Fashion designer Shravan Kummar talks about his latest collection, his love for saris, and the most underrated textiles in India

Titled ‘Banglore to Belgium — tassels, threads and tradition’, the collection that was unveiled at the prelaunch of Indian Craft Brewery (ICB), saw Ilkal embroidery from Karnataka as well as Mata ni Pachedi, a traditional form of textile art from Gujarat and a lot of Banarasi fabrics. 

“Fashion for me is my religion, it is in my blood, nerves and cells of my body,” says Hyderabad-based fashion designer Shravan Kummar, who was recently in Bengaluru to showcase his latest collection.   

Titled ‘Banglore to Belgium — tassels, threads and tradition’, the collection that was unveiled at theprelaunch of Indian Craft Brewery (ICB), saw Ilkal embroidery from Karnataka as well as Mata ni Pachedi, a traditional form of textile art from Gujarat and a lot of Banarasi fabrics. 

“From the timeless grandeur of Banaras and Karnataka’s Ilkal to the storytelling art of Mata ni Pachedi and Kalamkari, our ethically handwoven fabrics pay homage to centuries of craftsmanship. Each piece is a seamless fusion of tradition and contemporary luxury, crafted to resonate with the modern global aesthetic,” says Shravan.

“These are saris that can be worn on boots and hot pants. My motto is ‘wear a sari, save a weaver’. Even if I fashion a lehenga today, I will make it out of a sari so weavers find work,” he adds.

For Shravan, showcasing his collection at the ICB was symbolic as this collaboration was a seamless blend of two visionaries committed to reviving India’s heritage while embracing innovation. “ICB, with its journey of bringing crafted beers from Belgium to Bengaluru, mirrors the spirit of Yatra.” 

Shravan, who was to have been a doctor, armed himself with a postgraduate from the London School of Fashion Designing from where he learned colour psychology and fashion psychology, “I returned and wanted to revive that here.” 

Ever since he started out as a designer in 1996, with his sister Jyothi Jaisooria, Shravan has been an advocate for weavers, which kept coming up throughout our conversation. “I work with as many as 3,800 widows in and around India; we give them the charkha, and they spin khadi for us.”