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Flair for fusion
 Nirupama Dutt meets designer
Anjali Kalia, who strikes a balance between Indian aesthetics and contemporary demands
"We
are all part of a living cultural tradition. Clothes too reflect a
culture. As we move forward in design today, the effort is to bring a
fusion between tradition and contemporary sensibility," so says
young Anjali Kalia, a Chandigarh-bred fashion designer.
After years of hard work,
Anjali is now being recognised as a designer with a difference.
"The approach I follow in designing garments is a holistic one,
which is very much a part of the Indian tradition. The very basis of
Indian aesthetics is Satyam, Shivam, Sundaram (truth, beauty and
harmony). Design should endeavour to imbibe this concept and clothes,
indeed, reflect a culture," she adds.
Schooled at Carmel
Convent, Chandigarh, Anjali chose to get a degree in Home Science in a
local college and thence went to Delhi to study at the National
Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT). Her graduate collection in 1996
was awarded the CMAI (Clothing Manufacturers Association of India) Award
for the Most Creative Collection. After working with a design export
company for a couple of years, she had a five-year stint with leading
fashion designer Rohit Bal.
This was also the time
when Indian craft and textiles were becoming very fashionable in the
West. Funky designers took a fancy to the street culture and pictures of
gods and goddesses travelled out of the frames and calendars on the
walls and onto clothes and accessories. There was a major row too when
Ganesha’s image appeared on footwear in a design by a westerner.
"This was the time for me for introspection. I launched off on a
self-motivated research into the Indian philosophy of aesthetics and
design. I felt that there was need for sensitivity to keep a balance
between Indian aesthetics and contemporary demands."
Indeed, Anjali’s clothes
embody grace and the embellishments are never loud. Even for festive
wear, she adds very subtle touches indicating the celebratory mood. And
if a picture of a god is to be included in a design, it is on the front
of a choli or the yoke of a shirt so that it is close to the
heart, as custom would have it. Her innovations arise from the
traditional dresses that women of the land have been wearing for long
and she designs only for women. So she gives a new form to the saree,
the ghagra-choli and the salwar-kameez. Anjali says,
"Sensuality for her is something that appeals to all senses,
inspires, attracts, teases and yet is full of dignity." Doesn’t
it sound like she is explaining what shringara rasa is all about.
Till recently she was the
creative designer for women’s wear with Maya, a brand name that has
been retailing at leading stores in the country’s metropolis. Now, she
has started off on her own to be able to have complete freedom in
designing. The name that she has chosen for her enterprise is ‘Divine
Design’. She has also been actively involved in the revival of crafts.
"In the past decade, I have worked with crafts like zardozi,
badala, thread work, dyeing and printing. I firmly believe in the
growth of the existing repertoire and not just copying and remobilising
traditional skills," says Anjali.
She says considerate
designers are making an effort to give innovative ideas to craftspersons.
"It thus becomes a two-way exchange and not mere appropriation of
their skills, " she adds. She has also been conducting design
workshops for traditional artists working in clay and bamboo.
In spite of her
involvement in fabric and garments, she also believes that the body is
just a garment and she is very active in Pranam, a philosophical
group that endeavours to raise consciousness.
Anjali Kalia’s (left)
creation displayed by a
model
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