This edition of HerPatrika arrives right as the festive season does, and we’re using it to talk about something worth noticing every year but rarely said out loud: festive business for women is everywhere right now, if you know where to look. Inside, you’ll meet Kavya, who turned a childhood fascination with her mother’s sarees into Nalivu. You’ll meet Keerthi, building a safe space for people to feel heard through Santasa. And you’ll find a clear-eyed look at why festivals don’t just create celebration, they create demand, and why women are perfectly placed to build inside that demand. Read on.
Some stories begin long before they have a name.
WHERE TRADITION MEETS TODAY
There was a wardrobe in Kavya’s childhood home that held more than clothes. It held a world she was endlessly curious about. Every day after school, she would make her way to her mother’s sarees, pulling them out one by one, attempting to drape them, getting tangled in the fabric, tripping over the pleats and then starting all over again. She did not know anything about textiles or craftsmanship then. She simply knew that she loved the way a saree moved, the way it transformed the person wearing it, and the feeling of becoming someone else for a few minutes in front of the mirror.
That fascination stayed. Years later, Kavya left the corporate world to study fashion at NIFT Mumbai, eventually finding herself in the Kannada film industry, working as a celebrity fashion stylist and costume designer. Clothes were now her profession, but the more she worked with them, the more she began looking beyond what appeared in front of her. She became curious about the hands behind the fabric, the techniques passed down through generations, the time hidden inside a single piece and the crafts that had survived for centuries. The beauty of fashion still mattered to her, but now there was another layer to it. She wanted to know where things came from, who made them and what it took to keep those traditions alive.
It was around this time that another thought began to take shape. The sarees her mother and aunts had once worn without a second thought had become something different for her generation. The everyday saree had slowly turned into occasion wear, reserved for weddings, festivals and family functions. Something beautiful, but sometimes intimidating. Something that came with its own set of rules about when to wear it, how to wear it and whether you knew how to wear it properly.
Kavya wondered why something so familiar had begun to feel so distant.
Nalivu grew from that question. Not from a desire to reinvent the saree, but to bring it closer again. To make it feel natural at work, at brunch, over coffee, at a birthday or simply on an ordinary day when you want to wear something beautiful. The idea was never to change what makes a saree special. It was to make it easier to wear, easier to style and easier to say yes to.
And then there is the craft itself.
For Kavya, making the saree more approachable does not mean taking away the story behind it. If anything, it means looking at that story more closely. Every block print, every brushstroke and every naturally dyed fabric carries the time and skill of the people who made it. Nalivu is rooted in the belief that these stories deserve to be seen, understood and worn, rather than admired only from a distance.
The name Nalivu means joy in Kannada, and that idea sits at the heart of the brand. The joy of reaching into your wardrobe without waiting for the perfect occasion. The joy of not worrying about whether every pleat is perfect. The joy of knowing who made what you are wearing and choosing something created with care and meant to last. For Kavya, a saree should not spend most of its life folded away, waiting for a day important enough to deserve it.
In many ways, Nalivu is the coming together of everything Kavya has loved for years: fashion, styling, sarees and Indian craft. What appeared to be a sudden idea was actually something that had been quietly taking shape for a long time. The brand is imagined as a space where women can dress for themselves, stay connected to their own taste and feel completely at home in what they wear.
That philosophy extends into where Nalivu hopes to go next. The brand begins with sarees and Indian handblock printing, but the larger vision is a world of contemporary clothing built around the character of Indian textiles. Modern silhouettes, traditional craft and pieces that feel natural in the lives women are actually living. The intention is to make craft accessible without losing what makes it special.
The current collection brings together two remarkable traditions: Ajrakh and Kalamkari. Nalivu works with artisan clusters and independent makers who have spent generations perfecting these crafts. The slight variations in printing are not treated as imperfections to be corrected. They are evidence of the human hand, a reminder that the piece you are holding has been made through a process that cannot be completely replicated.
