Meher Marfatia: What Nebrasaka made in India

Vina and Feroza Mody at the iconic storersquos 25th anniversary celebration in 1987They were architecture students together at Berkeley Studios in that University of California department were fitted with long tables to accommodate drawings ldquoThere was a vacant space next to Piloo where I parked myself mdash simple as thatrdquo Vina Mody emails me The 91yearold American is describing how she met her husband Piloo Mody architect passionate parliamentarian and cofounder of the liberal Swatantra PartyThe four original CAC partners from left Muzaffar Ali Khan Vina Mody Hema Sankalia and Amritlal Mistryrsquos wife LalitaReturning to Bombay the couple set up Mody and Colgan in 1953 Next Vina introduced the city to Contemporary Arts and Crafts possibly the first shop of its kind on November 29 1962 It was a significant date mdash the birthday of her motherinlaw Jerbai Mody Piloo was industrialist Sir Homi Modyrsquos youngest son after Russi and KaliThe Contemporary Arts and Crafts Store in Taj Building on DNacircu00c2u0080u00c2u0088Road Fort PicDatta KumbharldquoPiloo felt designing pretty little buildings wasnrsquot satisfying when the whole country was going to the dogs via the socialistic roadrdquo Vina shares ldquoIn 1959rsquo60 he became a founder member of the Swatantra Party working for it until he died in 1983rdquoFrom left Madhu Mehta Piloo Mody and C Rajagopalachari at the Swatantra Party meeting in 1967 Mumbai PicNitai MehtaAs Vina designed for the firm there remained a gnawing concern ldquoI didnrsquot envision CAC it was a real needrdquo she says ldquoWe were doing interiors of flats restaurants banks and needed textiles ceramics floor coverings all sorts of accessories for our projects There was nothing available in India at that point with the British having finally pulled outrdquoWith stores like Evans Fraser Whiteway Ladlow and Army amp Navy shunting out colonial Bombay was receding Homes and offices were crying for a dynamic decor leap Four design partners decided to sharpen focus along with their pencils to draw a new cultural map Besides Vina to prove handlooms could become heirlooms were furniture makers Shirish Sankalia and Amrital Mistry proprietors of Interfurn and Muzaffar Ali Khan the Nawabzada of PalanpurVina and the Sankalias Shirish married architectacademician Hema were dismayed to realise it was next to impossible to locate a welldesigned chair rug and lamp from a shop If a decorator wanted a lamp it meant creating a lampstand and selecting fabric for the shade By the time the entire look was ready its cost had spiralled out of controlContemporary Arts and Crafts was born to boost a modern design sensibility That it emerged as the forerunner of Indian lifestyle stores besides being a design haven for thousands of discerning customers was this smalltown Nebraskanrsquos lasting gift to the country she came to love ldquoIt was thrilling the beautiful items available the craftsmen a joy to deal withrdquo she exults ldquoWe opened thanks to a friend who owned a building opposite old Customs House the previous premises of the Bombay Natural History Museum It was quite a climb up rickety stairs But the price was right mdash no rent mdash enabling us to put more money into stock furniture from Interfurn a textile collection lots of lamps ceramics cane and handmade paper items everything lsquoMade in IndiarsquordquoEthnic chic wasnrsquot an aspiration until CAC chose to say it could be Vina Mody practised the Make in India philosophy more than half a century before a prime minister namesake preached it Her eye identified the fine skills of artisans and then trained them towards a functional aesthetic She propagated the idea that the countryrsquos crafts could be every bit as utilitarian as they were fashionable Commissioning local furnishings and artefacts she nurtured and sustained the livelihood of artisans several of them women More Indian than many Indians Vina combed the country for examples of indigenous cultural ingenuity Travelling through Gujarat Uttar Pradesh Orissa Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu she engaged deeply and warmly with artisansIntricate chain stitch appliqueacute tie and dye block print to screen print are techniques CAC has always embraced and encouraged alongside reviving traditional metal manufacture by support to artists working with dhokra bidri and other