awards and
recognitions including Women of excellence FICCI FLO, Rajiv Gandhi Excellence
award, India Eye International Human Rights Observers Women achiever award for
her dedicated and distinguished work in promotion of indigenous forms of
textile weaving and designing.
Madhu Jain has now been conferred
the prestigious Nari Shakti Puraskar, the highest civilian honour for women for
the year 2017.
[Government of India confers Nari
Shakti Puraskar, the Highest Civilian Honour for Women in India on
International Women's Day to acknowledge and recognize the services of
individuals and institutions who make lasting contribution to women's
empowerment. These awards are an effort to recognize role models who act as
torch bearers for the younger generation and catalysts of change in the lives
of women and society at large.]
©jpkallikkal/2018
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