GreenEarth by Bashobi Tewari: Handcrafted Sitalpati and Madur grass décor for the festive season
This festive season, bring home the quiet sophistication of nature with GreenEarth® by Bashobi Tewari, now showcased at Amethyst. A stunning collection of Sitalpati and Madur grass table mats, runners, wall hangings, and handbags, this curation blends the warmth of traditional craftsmanship with the clean lines of contemporary design.
Why grass weaves are this season’s most thoughtful festive gifts
Handwoven by skilled artisans using time-honoured techniques and sustainable materials, every piece in the collection is a tribute to India’s rich craft heritage thoughtfully reimagined for the modern home. We speak to Bashobi to get to know more about the collection:
You began your journey as a graphic designer. How has that background shaped your approach to craft and product design?
At NID, design methodology was at the core of our education. Despite my initial hesitation about whether I could design products, the transition to actually doing so was not very difficult. It began when I was asked by DCC Handicrafts to design Sabai or Babui (as it is known in Bengali) grass products for a group of tribal artisans.
I started by first learning about various natural fibres and invited different fibre weavers to demonstrate their techniques. We then explored applying these techniques using Babui grass, which eventually led to a large inventory of designs. This was my first foray into craft and product design, and I realised that I had to begin by understanding the material—what it is, and what it is capable of.
Without this knowledge, design becomes superfluous. You cannot impose a design on either the material or the maker.
Why did you choose to focus on Sitalpati and Madur grass?
To begin with, I worked with all types of natural fibres and the weavers who had come to the workshop. However, over time, geographical distance became a challenge, as I was unable to travel to each location and work alongside the weavers. Additionally, we needed large enough orders to justify the logistics of the weavers physically bringing in the designed products.
We also needed a key master weaver. Fortunately, in both Sitalpati and Madur grass, we found exceptional master weavers who were excited and willing to take the craft to new heights.
Since the villages where Madur grass is woven are relatively closer to Kolkata, I concentrated on the development of this craft. With Sitalpati, however, I haven’t been able to do as much, as we generally work long distance—which makes both exploration and explanation more challenging.
Could you walk us through the process of how a product—say, a table mat—is crafted?
The madur reed is cultivated alongside paddy in Medinipur, West Bengal. About a finger thick and up to five feet tall, the stalks are dried, cleaned, and manually split into four to eight strips. The soft inner pith is removed and discarded. Men and women work together in this labour-intensive process, with the fineness of the mat determined by the number of splits—the more the splits, the finer the mat. For Masland mats (the finer variety showcased at Amethyst), the reed is further split with the teeth during weaving, making it as fine as a strand of hair.
The mats are woven on a simple horizontal bamboo-frame loom. For table mats, cotton thread is used as the warp, while the reed remains the weft. Though the loom and technique are basic, it takes great skill to produce intricate designs. Once woven, the mat is taken off the loom, the warp ends are knotted, and excess thread is reinserted. Finally, the non-selvage edges are trimmed with a knife or scissors.
What makes this collection particularly suitable for Puja and festive gifting?
Our mats are easily cleaned and stored and are heat/cold resistant so they are perfect for any home, for any occasion. All our mats have unique, timeless colours and are stunning in its simplicity and texture. This particular range is a balance of black and white, with a strong graphic quality.
Price starts at Rs 1000. On till September 14, 2025. At Amethyst, Whites Road, Royapettah.
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