forms of casting Wooden lacquerfinished toys from Etikopakka in Andhra and Sawantwadi in Maharashtra woollen throws from Kashmir embroidered cushion covers from Kutch cotton bed linen from Nagaland and summer quilts dohars from Rajasthan were also aboardldquoVina never bargainsrdquo her niece Feroza says with admiration The daughterinlaw of Piloo Modyrsquos elder brother Kali and CAC director Feroza started scouting for raw material and objets drsquoart with Vina from 2000 the brand today belongs solely to the two of them ldquoShe is completely connected with craftsmen Rather than beat down their price shersquod say lsquoHersquos a little guy not out there yetrsquo She had a keen sense of knowing the market pulse If she could sell something she took it They understood she cared Some of them are successful exporters in their own right nowrdquoFeroza remembers a sourcing trip to The Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts in Delhi At the Moradabad glass display they were touched to see a craftsman come up to Vina declaring ldquoWe are what we are because of you You spotted my grandfatherrsquos workrdquo Those moulds were lost during the Emergency when the partners ran the shopElected to Parliament in 1967 Piloorsquos notable contributions included the passing of a bill that led to The Architects Act of 1972 formally recognising regulating and securing the profession Before it architects were clubbed with engineers When the Modys moved to Delhi Piloo proved outspoken enough to be among the initial Emergency arrests The night he was picked up his Swatantra Party friend Madhu Mehta telephoned an Ahmedabad reporter mdash one of the Emergencyrsquos earliest leaks Till she got a ringside view of that dark phase spent waiting while Piloo was detained for 15 months in a Rohtak jail Vina had watched her maverick husband wear badges printed lsquoI am a CIA agentrsquo to Parliament not taking them off till Mrs Gandhi expressly asked him toldquoPiloo Uncle was absolutely larger than liferdquo Mehtarsquos son Nitai recollects ldquoHe loved good food and actually breakfasted on delicious Goa curry chaawal he cooked Visiting their Prithviraj Road home was a treat Vina Aunty was particular about table settings Their large round dining table was perfectly laid with flowers beautiful crockery and cutlery She brought her showroom instinct home as well as the other way round comfortably Her house in Oakland Nebraska is full of handmade Indian rather than factorymade foreign fabric and collectibles She stayed totally true to the India story CAC had started tellingrdquo Managing trustee of the Praja Foundation for accountability in governance Nitai feels he owes his values to influences like his father the Modys and Paramparik Karigar champion Roshan Kalapesi all of whose ethics and aesthetics were inspiringLauding the role Vina played in popularising everyday art designer Anuradha Mafatlal Singh finds herself strongly stamped by CAC mdash ldquoRight from our schooldays my sister and I have seen our family pick Contemporary products from waste baskets and Warli trays to cocktail napkins and table mats When I moved to Greenwich I hung a mirror shaped like a colourful rooster in my daughterrsquos room I still jamao dahi in their Golden Gate pottery from Pondicherry She was ldquoa lost soulrdquo when CAC had to vacate its Nepeansea Road headquarters just a year short of its 50th anniversary ldquoWho can walk out emptyhanded from Contemporaryrdquo she posesMy bag brimful with bricabrac I smile thinking over that rhetorical question on stepping out of the CAC store on DN Road in Fort Going across to Stadium House in Churchgate I chat with Amy Irani at the Mody and Colgan office The loyal secretary has sat here since 1959 ndash witness to highpowered meetings between the greatest activists and architects of the day and privy to typing drafts of her employerrsquos cult books Zulfi My Friend and Democracy Means Bread and Freedom ldquoNo one can ever have bosses like minerdquo she saysBack at my computer I ask Vina what she believes can further fulfil Indian craftsmenrsquos needs ldquoA constant supply of electricity and marketing will helprdquo she replies And hopes with Feroza that future generations keep promoting the cause they espouseAuthorpublisher Meher Marfatia writes fortnightly on everything that makes her love Mumbai and adore Bombay You can reach her at mehermarfatiagmailcom