About The Collective
Manja Pai was the tote bag when tote bags were not even a thing. You took them with you when you stepped out and took back to be folded safely on a shelf. When one wakes up at the break of dawn to get milk and newspapers, to store dried fish at home or to pack gifts exchanged at weddings, for centuries, the Manja pai has come handy. The Tamil word "Manja pai" translates to a "yellow bag", indicating the use of turmeric (manjal) to make the bag yellow. The personality of this bag is versatile, it is auspicious in religious rituals, a humble cloth to store veggies and a dutiful school bag for kids around Tamil Nadu. Manja pai stands as a cultural symbol of Tamil life. Beyond the functional use value of an object, the sign value of the object takes meaning within an established system of signs and symbols, a.k.a culture. The sign value of the object has become as significant as its functionality. Manja pai was prevalent in TamilNadu until the late 90s which is when neoliberal India was taking shape. Use of local products went down because of the influx of foreign goods into the market which also brought with it the western culture associated with the goods. The novelty of the west and the modernity associated with western goods imposed a conventional, local character onto regional products like Manja pai. Use of Manja pai, a Tamil practice, implied one is less educated, gullible and is “old”, it has become an object of ridicule.
But should it be an object of ridicule? What signifies Manja pai? A product that thrived in the past. Tamil people weave their stories into the cultural objects around them, the lores and the heritage that we inherit with the object is what signifies Manja pai. We recontextualize design, and posits the Manja pai as a cultural fashion statement, one that is relevant and unique to the tamil identity. The Manja pai collective puts the spotlight on Tamil cultural practices and objects, represented by our titular product, the Manja pai. Breaking societal barriers of caste, religion and economic background, we present the 'Manja pai' as a key fashion accessory that is durable, ethically produced, sustainable. Much like our Tamil language, it represents the Tamil identity that is rooted in the past but is evolving with change. Let's embrace Manja pai’s simplicity and the stories that come with it, let's stick one under our arms as we step out with pride.
With sustainability in mind, the yellow 'Manja pai' bags will be screen printed with eco-friendly dyes and produced using scrap, industrial waste fabric. We believe that the slower way of life is the way forward. The Collective also aims to bring workshops and lectures by creatives from various backgrounds that will draw attention to how fashion acts as a mirror to society and educate about all things Tamil. We want to highlight the historical and cultural aspects of Manjapai’s past. The core idea of our collective is to magnify, focus and platform the untold stories of Tamilnadu and South India. The merit of our work does not lie just in the products themselves but how the product comes about. We collaborate with independent artists and self-help groups around Tamilnadu to produce our products. The only meaning we associate with the things are its relation to people, both producers and consumers!
