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Introduction

Steeped in Banaras’s heritage and craft

prestige, Shanti’s offerings are akin to bespoke legacies. Silk
blends with gold to tell every story through intricately woven
sarees and lehengas. A true Banarasi zari is a cherished family
heirloom of intrinsic and emotional value, to be passed down
generations. Designed by Rama Mehra Studio, the store’s rich
warmth is immersive, helping you soak in this craft that is a
living legend. Splashes of gold and silver welcome you against a
plush colour palette, lit by delicate mogra light fixtures.
We’re in conversation with Khushi Shah, the managing director,
who tells us all about the label, their relationship with crafts and
craftspersons, amongst other things.
It’s no secret that India is a hub of handloom and textile crafts.
While the past years may have led to a dip in demand for
indigenous products, recent times have successfully turned the
tide, leading us back to where we started. Indian textile crafts,
however, are so much more than just that handloom sari you
picked up or one that was passed down generations, it’s a major
source of livelihood to artisans spread across the country. As per
the fourth All India Handloom Census (2019-20), the numbers
stood at 26, 73,891 handloom weavers and 8,48,621 allied
workers, across states like Assam, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu,
Chattisgarh, West Bengal and almost every state of the country.
As times change, so does the demand and so does the way
Indian textiles are made, marketed and sold. This transformation
of the Indian craft is evident in Varanasi-based brand Shanti
Banaras’ journey. Coming from a family of four generations that
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have worked with Indian crafts in the wholesale market, Khushi

Shah founded retail brand Shanti Banaras to bring light to the
timeless craft of Banarasi Zari. “In our wholesale division, we
were dealing only with normal silk and handwoven silk sarees.
But then we also wanted to get into embroidery and real zari and
for that, we opened Shanti,” she explains, “we had some people
demanding for a retail store to showcase our talent.”

History

A speciality of the ancient city of Varanasi, the craft of Banarasi

Zari dates back to the 19th century. Woven with real gold and
silver, Banarasi Zari is almost like a piece of jewellery, Shah
says. Shanti gives this traditional craft a more contemporary
touch with unique motifs, transforming the craft into its new-age
version. And transformed it has, the contemporary designs on
each piece, right from stripes to modern Parisian-style motifs,
Shanti’s brand ethos reflects beautifully through its creations. A
version of the Indian textile that is much preferred by today’s
Indian women, it is also a reflection of how the past few years
have changed the craft of handwoven fabrics itself. While the
craft and the fabric are still as cherished, it's mostly the
silhouettes and styles that have evolved, pointing to how
evergreen these fabrics prove to be.
With the sense of a revival phase underway, the craft has come a
long way since it first surfaced. Once worn exclusively by
nobles and royalty, Zari pieces are a part of family heirlooms
passed on from one generation to the other. Shanti traces a small
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part of this phenomenon through its latest campaign, Samay.

“We created a film that is reflecting back in time. It shows a
woman looking back at earlier times where she was wearing the
same sari that she’s wearing now,” says the founder. The
campaign beautifully sets the tone of the quality of timelessness
of pieces made with this craft.

Inspiration
The way it all started, however, for Shanti, is the story of most
Indian households. “My grandmother would wear saris every
day and she would be very particular about her drape and would
look spectacular,” explains Shah, adding how her grandmother
was the main source of inspiration for the brand, that is named
after her. “She gifted one of her saris to my mother, who doesn’t
wear saris that often and is more comfortable in suits. She got it
upcycled and got a suit made out of it,”.
But as women across the country rejoice at the “comeback” of
handloom crafts, the same may not be true for Indian weavers.
The huge community of craftspeople has been through a tough
struggle in past years, starting from the 2016 demonetization and
now the slowdown due to the pandemic. The craft is usually
passed down through generations of weavers, may not be taken
up by younger generations, as is tradition. “I had a candid
conversation with one of my weavers who told me how his son
is not interested in getting into this industry because it seems
like it’s slowly dying,” adds Shah, “The weaver community is
huge, so it’s very important for people to even buy this to
support the art because the work they’re doing so beautiful and
intricate that no sort of power loom will be able to take over it.”
The founder went on to explain how irrespective of
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circumstances, people who understand the art and handwork

closely don’t make the switch to power looms that easily and
continue to support the craft.
Do you recall your first tryst with textiles? What was it?
Having had an upbringing in a family that has pioneered the art
of Banarasi weaving and is a specialist in handloom products,
gave me opportunities to develop a strong understanding of
different kinds of weaves and an inclination towards learning
more about the same. So, it was never too difficult for me to
appreciate and value Indian textiles. It also made me realise the
amount of work and creativity our weavers put in, which is
commendable and worth appreciating.

Conclusion
Today’s consumer is also a lot more aware and eager to learn the
nitty-gritty of the craft. “It’s interesting to see that they actually
want to know the detail of what has gone into making a piece-
how much manpower has gone into it,” Shah adds. Shanti’s saris
come with a tag that mentions the percentage of silk and zari
that has gone into making it.
Tell us about what your practice stands for?
As a brand, our priority has always been to empower our
weavers. The amount of hard work and zeal put in by them to
bring our visualization of designs to life is truly seamless and
should be appreciated. At Shanti Banaras, we are constantly
experimenting with a variety of techniques. For example, our
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latest experiment was to weave a real zari saree without a weft,

because of which, the entire saree depicts a new and unique
story. We have always aimed towards making Indian textiles
renowned globally, by performing some out of the box
explorations and keeping the legacy of handloom and hand
embroidery alive, passing it down from one generation to the
other.
Over the past few years, there's been this obsession to bring
back traditional textiles, to preserve our craft and culture at
large. Can you talk about some of the ground-level changes
that you have (or have not) seen in the crafts community,
and do you think we're doing enough?
Honestly, I don’t believe that we are doing enough. While
having a candid conversation with one of my weavers, he told
me about how passionate his forefathers were towards creating
authentic Banarasi sarees. Currently, since numerous brands
have shifted to power loom, pure handwork is gradually
subsiding, making it essential for us to take a step towards
reviving it. Furthermore, he also mentioned that now his
children don’t wish to get into the handloom industry as the
wages are the bare minimum. Definitely, the handloom sector
deserves way more than this.
How do you think traditional craftsmen can survive and face
the challenges in a modern world?
It is essential that they continue to make unique designs and
keep an eye out for genuine brands that support their skills and
empower them. Shanti Banaras has always been a home to
hundreds of looms that have pure handloom and real zari work.
We offer work to so many looms, specifically for real zari
sarees, which was definitely a huge risk for us as well, however,
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the step was taken to revive the handicrafts and to communicate

the importance of real zari to the people.
How is sustainability incorporated in the Shanti blueprint?
As a brand, we engage in weaving with natural fibers that
include cotton and wool. We are now also looking forward to
doing a small-scale production followed by order, only to reduce
the wastage of fabrics in the process. While working intensively
in the handloom and hand embroidery sector, we are
empowering our weavers as well and supporting local crafts,
instead of indulging in power loom.