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On 7th August, 2021, on the occasion of National Handloom Day, WeaverStory celebrated its 6th birthday by organizing a Charity Extravaganza with Indian Bravehearts. Women have been an integral part of the handloom industry ever since its inception. To celebrate the hard-working superwomen of rural India, a fundraiser was hosted to help spread awareness about menstrual hygiene, and empower the underprivileged women by providing them with the right sanity care.
Sadly, there are still some parts of India, where menstruation is a taboo. Lack of awareness about menstruation and socio-economic barriers result in a shocking number of about 88% women, who refrain from using sanitary napkins and resort to appalling alternatives such as husk, cloth, sand and ashes. All of these culminate in an increasing rate of health issues related to reproduction and otherwise.
A lot of work needs to be done to eradicate this issue, but there is always a stepping stone to a bigger cause, this event being one of them. Addressing the elephant in the room, a percentage of the funds raised from the exhibition at WeaverStory will be used to promote hygiene and wellness for underprivileged women, through the distribution of biodegradable sanitary pads, a necessity that every woman should have access to.
The event was graced by various important dignitaries. Vidisha Baliyan, the first Indian woman to win the title of Miss Deaf World in 2019, a great motivational speaker and a retired tennis player, was the chief guest for the evening. She is an inspiration for many, and the ultimate epitome of the quote by Stephen Hawking, “However difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at”.
Along with her, Sharad Kohli, the founder and chairman of the KCC Group, Economist, Media Panelist and Columnist enlightened the event with his presence. As a continuation of our Grow Trees initiative, the main highlight of this event were the trees planted by all the guests, making it even more memorable through the coverage by media channels - Aaj Tak and Tez Tv.
In a conversation about thoughts on National handloom day, Ms. Indu Haldar shared that she believes it's a way of life, rather than something that is special just for one day and that it should be part of our lives the way it was in earlier times. Being a woman in civil services since the age of 21, she has donned a saree each and every day, to her office. Kanjeevaram and bengali weaves being her favourites, and Khadi and Ponduru being her go-to sarees, people have drawn inspiration from her and started wearing them.
Ms. Priya Vij shared that Handloom is losing its importance because of the mill-made and synthetic stuff, as a result of which, the weavers have to bear the losses. So it has become very important to promote handloom and support our fellow weavers, so that they can generate some income. For her, there isn’t anything more gorgeous than a saree, she hasn't seen any woman who isn’t satisfied with how a saree looks on her. The kind of grace that one can get in those 6 yards is unbeatable! She feels no weave is any better or worse than others, all the weaves are equally beautiful and unique.
It was an overwhelming day, seeing so many people come forward and celebrate this day with us. It's always a pleasure to have our zen filled with people appreciating the art and showing love towards it.
