It was amid the grim and grey of 2015 Chennai floods that Hastha, a city-based apparel brand, saw enough reason to bring colour through their one-of-a-kind block-printed umbrellas. With the return of the ghosts of the past, the team of Hastha has yet again stepped up — this time, to bring some sunshine into the lives of animals at the Besant Memorial Animal Dispensary.
“The starting story of our umbrellas was during dark and depressing times. Now when we are facing a similar situation, we want the umbrellas to be of some help. I’ve always been an animal lover and been feeding strays for years now. This fundraising campaign was started on a whim. All we put out was a post and some supporters have been chipping in,” says Divya Vigneshwaran, founder of Hastha, sharing that proceeds from every umbrella sold on its website till November 20 will be donated.
“As much as we sell multi-coloured umbrellas with fancy motifs, there’s equal demand for the black ones. Some customers see it as a utility product and others appreciate its artistic value. To date, we don’t have many players in the market, who offer block printed umbrellas because it’s not an easy job. Our customers are mainly from Chennai, Mumbai and Bengaluru. Some of them even gifted umbrellas for Deepavali,” she shares.
Hastha umbrellas come in bright shades with oriental, floral and Mughal-inspired graphic prints. If you prefer earthy hues, you can pick from their range of rusty browns and earthy olives that come adorned with Aztec-inspired and vintage-derived prints. Sapphire floret, juniper sable and fuchsia bloom are a few additions to their collection for this season.
Besides the fundraiser, Hastha is associated with another initiative called Project Block by Block. It aims to build an extensive hand block print library, which will enable special schools to borrow blocks from Hastha and return them in exchange for newer blocks after their use. “Since 2019, Hatha has been working with special children to create opportunities for them to learn and earn. We’ve collaborated with Gurukulam in Chennai to set up a block printing unit on their premises and train their students. The results have been heartwarming. The children get to interact with different colours, shapes and textures. They’ve been doing block printing for our children’s wear,” she says.
Hastha intends to extend this project to other schools to provide them with material resources and set up basic infrastructure and training. Their website offers carefully chosen hand-carved blocks, with a mix of classic patterns and contemporary designs. As a sponsor, you can pick and purchase a block of your liking to contribute towards the larger cause.
For details, visit: hastha.co.in Or visit Instagram @hasthahappiness / call: 9940020264