Mysteries of starlit night skies unfurling below one’s feet, as if flying away into the cosmos like Aladdin’s magic carpet is not straight away from our dreams. In fact, it is the inspiration behind Brahmaand, a collection of carpets by Jaipur Rugs and celebrity architect & interior designer, Ashiesh Shah. Brahmaand will launch at one of the most awaited design exhibitions in the world at Milan’s Salone del Mobile 2022, next month. In a candid chat, Ashiesh Shah and Yogesh Chaudhary, director, Jaipur Rugs, tell CE more about ‘bringing the universe to our feet’ with Brahmaand.
Inspired by a series of original watercolour paintings by designer Ashiesh Shah, the Brahmaand collection by Jaipur Rugs turns humankind’s ceaseless search for cosmic relevance and age-old questions of greater designs into thought-provoking visual art with an inventive line of luxurious hand-knotted carpets. With the careful processes of picking, hand-carding and the spinning of wool into fine yarn, its meticulous weaving into rugs by skilled Indian artisans, and more than 18 finishing processes to ensure the highest quality, Brahmaand paints a picture of the infinite universe in living spaces. The forms of the rugs are rather organic and draw inspiration from the ancient geometry of India, the cosmos and the architecture of the ‘Jantar Mantar.’ The collection features four rugs titled ‘Nakshatra, Manthan, Dwaar and Chanda.’
Talking more about Brahmaand, Ashiesh says, “The collection was the result of thorough research and brainstorming done over a duration of two years.” Elaborating about why did they collaborate with Ashiesh and how is Hyderabad as a market for rugs, Yogesh says, “Ashiesh is one of India’s most renowned designer and a great proponent of unerring ability of going artisanal. In the past as well, he has collaborated with some of the country’s most talented craft communities and understand the pain and hard work that goes into hand weaving. Jaipur Rugs has always been a weavers first company and dedicated to make a difference in the lives of its weaver’s family.
The ideology on both the ends are similar and we decided to work together on this extraordinary collection Brahmaand. The dedication we have observed in his work and how he conveyed his thoughts to the weavers was incredible and commendable. Hyderabad is a very important market for us. People of the region appreciate a good work and they have a very distinct taste in terms of design and craft. They value the hard work that goes into making a hand knotted rug.
Earlier, there was a demand of contemporary design but with the advent of the new generation we have observed the focus is slightly shifted towards modern designs. Over all the design enthusiast from Hyderabad can expect both contemporary and modern designs from us. We are proud to be associated with approx. 40,000 weavers across 5 states. We are very keen to establish a demand for India-made handmade rugs across the world,” Yogesh concludes.