Bringing modern India to forefront

Even though India is a vast country, India barely has anything of its own. From various vegetables, fruits to spices, almost everything was brought to India and became a part of the culture. The same goes for the rugs and carpet industry in India.

"Most of the designs of rugs that we see in the market are either inspired by middle-eastern, Nepalese or Indo-Tibetan cultures. You don't get to see something that is inspired by our own contemporary Indian culture," said Angelique Dhama, President of OBEETEE.

India's largest luxury carpet maker, OBEETEE, has launched the second edition of the 'Proud to be Indian' series with Abraham & Thakore, one of the most successful and respected design houses in India. The new handcrafted collection of rugs fuses timeless traditional techniques with a bold, contemporary colour palette and edgy artistry. The initiative is aimed at bringing the loom to the modern Indian context.

The new 'Proud to be Indian' collection touches upon India's fascinating elements: The borders of vintage saris from Kanchipuram, block prints from Sanganer and the timeless tie and dye Bandhani from Kutch. The designs are also influenced by the geometry of double Ikat Telia Rumals and the art of calligraphy; the ornate lettering techniques. Other vintage elements like old handwritten letters, faded ink and calligraphic strokes have also been used in this labour of love.

On the launch of second edition of Proud to be Indian collection, Rudra Chatterjee, Chairman, OBEETEE, said "We are proud to partner with Abraham & Thakore to create rugs that represent design, material and craftsmanship that are local, yet exceptional in heritage and quality. What attracted us was their mastery of design, which is both cutting-edge yet tied intricately to India's ethos."

Elaborating on the association, Angelique Dhama, President, OBEETEE, said, "We were aware of the strong Persian and Central Asian design language of most carpets, we felt the time had come to showcase rugs influenced by India's own textile traditions, but with an evolved design vocabulary. Though the inspiration comes from India's rich heritage, the elements and colours are fresh and fun, making the whole compilation very contemporary. This collection reaffirms the ingenuity of the human hand."

With some of the finest weavers to this task; it took more than a year to weave one carpet, hence, providing a year's employment. The carpets are all hand-knotted using different yarns and finishes. The finest silk was procured and rugs were woven with a knot density of about 200 knots per square inch. "Each rug is made of exquisite material with almost 65-70% of silk and 30-35% of wool. Even the washes that have been applied are either gold or silver finish so as to elevate the product. The carpets are also customised for our patrons. Each buyer can scan a QR code embedded in the tapestry of the carpet and read details about its weaver," explained Dhama.

"When we were approached by OBEETEE, we were excited to be developing carpets with India's finest carpet weaving company. We found the premise of the project, which focuses on combining the finest carpet weaving skills of India with an Indian design sensibility both challenging and timely," said designers Abraham & Thakore.

"The beauty of this collection lies in the technical virtuosity of a hand knotted carpet, where millions of threads are individually knotted together to create the complex surface of matt and sheen. The design sensibility is low key yet highly distinctive, with a strong respect for material, form and craft," said the designers.

After unveiling the Abraham & Thakore collection in Delhi, OBEETEE will showcase the collection in Germany, followed by New York.