SHILLONG, Nov 25: Daniel Syiem’s Ethnic Fashion House (DSEFH) has achieved another milestone with the launch of its online fashion store by Chief Minister, Conrad K. Sangma, during an event to mark the 10th anniversary of the fashion house which was held at Windermere estate banquet hall on Thursday.
Daniel Syiem, a well-known fashion designer who has had shows in national and international platforms, collaborated with Janessaline Pyngrope, an activist who works for rural development, founded DSEFH in 2011.
During the event, Daniel presented new collections of apparel and accessories made out of the heritage fabric, which is the symbol of pride and joy for the state.
Daniel’s specialty is that he uses the ‘Ryndia’ a fabric made out of the yarn extracted from the cocoon of the ryndia worms. In so doing Daniel and Janessaline have both provided an outlet for the rearers of the ryndia worm and the weavers and dyers, especially of Ri Bhoi. The Ryndia has become the trademark of DSEFH. The versatile fashion designer that he is Daniel has given shape to this natural, organically produced fabric and popularised it across nations. In so doing, the duo has upscaled the livelihoods of the weavers and ryndia worm rearers.
A fashion show featuring Daniel’s present and past models displayed a range of styles crafted out of the ryndia fabric.
Former Assembly Speaker, Charles Pyngrope, and senior bureaucrat, MR Synrem, and his wife Sarika also walked the ramp which was an added attraction to the event. But what was most heartwarming was to see the weavers themselves walk the ramp to a rousing applause.
Sharing their challenging journey since the inception of the fashion house, Daniel and Janesseline said, “We achieved our milestone of ten years of collaboration with the launch of our online store. It has been a roller-coaster ride all along with exceptional highs and ignorable lows but we pushed through and continued to break barriers and boundaries.”
Appreciating the CM for launching the online store, they stated that they are stepping into a new venture of an online store where their esteemed clients across countries can access their favourite products from a plethora of styles and choices.
“Our focus has always been and will always be our indigenous weavers who, in spite of all hurdles and tribulations, have always come through with a smile on their faces. Most of our women weavers run their households, work in the fields, take care of their children and yet take an effort of going the extra mile to make a secondary income,” the duo stated.
Expressing satisfaction, the duo said it is happy that its love for the Ryndia, which can be attributed to be the main driving force for motivating them to give their very best, has reached this level on the tenth year.
“We are indebted to the weavers for their crafts and dedication,” they stated.
Earlier, the chief minister lauded the work that Daniel and his team has been doing during the past ten years.
“We would like to promote the talent that our people have. It is for this reason I have decided to be part of this celebration,” Sangma said.
He said that during this ten-year journey, Daniel might have faced several challenges but that he stuck on proves his and his business partner Janessaline’s entrepreneurial spirit.
“But I know one can overcome these challenges if they do their work with all their passion and commitment,” the chief minister said.
As part of the 10th anniversary, Daniel and Janessaline thanked their parents and family members profusely for being supportive in the midst of the lows that they faced on their journey. They also thanked all those who had helped them in their journey. They included celebrities from India and abroad.
