LIFE WOVEN WITH PASHMINA

Varuna Anand

In this week’s edition of ‘We The Women’, we have brought to you about the journey of another thriving entrepreneur. Textile designer Varuna Anand founded ‘The Splendor of Kashmir’ along with her husband Late Parveen Anand in November 2011. Even after she lost her soul-mate only a year later, the determination to realise the dream the two had seen together has only made Varuna stronger in her resolve. Over six years later, the business has been scaling new heights with each passing day. Let’s get to know more about her and gather our portion of inspiration.

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Pashmina is a luxury commodity, a yarn which has richly weaved and a luxurious fabric that has plushly draped heritage of Jammu and Kashmir. Unfortunately, over the years the markets is getting inundated with counterfeit, sub standard or unfinished craftsmanship resulting in decline of genuine admirers of this Art and sincere craftsmen from the valley. It is to be pointed out that art of shawl weaving and embroidery is a legacy and there is no formal school which edifies skill of making it.

"The Splendor of Kashmir" is promoted as an endeavor to endorse ‘The age old Art of Shawl making from Kashmir’ as well as a tribute to these highly skilled craftsmen. It is about fine Jamavars in Sui Kaam on Pure Pashmina, Kani's in pure Pashmina, woven wonders from Kashmir; a wide range of tastefully embroidered and woven shawls depicting the finest work from Kashmir.

Varuna’s clients includes Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar, Maharana of Udaipur; Dr. Farooq Abdullah; Prince Richard Holkar, son of the Maharaja of Indore; Justice A S Anand, Former CJI; Sara Pilot; Mewar’s princess Bhargavi Kumari; Prachi Sinha, Business woman, former Commissioner of Income Tax; Ruchi Ghanashyam, High Commissioner of India to South Africa among many distinguished personalities within and even outside the sub-continent.

Yet it was not before Varuna got married to Parveen Anand in 2002 and came into Jammu and Kashmir from Delhi, that she came across shawls finer than she ever had throughout her life so far, then. According to her, craftsmanship she found here was phenomenal and was not normally available in Delhi.

Varuna’s background in Textile Designing and her passion about fine textiles makes this instance seem to be destined. It was her husband, Parveen Anand who stirred Varuna’s life when on his insistence she agreed to commence a commercial venture dealing in the Shawls she has been keen about.

Parveen had genuine affection towards his home state and so he proposed Varuna to promote this age-old Art of Shawl making which became more concrete after Varuna’s first exhibition which was inaugurated by Dr. Farooq Abdullah, former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir.

Together, Parveen’s inclination and Varuna’s passion took form of ‘The Splendor of Kashmir’ in November 2011, after a sabbatical of 8 years which Varuna took after her marriage.

Soon the endeavor that was casually initiated by Varuna had an evolving vision to bridge the gap between creators and buyers of the fine product; and at the same time to promote the state’s legacy and heirloom, embodied in Shawls and the art of making them, as well as to assist its creators and curator.

Unfortunately, Parveen passed away suddenly, leaving behind Varuna with their two daughters and a revelation, “The Splendor of Kashmir”. Varuna took that shake and got back up again. Despite being wrecked by the loss, she gathered herself back for her family and for a dream, she and Parveen had seen together.

Varuna shares, “My dependence on him was substantial as he was the one dealing with craftsmen and weavers and I was just designing. But after his passing away I had no choice but to take charge and take up the challenges that came with it.”
She adds on, “Despite initial hiccups, it went on smoothly as the people I was dealing with were compassionate and caring, and gradually their faith on me increased and they supported all my efforts.”

Varuna fondly terms the shawls exhibited or sold under the label ‘The Splendor of Kashmir’ as ‘drapable art’ and we cannot agree more. These pieces of superior fabric can be carried by both men and women and whoever does so, appears to have draped around them a refined work of art.

Varuna expresses, “The amount of time, patience and dedication which goes into creating each one of these textiles make for a splendid final product, nothing short of masterpiece, one of its own. They make family heirlooms which are passed down from one generation to another, each piece is equivalent to an entity.”

These shawls, in variations like kani shawls, sui kaam jamavar and borders occupy a paramount place amid textile products, and have cultured and flourished from archaic proficiency. Being hand-woven and hand-embroidered, these shawls are commodities of luxury and exhibit the enriched heritage. The brand boasts to hold within, the prescience of protecting and preserving the dying industrious craftsmanship in this industrial age.

Varuna has inherited few of such heirlooms from her mother-in-law. Her favorites are the extensive ‘Sui Kaam Jamavar’. She explains, “The convoluted yet delicate design and pattern of these ‘Sui Kaam Jamavar’ exhilarates me without fail every single time.”

Sui Kaam jamavar is created by extensive hand embroidery, million intricate stitches of colorful thread creating an unbelievable spectacular design on an airy fabric like Pashmina, not only giving it weight by ornamentation but also covering the base fabric mostly. Despite being embroidered, the reverse side is as neat as the front.

The Kani Jamavars, signature creation of Kashmiri weavers takes between nine to twenty months for a weaver to complete, depending on the size of the piece and this long, patient, tedious and skillful work by weavers is the key to its enrichment. According to Varuna, embroidery on a fragile fabric like Pashmina is a ‘miracle’ itself.

Then there is Kani Shawl. In this art, designs are actually formed while weaving of shawls. Each shawl to be woven has its own script drawn by the Naqash with different color codes, which could be laborious. The government of Jammu and Kashmir has granted a geographical indication to the Kani shawl, making it illegal to sell shawls made outside of the Kanihama area as Kani shawls.

Varuna shares, “I am a proud owner of a few of these which I would eventually pass on to my girls as prized possessions.”

Pashmina shawls are timeless; the craftsmanship has thrived from time immemorial, yet this too-good-to-be-true textile marvel has mostly made on royal benefaction and expanding in this era is a challenge in itself.

Varuna understands that you can neither fight the flow nor let the flow carry you away, therefore, she insists upon the craftsmen she deals with to make them more complementary to the trend while ensuring to refrain from tampering with their traditional looks or compromising the quality.

Varuna expresses, “Craftsmen toil on one piece for 12-14 months and each piece created by them cannot be a masterpiece but we never spurn; and instead encourage the craftsmen to create more and more pieces, which not only gives them the finances but also the confidence that their work is appreciated and admired. This is part of the trade.”

Varuna explained the possible reason this art could be endangered despite the appreciations. She says, “It is a great amount of passion, patience and skill in creating these masterpieces and so the older generation takes rightful pride in their skill and work but the younger generation does not treasure this art on par and are mainly attracted to regular government jobs or an easier way to earn their living.”

Varuna believes in giving her clients the finest pieces of the Art and lays it down as the central ingredient of growth in business. She elaborates, “I received advance payment from my first oversee client the day my husband passed away. I remember distinctly writing to her the same evening, telling her about my tragedy and assuring her that she will receive an impeccable shawl but a little delayed. Today she is not only a friend, but someone who brings more clients. This is how I have branched out to more customers.”

Not only is she a blossoming business woman, Varuna is also mother of two girls. She expresses, “After marriage I was content bringing up our kids and was eluding to pursue back a professional life but after I lost my husband I realized that agreeing to start ‘The Splendor of Kashmir’ was a blessing in disguise. It has helped me to lead a life with dignity after he is gone.”

She further says, “Learning from my experience I advocate empowerment of every woman. I believe it is necessary to be self-reliant and self-sufficient. I am ensuring the same by imparting same learning on to my daughters. I am looking forward to watch them grow into strong independent women.”