MANTRA and IDT jointly Fashionova 2022 on the theme ‘Achieving Sustainability in Textiles’
30 June 2022: Just prior to the fashion show ‘Fashionova 2022,’ Man Made Textile Research Association (MANTRA) and Institute of Design & Technology (IDT) jointly organised a conclave with the theme ‘Achieving Sustainability in Textiles’ on June 26, 2022 from 5.30 pm to 7.00 pm. The panellists included Mangesh Kanbre (ITAFL), B. B. Shah (Alliance Fibers Ltd.), Akash Marfataia (JBS Fabrics) Rakesh Sarogi (Laxmipati) and Virendra Gupta (Reliance). They presented views on various issues impacting the sustainability aspects and shared perspectives on how to make the industry aware about the value chain of textiles.
The fashion show was held at the Platinum Hall at Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCCI)’s SIECC Exhibition Centre at Sarsana. It was considered to be for the first time that a fashion show on the theme of ‘sustainability’ was held in the state of Gujarat.
The main objective of the fashion show ‘Fashionova 2022’ was to focus on ways to provide impetus to sustainable manufacturing by centralising and streamlining the textile sector. The strategy was to accomplish this by showcasing the current sustainable manufacturing processes and to take the fashion and textile industry forward on the concept of ‘Go Green’.
The fashion show was attended by the Textile Commissioner, leading industry personalities and over 700 delegates and students. The jury included leading fashion designers.
MANTRA has been working on many projects related to sustainability from the last 10-15 years. One of them is to make textile fibre from banana, which is biodegradable, re-cyclable and also enables value-added textiles. At the exhibition held concurrently with the fashion show, clothes made with plastic bottles were also on display.
The expo also displayed the colours of the past Indian civilisation and depiction of ancient heritage at the time Lord Krishna with Sanjhi kala of Mathura displayed. Sanjhi is a ritualistic folk art form of Vrajadham, linked to the worship of Lord Krishna.
Over a period of time, the art became intimately linked to Vrajabhoomi, and the two contiguous towns of Mathura and Vrindavan along the river Yamuna, the homeland of Lord Krishna, became the home of Sanjhi art. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries it was regarded as a highly refined art form practiced by Brahmin priests.
It continues as a living tradition in the temples of Vrindavan but is nowadays practiced only by a select few. The ritual can be seen in the temples of Radha-Madanamohana, Radharamana and Radhavallabha in Vrindavan and the Nathdwara temple in Rajasthan.
The show witnessed participation by 150 students from different IDT Centres, who made natural clothes with natural colours or dyes. They presented 12 different themes working with different technologies for their collection.
To cater to the ever increasing quality control needs of growing man-made textiles industry around the city of Surat in South Gujarat, in late nineteen seventies, an idea was mooted to set up a full-fledged independent Research Association for the region. MANTRA was to be set up on similar lines as other National Textile Research Associations.
Since its inception in 1981, over the last 20 years, MANTRA has equipped itself sufficiently through the grants provided by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, and the support of the local industry. Throughout these twenty years, efforts have been made to fulfil the laid-out objectives of MANTRA, and to promote quality, reduce cost of production, process development and control of pollution and environment protection.
IDT is one of the leading educational institutes in Surat, which believes in quality education. It aims providing students, industries best curriculum for fashion & interior students which is a vivid compilation of creative, competitive, changing and challenging trends of industry.
The hand holding of Industry with IDT has gained momentum as the emerging era of design based collaborations between academia and industry offers advantages to both – students as well as industry and a means by which design students and industry can address design challenges to their mutual benefit and uplifting design standards.
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