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BG: How long does it take to tie and dye a textile? AK and AK: Given the nature of the process, it can take a week to tie a textile, or it could take up to five months. It depends on the fineness of the knots, the intricacy of the design, the fabric length and the number of colours required in the final design. For instance, a sari with an intricate design can have 100,000 dots! Further, the dots can be as fine as a mustard seed. The dyeing depends on the number of colours of the final work. For instance, if the design is of dots of a single colour, such as white, and the rest of the cloth is to be blue, then there is only one dyeing of indigo done, which takes less time than if two or more dyes are involved. If the design has dots of more than one colour, then the tying and dyeing is done repeatedly, moving from light to dark colours. In such a textile, there may be dots of different colours or the roundels may be encircled by different colours/have concentric circles of different colours. The last colour the cloth is dyed in is the darkest, such as black. Sometimes if a black circle is required around the dot, then a discharge dye is done so that the black ring stands out. BG: Please tell us about your product range. AK and AK: We do yardage, stoles, dupattas, saris, and stitched garments. Our tie-dye designs stand out for their geometric and abstract motifs, patterns, and artistic colour combinations that give them a contemporary and international sensibility. We have also revived traditional tie-dyed textiles such as the Chandrakhani dupatta gifted by a mother-in-law to her daughter-in-law when she comes home after the wedding ceremony. We design and stitch garments and collaborate with other designers to create fabrics for special collections. At the 7th Walking Hand-inHand fashion show, presented by Asif Shaikh’s CDS Art Foundation, held at Ahmedabad on 5 January 2024, we collaborated with Himanshu Shani of 11.11 / eleven eleven to co-create designer garments of a very contemporary silhouette. We clamp-dyed cloth using natural indigo for this collection. BG: Your work has been appreciated internationally. AK and AK: We love our work and are truly happy that it has brought joy to textile lovers worldwide. We have worked with many textile and fashion designers, held workshops, and shown our work at fairs in India and abroad, including the International Folk Art Market in Santa Fe, New Mexico. We have been honoured with many awards. In 2006 and 2007, Abduljabbar received the UNESCO Seal of Excellence for crafting high-quality, tie-dyed textiles. We aim to continue to create beautiful tie-dye textiles to support the craft and artisans. ••• Brinda Gill @bhido.art Image above right: dosa bandhani blind. Image right: dosa Bandhani Flag installation at Museo Textil de Oaxaca, 2016
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Yoshihiro Makino, Chr is tina K
