The excitement of new clothes never dies for me, you know!
Last week, I came across a lovely kalamkari kurta and coveted it. However, I just added it to my wishlist and forgot all about it. Then two days ago, thanks to the constant reminder these websites keep sending, I remembered it again and thought, why not buy it. Turns out that my legendary 11th hour worked even this time! It was priced lower just for three days and I got it. I love it Mi. It is the kind of kurta that stays a favorite for years and years. But then kalamkari cotton is so special, no?
Remember how we used to go to Kalanjali in Basheerbagh? They had such lovely things. Even window-shopping there was such a fabulous experience. We have one in Mantri Mall near our place. I still have the Kalamkari bedsheet – single and double we got all those years ago. So great is the quality of Indian handloom that it doesn’t even look old!
I fondly remember that kalamkari sari you loved so much. Of course I still have it. Maybe I’ll wear it one of these days. Do you remember how we considered converting it into a kurta and then trashed the idea? The fabric is so much better draped as a sari than being forced into a garment with a lining, since this material is thinner than the ones used for kurtas. I am laughing to think of that time when we had a kalamkari cover on the divan – I was wearing a k. kurta and you had the sari on – all we missed was matching curtains! So hilarious.
How I wish we had a camera back then to preserve those memories! We couldn’t even afford some of our basic stuff, catch us blowing money on a trivial “want” like a camera! Still, I am glad we used to make that wish list every other month and diligently work on achieving it. I still hear your voice telling me – dream, but be realisitic. Ha ha ha.
But after the laughter has died down, I keep your wisdom in my heart.
Kalamkari or Qalamkari is a type of hand-painted or block-printed cotton textile, produced in parts of India. The word is derived from the Persian words kalam (pen) and kari (craftmanship), meaning drawing with a pen.
