Celebrating India

Our lifestyle is a reflection of our personality, whether it is the garments we wear, the jewellery we wear, the kind of a house we live in, whether we have a little garden and some plants, what kind of furniture we have, the colour of our house and so are the arts of India, a living expression, a part of our daily experience.

One dimension is the understanding of the technology of the mind that our rich cultural heritage includes. For example, in the past, every home in India had a grand entrance door. It was further beautified with creepers of mallige, complex and exuberant rangoli, bells and thorans. It is far from the minimalistic approach. There was so much Emphasis on beauty. Why? When a person comes to your home you really don’t know the state of his mind. Perhaps he is irritated with the traffic or disturbed with some worries. However, when he sees something of beauty, there is a shift in the consciousness from unpleasant to pleasant, from the past or future to the present moment. You can ensure to a great extent that the person who enters has a harmonious state of mind.

If our vision is broad and our roots are deep, the element of culture naturally reflects in our lifestyle. Remember the 100 year old saree of our grandmom that is used as a quilt for the new born in the cradle, it is no more a simple saree just used as a quilt but the love and blessings it carries makes it all the more beautiful and priceless. Or a reallllyyyyyyy old Tanjore painting that our great grandfathers and probably their great grandfathers used for their pooja, if you have one of those, this piece of art would take you back in time and make you feel so connected to the love that has passed on through the generations.

These little things are a constant reminder of the rich heritage that is a part of our country. But somehow or the other , we don’t know what influence or reason that got in the changes, things so common in the olden days are not available these days. For instance, every home has the Fisher-Price ‘Rock-a-stack’ (a ring stacking toy) and that same in the Channapatna wood is an uncommon craft. What is happening? If you see the big big houses, the beautiful houses of people who are well off get their interiors done in the modern style little unaware of the fact that the hearts of the people staying inside are that of Radha-Krishna. Ofcourse the fittings, the hinges can be made modern but the style of our homes should reflect our broad vision, our roots.

India has a very prosperous, diversified heritage. Through the centuries, the brilliance and inborn skill of our artists have guided the Indian aesthetic in every day life. We have been flawless with our art, craft and architecture. Our masterpieces resonate so much with life and faith. Every single dimension has a meaning, every incarnation sparkles with naturalness. And it is so very important to bring about an awareness of all these between us and the coming generations. Even if one of this rich art is lost, it is such a great loss to the beauty , to the creation.

So, to revive our tradition which is our real wealth and make these uncommon crafts our way of life is Madhurya’s vision. Adapting it and making it available and affordable are key challenges that our young designers have taken up so that the phenomenal benefits of our ancient techniques for healthy living can be brought to the forefront again.