The Kritikala store at Shaikpet, Hyderabad, is the face of a collective of enterprising women who design garments and products using ikat, kalamkari and Mangalagiri cotton sourced from craft clusters in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Displayed on the racks and stacked on the shelves are garments for women seeking fashion and comfort. The store stays true to the ethos of the non-profit organisation that the label has emerged from — Kriti Social Initiatives.
The women who have tailored the garments on display, embellished with Lambadi embroidery, hail from low-income group households and have been trained in garment making and tailoring by the organisation. They also work on bulk orders for corporate gifts and delegate bags for large events. Also displayed on the shelves are lac bangles made by women artisans as part of a project named Pehchaan (identity).
Himani Gupta (centre) with a few members of Kriti social initiatives| Photo Credit:Special Arrangement Handloom garments and accessories are among the organisation’s several focus areas over the last few years. Kriti social enterprise set up its production units with the help of Telangana State Minority Finance Corporation in the form of industrial tailoring machines that ensure good finish for the products. Kritikala was formally established in 2018, says Himani Gupta, director of the label who co-founded Kriti Social Initiatives (KSI) with Sreelata Chebrol.
The sustainability factor Himani recalls that while launching th.
