Upahaar – A Private Exhibition of Handloom Sarees in Bangalore

June 10^th& 11^th2017 marked a new beginning in the history of Handlooms as Shatika in association with House of Parama, opened up new avenues of reaching out to handloom lovers and creating awareness and interest in this unique art via a private exhibition called ‘UPAHAAR’ exhibiting and woven nuggets from various weavers’ heartlands to the residents of a swanky upmarket community in Bangalore.The event was not just any private exhibition with handloom sarees put up on sale, it was an enriching takeaway for guests who paid a visit to the exhibition as they learnt about the various weaves, the different textures in handlooms, the region they come from, the heartrending stories of the weavers, the effort put in by them and what not.

The event saw over 100 guests visiting in the span of two days. As the exhibition was open to the residents from 10:30am until 9:00pm on both the days, there was a continuous stream of curious visitors thronging to check out the handloom sarees collection. The guests spent hours checking out the collection, understanding the weave and experiencing the touch and feel of each fabric and ofcourse adoring themselves in their selected drapes as the saree experts draped it around them. Many of them who visited day one couldn’t resist a revisit on day two and this time with their friends and neighbors!

Wishing and greeting her neighbors and showing what she thought would interest them was Mrs. Nandini Lakshminarayanan, the CEO of House of Parama who hosted the exhibition in her private villa. Her passion for hand touched products and the common interest to promote weaves and upholding the weaving community tempted her into joining hands with Shatika, a well-known entity in this space. Offering eats and warmth to one and all, she played a perfect host.

With over 1000 handpicked sarees on display, the exhibition saw an eclectic mix of weaves, all end to end handlooms like linens, Mangalagiris, Maheshwaris, Benarasi Brocades, Kataan and Organza, Kanjeevarams, Chanderis, Paithanis, Salem, Arni, Uppada, Pochampalli, Kota Dorias and many more from the remotest locations. The sheer variety, different textures, prominent designs and fascinating stories of their making saw one and all in awe with them and left them all asking for more of such events in the near future.