Most journeys as people recall them are full of ups and downs and this one’s no different. What’s striking, however, is the courage of a single woman to carve out a place for her passion and art in a world that is quickly forgetting how much strength it takes to stand alone and stand tall. Naksheband is a tale of the intermingling of heritage and customs with modernity.

Parul Agrawal, the founder, says “Naksheband took shape because of my dedication and dreams but it is undoubtedly also the hard work of the myriad dyers, weavers, and embroiderers who work with me”. The workers who have joined hands with her are to her, an extended family, who along with her tirelessly create a work of art on the various Banarasi fabrics that results in the formation of the most exquisite silhouettes. It is the effort of the whole team that makes up for the most memorable moments of this journey which is yet to begin fully.

The sarees and apparels created at Naksheband aren’t just about tradition and culture that roots women down, the designer sarees and suit sets tend to reflect the enormous strength and agility with which women are naturally endowed. Naksheband does not just provide you with fabric to cover your body, here we make sure that you get a product that is quite effortlessly yours and fits your body like a second skin.

Our story like many others is full of struggles and failures, as it is full of moments of sheer joy and happiness. Naksheband is not just another brand in the Indian market, it is an earnest initiative that thrives on the principle that one can help uplift so many other lives while trying to fulfil a dream that was once hers alone. Each finished product is a result of hours of craftsmanship, from the handwoven and hand-embroidered fabric to the in-house dye, every step, in the making of a Banarasi suit or designer saree demands labour and talent.

Naksheband is as much the story of Parul Agrawal, as it is of the weavers, dyers, embroiderers, the various craftsmen who work with her. Her “Karigars” as she calls them, are the foundation of her home, and soul of the body she so dearly named “Naksheband,” a word she first heard from the “Karigars,” who stay in the old lanes of “Bazadiya,” in the city of Banaras.

 

It’s always easy to dream the dream, to spin the story
And hard to follow the path your heart so dearly hankers for,
Her tale, however, is not just the dreams
It’s made of all that is life, full of struggle and pain, not just glory.
A girl so immensely in love with life and all that it has in store
A woman who fought all adversities to meet her destiny
This a tale of both a child and a mother,
A lady who tried all she can to shape her aspirations into more.
To her, it’s not just a matter of clothes that we wear,
It’s about feelings we feel, the love we share,
Her work is not only the product she delivers
It’s the lives she touches, It’s the numerous stories and moments
That she encapsulates in her work, her art!