She hobnobs with the top brass in the southern film industries, styling them for their film projects, endorsements and public appearances, and her social media feeds provide pointers to fashion and beauty trends. In the course of styling for her projects, Neeraja Kona found herself developing a deep liking for breathable fabrics in comfortable silhouettes. She might wear designer labels now and then but most often, she says she’s at ease wearing handloom cotton kurtas. “A store like Fabindia would be my go-to place for workwear clothes. And, I’m aware that for many women, comfortable clothing is of utmost priority,” she says, talking to us a day after announcing her forthcoming clothing project, Kaluva (lotus), on social media.

She’s been doing the groundwork for a year. Her fascination for block prints took her to Jaipur where she began working with the craftsmen. Pockets of Rajasthan are known for their intricate block print designs, from the Anokhi museum in the vicinity of Amer Fort to the bylanes of Jaipur where one would find several block printers busy at work. Kaluva will have a range of cottons and muls block printed in Jaipur. Certain colours have become synonymous with block prints. Neeraja wants to present a broader colour palette, “Apart from the vegetable dyes, indigos and reds one associates with the bagru prints, we will have a variety of pastels; the plan is to use natural dyes and a mix of chemical colours to arrive at new shades. It would be good to have colours like mauve.”

Kaluva will launch in a couple of months, first as an online store and eventually as a brick and mortar space. The USP, says Neeraja, will be the affordable pricing, “I might be working with designers for film projects but this clothing line is not going to be ‘a designer range’ so to speak.”

The workshop for Kaluva will be in Neeraja’s hometown Bapatla, where she will be roping in homemakers and single women looking to better their livelihoods. “Block printing will be done in Jaipur, the master tailors in Hyderabad will be working on silhouettes and the stitching will happen in Bapatla,” she informs.

In recent years, several start-ups have entered the handloom clothing space with online stores. Ask Neeraja what will set Kaluva apart and she laughs, “It’s okay if Kaluva doesn’t really stand out from the crowd or offers a few silhouettes one might find in the retail sector. I want women to relate to the brand and be happy wearing the clothes. A few stores in Hyderabad specialise in easy, comfortable cotton clothing. But the rest of the stuff available is generic in terms of colours and patterns.”

There’s always scope for a new clothing line and coming from someone who has worked closely with the fashion industry, Kaluva could be worth the wait.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Life & Style> Fashion / by Sangeetha Devi Dundoo / March 28th, 2018