ENGELEENA is a contemporary, stylish woman who adores life and nature. She has a keen interest in art and loves travelling and connecting with artists and their crafts. The label has strongly adopted slow fashion and works with suppliers passionate about making sustainable, ethical, and fair trade products.
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"I believe beauty is amorphous and achromatic until crafted by an artisan to give aesthetic appeal. Beauty then comes into being. Designing is an art and I am inspired by nature and life to give a touch of femininity, quality, and value to express yourself the way you want. There is something special about having a well-made garment. It gives an emotional attachment belonging to a certain period, event, or occasion in life". - Engeleena Padyachi
OUR JOURNEY
We invite you to join us and let us create ripples
ENGELEENA is passionate and determined to support and empower women through her creativity. Our mission is to embrace and preserve the art of weaving and diversify the use of traditional handloom fabrics and contribute to the livelihood of the weavers and the empowerment of rural women.
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"This is an enlightening journey for me. This partnership has given me an opportunity to reconnect with my ancestral motherland and cherish the craft of my great-grandmother". - Engeleena Padyachi.
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Our hand-woven fabrics have a human touch and emotion attached. When you wear ENGELEENA, you become part of our journey. When you empower an individual, you empower a family, a generation, and a nation.
We are honoured and grateful to AP State Weavers Cooperative and the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh, India for appointing ENGELEENA as their global partner and consultant designer. We collaborate with the weavers cooperative and the weavers of the Apatani tribe from Ziro valley. Several projects are in the pipeline such as enhancing designs through technology, implementing processes and procedures to optimise and streamline the local handloom sector, construction of weaving facilities, and education and training for the weavers.
The tribe is one of the major ethnic groups of the eastern Himalayas. Apatanis are known for their colourful culture with intricate handloom designs, skills in cane and bamboo crafts and various festivals. This has made the Ziro Valley an excellent example of a living cultural landscape where humans and the environment have harmoniously existed together in a state of interdependence even through changing times, such co-existence being nurtured by traditional customs and spiritual belief systems.
Ziro Valley
“Popularly known as the ‘Land of the Dawn-lit-Mountains’, Arunachal Pradesh is India’s remotest state and the first Indian soil to greet the rising sun (aka "Land of the rising sun"). This beautiful land is endowed with misty hills, sparkling rivers, and gurgling waterfalls that add charm to the beauty of this incredible land”.
