Genelia Deshmukh’s chanderi lehenga was crowned with a Kalamkari dupatta hand-painted over 25 days

Genelia Deshmukh has an enviable range of Indian sets in her wardrobe. Its collection extends over timeless weaving for significant moments, airy cottons for daily ease, embroidered inheritances for weddings and contemporary curtains for the red carpet.

After a season of gossamer pieces respectful of the monsoon, the actor returned to his best festive for Ganesh Chaturthi. His recent appearance, stylish by who was carrying what when, in a brown brown brown can be read like a manifesto for conscious vinaigrette.

From Aamra by the Inara collection of Lavanya, the whole brings together some of the most revered textile traditions in India. A rich Banarasi hugi silk with delicate Zari bands serves as a basis for Lehenga. The highest point is the Kalamkari Dupatta pen, painted yellow flowers shaded in bright tones of red, green and blue. Sleeve with complex hand embroidery, the piece turns into canvas where several crafts converge.

Pen Kalamkari is a secular art form that uses a palm bamboo pen to draw and paint complex patterns on the fabric. The process is as meditative as it is meticulous. “It starts with the treatment of fabric using natural ingredients such as cow dung and milk to ensure the solidity of colors. The craftsmen are then drawing patterns inspired by mythology and nature with a good pen, and describe them in natural dyes derived from plants and minerals, “explains Lavanya Satuluri, the designer behind the Hyderabad label. What means that Dupatta de Deshmukh stands out, she adds is the work behind: “The silhouette suffered the complete Kalamkari process and took 20 to 25 days to be painted by hand.” The result is a play that tells a story of artisanal heritage, where each petal, vine and imperfection testifies to the patience and competence of the artist.