VMPL
Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], September 23: Anahat, a home-grown label, known for crafting stories from our mythology into your everyday wear wardrobe, today launched its ‘KADALI VANA & NAVAGUNJARA’ camp-collar shirts, inspired by stories from the Mahabharata.
The idea at the heart of Anahat is very simple: every garment carries a story. With art and design at the forefront, the label revives forgotten narratives of Indian culture through collaborations with diverse artists and storytellers.
Starting with well-known mythologist and illustrator Devdutt Pattanaik creations, it has collections, weaving ancient lore into contemporary silhouettes. Committed to conscious craftsmanship, each piece is made with 100% natural origin fabrics and shipped in plastic-free packaging, ensuring that cultural reverence extends to the environment.
Nowhere is that clearer than in the brand’s newest chapter, led by a camp-collar shirt, Kadali Vana. Illustrated by Devdutt Pattanaik, its print rises from the hem like a banana grove closing in, fronds arching overhead. The tale it carries is of Bhima, mightiest of the Pandavas, humbled when he cannot so much as lift Hanuman’s tail — and of the banana tree itself: cut it open and you find no wood, only sheath folded over sheaths, a form that gives completely and quietly regenerates. Strength has its limits; some things are meant to be walked into, not conquered.
Navagunjara-The Form Beyond Knowing, the composite creature of nine animals that Arjuna meets in exile is the next inspiration. Rooster head, elephant trunk, peacock neck, serpent tail-not chaos, but a deeper order. “You are allowed to be many things at once,” the design insists: a thousand-year-old myth speaking fluently to modern questions of identity add to it the new Khusur Pusur (Gossip), the latest of the label’s folk-art-led pieces.
If the new collection is where Anahat experiments, its hero designs are where it has established deep traction. There is Durga, third eye and crown ablaze in colour against black — Shakti as resilience and empowerment. There is the Divine Protector, Hanuman, who carries Rama and Sita within his very being — a meditation on devotion and surrender. And there is Warrior & Guide, one of the brand’s definitive bestsellers that has sold out twice, capturing the sacred dialogue and moral compass between Arjuna and Krishna on the battlefield.
“In an age of borrowed aesthetics, here is an Indian brand wearing its own stories, and inviting a new generation to do the same. For its makers, the mission runs deeper than apparel. Anahat sees itself as an expanding platform for traditional Indian artists — a way for age-old crafts to find modern life on cloth.” said Sandeep Rana, Co-founder, Anahat.
About Anahat
Anahat connects directly with its audience through its digital flagship at www.anahat.co.in, an engaged Instagram community (@thisisanahat), and ground-level cultural spaces, including curated pop-ups and artisan showcases such as the 11:11 flea market.
Established in 2023 by three Indian mythology enthusiasts, Chetan Kumar, Sandeep Rana & Sulakshana Chemudupati, Anahat captures the essence of Indian mythology and art on the vibrant canvas of fashion. Selling across India to an already dedicated community of patrons, the brand is winning over a generation that wants its heritage worn lightly, authentically, and daily – wear India on your sleeves!
(ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by VMPL. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same)
Related reading