Ajrakh, one of India’s oldest block printing traditions, is known for intricate geometric and floral patterns and natural dyes made from plants and minerals. The artwork develops through multiple stages, with each pass of the block adding another layer of depth. Kalamkari carries its own history, encompassing both pen drawn and block printed traditions. Nalivu’s collection currently focuses on block printed Kalamkari, using hand carved wooden blocks and natural dyes to create motifs including peacocks, elephants, lotuses, the Tree of Life and floral vines.
For the festive season, Nalivu brings this philosophy into a collection designed around celebration without the fuss. Modal silk and Dola silk bring different textures and drapes to the festive wardrobe, from the fluid softness of modal to the graceful fall of Dola silk. Plain modal works for understated elegance, while tissue and zari pallus bring a little more occasion into the look. The Ajrakh mirror work sarees add another layer of sparkle and have become among the collection’s bestsellers.
These are sarees meant to be lived in. To sit in while sharing a meal, move around in while catching up with family, dance in during a celebration or simply wear when you want to feel beautiful. Because perhaps the future of the saree does not lie in preserving it exactly as it was, but in allowing it to become part of our lives again.
What began with a little girl exploring her mother’s wardrobe has become a much bigger idea: that tradition does not have to sit quietly in a cupboard waiting for the right occasion.
Sometimes, it simply needs to be worn, lived in and made your own.
WHERE FEELING HEARD COMES FIRST
There are moments when we know something does not feel right, but cannot quite find the words for it. A child who suddenly becomes withdrawn, a teenager struggling with pressure, a parent questioning every decision, or a relationship where conversations seem to go in circles. From the outside, these moments can look ordinary. Inside, they can feel much heavier. Sometimes, the hardest part is not finding a solution, but finding someone who will listen without judgement or the expectation that we should already know what to do.
This is where Santasa begins.
Founded by Keerthi B Nadig, Santasa Emotional Wellness and Coaching was built around the idea that emotional wellbeing deserves the same thoughtful attention we give other aspects of our lives. With a background spanning law, counselling and child psychology, Keerthi brings together an understanding of human behaviour and a practical approach to navigating everyday challenges. Her work recognises that behind a difficult conversation, a change in behaviour or a strained relationship, there is often a larger story waiting to be understood.
Because emotions rarely exist in isolation. A child’s behaviour can affect the entire family. Academic pressure can become anxiety. Parenting can bring uncertainty and self-doubt. Relationships can become strained when people feel unheard for too long. Sometimes, we keep responding to the same situations without understanding why they continue to unfold in familiar ways. Learning to recognise these patterns can be the first step towards changing them.
Santasa works with individuals, couples, parents, children and teenagers, offering support for concerns around communication, relationships, parenting, academic pressure, stress and life transitions. Rather than approaching every situation with a ready made answer, the focus is on understanding individual circumstances and identifying practical ways forward. The aim is to help people develop greater emotional awareness, communicate more consciously and build strategies they can apply in their everyday lives.
For children and teenagers, this can mean having a space to explore feelings they may not yet know how to express. Their worries do not always arrive as words. Sometimes, they appear as frustration, withdrawal or difficulty coping with expectations. Understanding what lies beneath these responses can help families approach them with greater patience and clarity.
For parents, the journey can be equally important. Between wanting the best for their children and managing the realities of everyday life, it is easy to become overwhelmed by questions about boundaries, behaviour and whether one is doing enough. Taking time to reflect on these concerns can open up new ways of understanding family dynamics and responding to challenges.
The same principle applies to relationships and personal growth. Being heard does not automatically resolve every difficulty, but it can help us see a situation differently. It can make room for questions we have been avoiding, conversations we have been postponing and possibilities we had not considered before.
Santasa’s approach is structured and focused on practical outcomes, with an emphasis on achievable steps towards meaningful change. Its non clinical coaching services support emotional well being, personal development and everyday challenges. The intention is not to promise a life without conflict or uncertainty, but to help people navigate both with greater understanding and confidence.
Perhaps that is what makes a supportive space so valuable. We spend so much of our lives trying to meet expectations, fulfil responsibilities and find the right words for everyone else. In the process, we may forget to pause and ask ourselves what we are feeling, what we need and what might help us move forward.
