Parvai Speaks : What is a Parvai Original?

A Parvai Original is a wholly hand-crafted product using the techniques of one or more existing craft forms. It is conceived, designed, funded & executed fully per Parvai’s clear vision in consultation & partnership with the craft makers. A Parvai Original is thus one-of-a-kind & genuinely unique to its kind in the market. It is crafted with the ethos that guides our organisation & is authentic in its true & pure form.

The model that Parvai operates is quite different from some of the more popular models of sourcing & procurement. Since we constantly seek something purposeful, we are not in a position to simply pick from the market offerings. This then boils down to who we work with and how.

Identifying The People

Parvai works with craftspeople who are willing to be a part of the change. This might mean their status quo is challenged & disturbed. We understand the discomfort that comes from change, but we still push to change some practices, processes and methods. Our idea is to create something unique to the craft and market. Our work should help create a self-sustainable model for the community and be able to find their regular work all year round.

Identification of the craftspeople often takes us the most time. Some projects never move past the pilot stage, and some products never make it to the store due to quality issues. But we take these as learning experiences in our journey.

Learning With Them

It takes us several months to sometimes years to understand what works for a particular craft cluster. Our design team engages with the craft community to create new & authentic designs. Sometimes we let the artisans lead this by adapting their existing designs before we share our inputs. The first few attempts eventually led us to how we could develop a product line. While massive and never-ending, this journey is most satisfying once we overcome the initial roadblocks.

Every Parvai product, be it a piece of yardage or a composite craft product, is built with purpose. The designers work very closely to develop new motifs, revive old processes, build skills and produce something uniquely crafted.

Why is this important? 

Building something unique comes from a need to make changes & correct what we believe are the fault lines. We arrive at hypotheses and test them. For instance, is a particular craft not finding patronage since the designs are not relevant to today’s audience? Or perhaps the build & quality of the fabric dissuades genuine patronage? The answer to such questions leads us to what needs to change. 

These changes are not for the sake of change. But for a bigger purpose that we are silently working towards. We might just be a bucket in the ocean of change, and we seek humility in knowing & realising that.

Leaving behind a legacy

Creating something unique & skilled has always been in vogue. If you were to examine old architecture, jewellery or even well-preserved clothes, you will notice these pieces were woven specially for the royals. There could be no second piece and each design was never to be repeated. While the first thought is that this was a result of vanity, as we dwell deeper, we realise making something one-of-kind and unique is not a choice you make when you make less. It is the only path a true patron can take which ensures the craft achieves it’s pinnacle and creates something worth discussing decades after the patrons & makers are long gone.

PARVAI ORIGINALS

Organic Cotton Korvai ( three shuttle cotton weaving), handwoven in Kanchipuram

70 inch end piece, woven in Kanchipurm.