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In love with all things natural

PHOTO : P.V. SIVAKUMAR

COLOURS AND TEXTURES Bina Rao at work.

Bina Rao’s workplace reflects her passion for crafts. Kalamkari wall hangings that she had presented at international forums line the modest corridor leading to her office. Each kalamkari wall hanging bears a stamp of unique designs conceptualised by her and the clever combination on natural dyes. Her office includes a cosy library in which you will find volumes and volumes on history of handicrafts around the world, techniques of dyeing, weaving and much more.

The lady herself is an elegant advertisement of her craft. Sporting a cotton-silk outfit offset by a tussar silk shawl that has gone through several stages of weaving and dyeing, she discloses later in her conversation that her work has, with time, busted a few myths. “People think silks like tussar are high maintenance. They feel certain materials are rough in texture and need to be dry cleaned after each use. I have used this shawl for two years now and it must have gone through 20 hand washes at home.”

At international conferences that celebrate weaving techniques and the use of natural fibres and dyes, Bina Rao has been a regular, representing India. “Everyone loves drape-friendly fabrics that lend themselves to flowy silhouettes. Making artisans at grassroots understand that they need to keep pace with demands in the fashion industry has not been easy,” she reflects.

Her collection showcased in South Korea recently.

Hyderabadis know her as the face of Creative Bee Foundation. Before setting up her retail store and crafts foundation, Bina worked as a consultant for the government and has been on the advisory panel that set up National Institute of Fashion Technology and stores like Kalanjali in Hyderabad. “Since 1996, we (she along with her husband, artist Kesava Rao) have been consultants. Even then, I would long to get my hands dirty with production. My hands would itch if I don’t change the weave of the fabric, work on the colour or the border.”

Bina took to ethnic crafts rather naturally. “My father was a Gandhian and loved wearing khadi. I remember wearing khadi frocks to school,” she recalls. Born in an aristocratic family in Ahmedabad as the only child, she had very few friends and had all the time to devote on developing skills in fine arts. “I grew up reading about arts, culture and crafts,” she says.

She met Kesava Rao while pursuing her post graduation (M.A. Fine Arts, graphics, from M.S. University) and faced stiff opposition from her family when the topic of marriage was broached. “My family wanted me to get married into a rich business family. Kesava Rao was an artist and his family was into poultry farming in Nellore. The diverse interests just didn’t make sense to my family. They tried to lure me into going for higher studies in arts in Europe. One of my aunts, an IAS officer, stepped in as my guardian angel. She intervened and felt that I needed to take up a professional course that will eventually make me financially independent.”

Bina then moved to the National Institute of Design for a three-year course, specialising in textile design and handlooms, which brought with it a world of opportunities. It was here that she discovered her love for textures and colours. “Once the course was over, it was again time for my family to set right things on the personal front. This time they did agree, with more persuasion from my aunt. We married in 1983 and I moved to Nellore. His family welcomed me with open arms and as a mark of gratitude, I stayed in Nellore for five years.”

Nellore, she reminisces, was a small town in the 80s devoid of cultural events. “The saving grace was that Nellore was known for its weavers’ colonies. Studying in the confines of NID was much different from getting a realistic exposure. I worked with weavers to learn the techniques. Here, it was about braving the heat and warping 50 metres on looms set up outdoors and checking every strand of the yarn. My father-in-law then gave us a place in one of the poultry sheds where we set up 12 looms and arranged for a few weavers to stay and work with us.”

With time, weavers trusted her craft and clients started coming in. The state emporiums and Lepakshi were the first customers. “After four years of marriage, I was pregnant. My husband felt we needed to move to a bigger city both for work and family. In Hyderabad, I approached APCO and was taken in as a consultant,” she says.

Since then, Bina’s expertise in fabric, clubbed with Kesava Rao’s penchant for colours, worked the magic. Kesava Rao specialised in graphics from M.S. University, Baroda, and focused on techniques in designing, painting, print making, natural dyes and hand block printing.

Today, Bina is happy balancing consultancy and her work as a designer. Taking part in international events and showcasing Indian fabrics through her signature line, she says, “Every product designed uses natural fabrics and dyes. We insist on being eco-friendly and don’t use power in looms.” Time and again, fashion design trainees come to work with her on internships, learning from her studio and in turn imparting their techniques to her artisans.

Next, she is off to showcase her work at the San Francisco museum and deliver three lectures in June. “All this is fun. But running the business isn’t. I don’t have the business bent of mind,” she says.

Dressing the power list:

Renuka Chowdhary, Amala, Shabana Azmi, Tabu and Sonia Gandhi are some personalities who love to shop at Bina’s studio when they visit Hyderabad. Orders were placed for Sonia Gandhi during her recent visit too.

Taking India abroad:

Bina is on the advisory committee to the Ministry of Textiles, member of World Crafts Council and has conducted workshops, delivered lectures, and showcased her work at fashion shows in Australia, US, Thailand, Malaysia and Bangladesh among other nations.

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