Design Approach
The village of Dehariya in Uttar Pradesh's Bhadohi district is a quiet place with houses nestled in a sea of lush green fields and trees. Apart from chirping birds, only a two storied building makes noise. Weavers on the ground floor prepare looms. In a room above, artisans sitting on benches in a row hand knot warp, or yarn that is held horizontally, to weft yarn is inserted over and under the warp. Each artisan can create up to 9,000 knots a day. Slowly but surely, they give shape to colourful silk and woollen carpets. In a few months, the carpets would be shipped abroad to NRI homes, to luxury hotels in Delhi and Mumbai, and to CEO cabins in large companies.
In one corner, three weavers knot indigo yarns. They are readying a carpet commissioned by the Arvind
The collaborations, under the Proud To Be Indian collection, mark a new chapter in the long history of Obeetee. The company was formed just after World War I, in 1920, by three Britishers. F.H. Oakley, F.H. Bowden, and J.A.L. Taylor brought together many artisans around Mirzapur, about an hour's drive from Varanasi, to start Obeetee, the name reflecting the initials of the founders.