At Santasa, that pause can begin with a conversation. One that makes space for honest reflection, new perspectives and small, meaningful steps towards healthier relationships with ourselves and the people around us.
Because sometimes, moving forward does not begin with having all the answers. It begins with feeling heard.
Festivals create more than celebration. They create demand.
People are looking for clothes, food, gifts, experiences, beauty services, décor, workshops and ways to make the season feel special. And wherever there is a new need, there is an opportunity for someone to build something around it.
For women entrepreneurs, the festive season can become a powerful moment to test an idea, introduce a seasonal offering, collaborate with another business or bring an existing product to a much larger audience.
But opportunity does not always arrive looking like a business plan.
Sometimes it begins with noticing something people need. Sometimes it starts with a skill you already have. Sometimes it is a conversation with another woman who complements what you do.
The festive market rewards creativity, but it also rewards clarity.
Know what you are offering. Know who it is for. Tell the story well. Price it with confidence.
Celebration creates markets. Women can build businesses inside them.
Social psychology has an interesting little secret.
We rarely develop taste alone.
A colour becomes desirable because we keep seeing it. A silhouette suddenly feels modern because everyone around us is wearing it. A particular kind of jewellery begins appearing in photographs, shops and conversations until it feels almost inevitable.
This is social influence at work.
We observe. We absorb. We experiment.
Then we make the choice feel like our own.
That does not make personal style fake. Quite the opposite. Style is often the result of an ongoing negotiation between who we are and the world we live in.
Our communities give us references. They introduce us to possibilities. Sometimes they reinforce our choices. Sometimes they challenge them.
The interesting question is what happens after the influence reaches us.
Do we simply reproduce what we see?
Or do we transform it?
The woman who wears something differently at a gathering may influence someone else next year. And suddenly, one person’s experiment becomes another person’s normal.
That is how culture changes.
Sometimes, it starts with what we wear.
Opportunities do not come with grand gestures!
It looks like a festive collection you discover while browsing. A woman whose work makes you think about collaborating. An event where you meet someone who could change the direction of your business. A job listing you almost scrolled past.
The interesting thing about opportunities is that we rarely know what they will become when we first encounter them.
That is why spaces that bring possibilities together matter.
This festive season, Maarukatte gives women a place to explore what is happening around them. Shop from women led brands. Discover business opportunities. Find events and conversations. Explore jobs and professional possibilities.
You may arrive looking for a gift.
You may leave with a new client.
You may arrive looking for a job.
You may leave with a new direction.
You may simply come to see what is out there.
And sometimes, that is where opportunity begins.
Stay curious. There might be something here with your name on it.
What does a woman need from a community?
Not just networking. Not just shopping. Not just events.
Sometimes she needs a place to discover a brand. Sometimes she needs a room full of people who understand what it means to build something. Sometimes she needs a business opportunity, a collaboration, a job lead or simply a conversation that introduces her to a new possibility.
Maarukatte brings these different pieces into one ecosystem.
- Shop from women led brands and discover things worth knowing about.
- Collaborate through business connections, partnerships and opportunities.
- Learn and participate through events, conversations and experiences.
- Grow professionally through job listings and new career possibilities.
The value is not in any one feature.
It is in having all these doors in the same place.
Because women do not exist in one category. We are customers and founders, employees and freelancers, mentors and learners, collaborators and creators.
A community designed for women should leave room for all of it.
Maarukatte is that space. A place to discover. A place to connect. A place to build.
Be a part of Maarukatte NOW
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None of this happens by accident. Over the years, Wonder Woman Wednesday has given women a place to be seen, through features, stories and a newsletter that takes their work seriously.
And Maarukatte has taken that visibility further, into something women can actually use. Free membership. A place to shop from women-led brands. A place to sell your own. Job opportunities, events, collaborations, the kind of everyday openings that quietly change the direction of a business or a career. If you’ve been looking for the place to grow, this is it.
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