Airaavi has been derived from the word Airaavatha – A white elephant who carries hindu god Indra mentioned in Geeta Saar of the holy book of hindus Bhagwat Geeta. According to hindu mythology, Airaavatha was the king of all elephants. His name signifies "the one who knits or binds the clouds"
Airaavatha signifies ‘one who binds the clouds’. Airaavi has been born with the ideation of binding all forms of Tribal and Folk Art as well as exploring the hidden ones under one roof.
Airaavi is a concept born to bring all the multifarious hidden art forms and techniques existing in India under one platform. Every state follows and has its own identity of a particular art form and its technique. It might be tribal or folk art. There are some that have gotten their due recognition and have been exposed to the market and society like the Madhubani from Bihar, Ikat Prints from Orissa, Warli Art from Maharashtra/Gujrat however there are also innumerable art forms which are still unrecognized and hidden from the eyes of the society and mass public in general. Some of them include Bhils from Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Gujrat, Toda Embroidery from Nilgiris, Mithils painting from Bihar, Baiga Art from Madhya Pradhesh and so on. There are countless tribes which have their own lores to narrate however with limited exposure to technology and the world, they are living in their own self-constructed boundaries. They are limited to their own groups and tribes oblivious to the world outside their balloons. Due to their limited circumference of vision, they are slowly fading away with every generation. They need to be brought out to the world and to the people. We need to preserve our country’s heritage where each art form somewhere contributes in forming the root of our culture. Airaavi is an effort to bring them out in their truest form possible to the world by giving their inherent craft its due importance and value before they fade away.
Mission
Airaavi is a platform for all kinds of art forms and techniques to be narrated to the people of our country and the world. It aims to include all the folk and tribal art forms coming from every nook and corner of the country, from every sphere of life under one roof. Some art forms are dying because of lack of encouragement and resources to carry on while others have no people to learn and carry on their traditional work. Airaavi is an effort to keep them alive by translating them into products of daily use so that the hidden soon to be extinct art forms/ tribe become part of personality of every home. They don’t loose their identity and existence with the increase in commercialization.
Future Vision?
Airaavi also aims to combine art forms using various interstate techniques to unite the art of one state with technique of another state. This will help us to create ‘Indian Art’ instead of state directed art. For example, combing warli art and the technique of block printing into one canvas. This will unite the art form of Gujrat and technique of Rajasthan into one fabric
In modern day world, people are generally aware of the basic popular art forms and are equally aware from which part of the country they belong to, however they don’t have a common platform from where they can purchase products made out of these forms. Our focus is to bring them to the mass market in such a way that they become part of everyday living. Every household to subconsciously have cushions having Gond work or a Baiga work. It is to instill awareness in the minds of the people at a subconscious level. At present, one has to find artists and artisans specialized in their technique and art form from their respective villages and rural areas.There is no mass production taking place where these hidden art forms can be encouraged and seen in our day to day life.
Our focus is to bring these diverse crafts under one platform in form of home décor and lifestyle products. Airaavi aims to create an amalgamated artwork of various hidden tribal and folk art under one roof which we want to call INDIAN ART.