ICynosure: Baaya Design

I’m sure most of you are aware of my immense affection for Baaya Design for their unique theme where design meets tradition. The retail store located in the heart of Mumbai city offers a unique range of traditional and tribal art that transforms any living space into a cultural environment; with beautifully crafted pieces that promote art forms of Gond, Warli, Lipikam, Madhubani, Kalamkari, Dokra, and much more. Shibani Jain, founder and chief curator at Baaya Design shuttles her time between identifying and nurturing new talent and art forms and bringing them to the retail store to promote and give wings to the artists.

The summers are here and in the heat, Baaya; is yet again set to offer brands that will bring in the cool quotient for the fashionista in you. Shibani has brought new brands Ohar, Stone Vibes and Sasha that will ensure you break the fashion monotony and indulge in something that has been specially created for you this season. The 4-day ‘Summer Somethings 2017’ exhibition beginning today will allow you to pick the best from the brands; especially light and trendy natural fibre garments, semi-precious stone jewellery, and embroidered clutches.  

For the uninitiated, fear not. Here is all you need to know about the brands that are being showcased during the exhibition.

OHAR works with a vision to craft each design with supreme care, providing an ineffable experience to the user. Under the Organic range, Ohar has used 100% Organic & Sustainable fabrics that are comfortable to wear and designed for Indian summers. For the handloom range, they are trying to innovate classic fabrics such as khadi or handwoven fabric from various parts of the country in modern but graceful silhouettes paying supreme attention to every detail from fibre to garment.

STONE VIBES was born out of sheer love for colours and the positive vibes that the stones exude. All the pieces are carefully put together and thoughtfully designed to suit the woman of today, who are fearless, independent and confident. Crafted of copper, silver, and micro gold, stone vibes have a full range of earrings, bracelets and neck pieces for both casual and formal occasions.

SASHA is a luxury brand of exquisite handcrafted and embroidered clutches, custom made for every occasion created by model and designer Mamta Raja. The range of handmade collection includes the Maharani Collection on a rich silk embellished with faux pearls and gold thread work, Jaipur collection inspired from the beautiful city of Jaipur with its magnificent forts, palaces, peacocks and elephants, clutches on beige raw silk with zardozi embroidery and much more.

Aren’t these beautiful? Well head to the store and you will find many more options to pick from.

Until next time,
~ Heena

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What do you do when you receive an invite that offers a wine and cheese evening with a renowned artist with in-depth understanding of Indian Art? For someone like me who is an art lover, simply jump in joy and reply in acceptance. However if you get to know that the artist is the talented, alumnus of Sir JJ School of Arts, Brinda Miller; all you can do is remain spellbound. And for the uninitiated, Brinda is one of the most respected names in the Indian art scene with over 15 solo exhibitions and is the creative, non-executive member of the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival organising committee.

As I headed to Baaya Designs, I couldn’t contain my excitement. The rendezvous was spearheaded by Shibani Jain, a NID Ahmedabad alumnus and the Founder and CEO of Baaya Designs. Baaya Design is the most revered address in Mumbai for its unmatched craftsmanship that speaks volumes of how India’s old age exquisite art and craft is moulded to suit the modern day demands, making it one of the kind for both art practitioner and connoisseurs and art lovers. In its unique way Baaya Design Studio offers a range of Tribal and Traditional Art, Art Installations, Murals, Furniture and Accessories transforming living spaces into artistic environments.

#BrindaSelects was the flavour of the evening with Brinda that enlightening me about Indian art forms, the importance of a balance between art and crafts and an artist’s insight into the thought-process while creating a piece of art. During the discussion a couple of really important points that’s stood out were how modern day artists are inculcating the traditional arts into more habitable options of craft projects and the need for artists to collaborate with each other to create magical pieces that add an element of exclusivity.

Just as Brinda mentioned that each piece of art has a different interpretation for every person who looks at it, in a similar way each piece speaks to every personal differently giving them an insight of their personality. With the limited amount of knowledge I have about Indian arts, a few forms that really connect with me are the Mata ni Pachedi and now the Tree of Life. The Tree of Life in its various forms is recognized as a symbol of immortality and eternal life that is classified by the symbols (Air, Water, Earth, Fire) it projects, the powers (Healing, Rejuvenation, Sustenance) it commands and the magic (Telepathy, Osmosis, Communication) it exudes.

Yes, each art form is so intricate and with multiple layers of understanding. If you too like me are interested in learning more about each art form you can participate in the walk-through sessions that is organised at Baaya Design on the first Saturday of each month, to know more email them at info@baayadesign.com.

Let art meet craft,
- Heena

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With the celebrations of Navratri just concluded, and today being the tithi of Poonam, every house is chanting songs at the Mata Ki Chowki celebrations today. While the decoration for the Mata ki Chowki is just like any other celebration, one thing that takes centre stage is the Mata ni Pachedi. Literally translated as 'behind the mother goddess', Mata ni Pachedi is a natural pure cloth that constitutes a temple of the Mother Goddess.

In the olden days when the nomadic Vaghari community of Gujarat was barred from entering temples and other religious places, they made their own shrines with depictions of the Goddess on a piece of cloth. This ingenious solution is believed to be the origin of Mata ni Pachedi, the sacred art.

Traditionally, red is the main colour of the paintings, the mother goddess dominates the painting with stories laden with numerous characters and motifs in the background. In Gujarat, artisans make these paintings using the same methods used traditionally, using natural colours and dyes.

Mata ni Pachedi is also known as the “Kalamkari of Gujarat”, owing to its similarity with the Kalamkari practised in Southern India and the use of pens (kalam) fashioned out of bamboo sticks, for painting. The Process is, a cotton fabric is first de-starched and then treated with Harada paste, to prepare it for absorbing the colour. Outlines of the figures are painted first. After this, red colour extracted from tamarind seeds, is filled in and the areas supposed to be white are left blank. After application of each colour, the fabric is boiled to bring out the colour and then washed in Sabarmati River. The cloth must be washed in running water only, so that any excess colour flows away, instead of staining the cloth. This is also a way to purify the painting.

While craftsmen are refining this folk craft to suit the changing times, yet the sanctity of this religious artefact remains untouched. Creating Pachedis as well as new illustrations that are relevant in today’s context, but in the same folk style, these craftsmen have remained true to the cause of spreading the glory of the Mother Goddess and her wonderful art.