it wasnt coincidence that sampa das shamlu dudeja darshan shah and chitra sirkar were all there at ritu kumars show at kfw2 these fashion divas have in their own way breathed new life into indian textile traditions by the magic touch of the wonder word designerwithin days of the fashionista at itc sonar khadi and village industries commission brought ramp stars and artisans together at milon mela to popularize handloombased textiles long before that all traditioninspired apparel creators of kolkata had put their best foot forward consequence a noted industrialists puja gift to tollywoods whos who is fashioned by these ladies after all the feast of colours and unstitched yarns that have outlived centuries are still to die forsialkuchi muga was going extinct when sampas boutique put the lustre back in insipid assam silk today her vibrant saris mekhlas kurtas and gowns are things to feast your eyes on and the exquisite dholbeli or lokka payra they bring to the discerning traditionalist jewellery thats a feat to own even in guwahati no easy task this despite its long life and golden sheen muga had to be given the protection granted to geographical indicators and then sampa must frequent old families museums and archives to retrieve ancient designs sit with weavers and guide their palettes to rework lost beauties fashion should not be fantasy but based on tradition she believes ironically these timeconsuming art cannot be mass produced perforce they are exclusive at artisana it was tough to take the eyes off phulia taant in the days of yore phulia came nowhere in the hierarchy that accorded pride of place to dhakai jamdani baluchari tangail and santipuri dhanekhali trailed after them phulia wasnt around after partition the santipuri weavers were rehabilitated in the little hamlet of bengal and today phulia is giving textile capitals like gadwal kalakshetra and sambalpur a run for their moneytheir enterprise was remarkable says ruby pal chaudhuri of crafts council theyre using a range of technology from bhagalpuri twill to khes type of finish creating double layers and grafting sequins to give the sixyard wonder a sexy appeal thats drawing the younger generation youngsters are returning to sari for its own sake for theyre realising it isnt just a dress its a culture she addsnot for nothing is shamlu dudeja dubbed a kantha revivalist she redesigned the stitches associated with old sarees and harnessed chiffons and silks besides her imagination and hundreds of needy hands to craft dresses scarves handbags bedspreads and wall hangings that now have buyers in france italy sydney and silicon valley with the arrival of sravasti poetry became fashionable in more ways than one inspired by jibanananda dass banalata sen sravasti expressed my desire to weave poetry into everyday life explains keya chaitali dasgupta sarees kurtas tees for children men and women she turns them into canvas to showcase everything from tagores doodles to sukumar rays limericks warli painting madhubani motifs bankura horses tiendye appliqu all is grist for her creative mill this