And Kalaá was born

Indian handicrafts -  intricate art forms, techniques and a community trying hard to save their inheritance and legacy while trying to make a living. These are the things that first drew me to starting an Indian home decor blog and business. The idea that I could be creating better access to the fabulous work that artisans in India do by hand gave me goose bumps! No, really it gave me goose bumps.. I was nervous, scared and very much on my own when I actually started this. But no good thing ever came easy they say and that is so true in this case. I was clear from the start that I do not want Kalaá to be "just another business" but I wanted it to shape and function like a social enterprise. I strongly believe that it is possible to do good while doing well so the idea of having a for profit social enterprise appealed to me greatly and so I started this journey and I hope you , the one reading this blog, will give me company as I share my stories about my love affair with Indian art forms with you. 

What does Kalaá mean ? In hindi, Kalaá means "Art"  which basically tells you everything about it - we are all about art & different forms of it. From the Kashmiri Embroidery to the Hand Block Printing in Rajasthan to the rich Brocade work in Kashi ( Varanasi) to the intricate Chikankari in Avadh ( Lucknow) It is an attempt to create better access at fair prices to the brilliant , beautiful work that artisans in India do by hand. I want to specially emphasize on the fair prices part because although we are not certified Fair Trade yet, we are following all of the principles of Fair Trade - 

• No child or forced labor
• Good working conditions
• Gender equality
• Respect for the environment
• Opportunities for disadvantaged producers   

You know how you have certain memories of your childhood that stay with you no matter how old you get and you consciously or subconsciously in my case make make choices or do things keeping that memory in mind ? I remember how my mother would change the linens of the house from the curtains to the rugs to the pillow cushions on the deewan and sofa to the bed covers the moment season started changing. For summer , and India has HOT summers, I saw a lot pastels in muslin cotton blended fabrics , some embroidered , some hand block printed , some just painted and for winters, it was a lot of silk, Cotswool and warm colors and we would get these from a local woman who ran an initiative of sorts - handicrafts and employing village women. My mother would even take me to their work shop sometimes and I saw these women all sitting down on the floor , focused at the task in hand , could be stitching a quilt or doing some intricate patchwork. My mother even introduced this local woman selling hand made home decor to her kitty party friends and that was marketing 101 for me - word of mouth at the grassroots level.  The business picked up and everyone was happy. Now this memory is very important for because like my mother, I too keep my home on a season based decor calendar and it's nothing new or novel, am sure you do too, am just trying to bind all the facts that made me do what I do now, don't worry am getting there ... 

My love for handmade decor goes a long way, I love it for how unique it is, for how even the imperfections make it stand out and look nice and don't you think they are more human and more relatable..we are all a little flawed too right ? But what I love the most about hand made and handicrafts is that they are not factory made on a large scale and they support small scale cottage industries. There is an ocean of variety when it comes to Indian handicrafts, from apparel to pottery, cookware to home decor, home textiles to even stationary, there is not a sub section in the Home category which isn't catered by Indian handicrafts. It is a world in itself and a beautiful one at that. 

I am a romantic, yes for Indian art forms & handicrafts and Kalaá is a tribute to my passion for it. I believe that I need to participate in efforts to make this beautiful work available easily to everyone. I also believe that artisan communities and collectives such as the one my mother bought her home decor products from need to be recognized for their hard work and talent. It is important that they have a voice and we do our bit to better their lives and give back to the communities. Kalaá is working directly with artisan communities to strengthen and restore the market for hand made products. 

This is the start, our start and I hope you will come along for the journey and find something to love at Kalaá.