Porgai Artisans Association

Traditional Lambadi Embroidery
Sittilingi Vally, Tamil Nadu

In the heart of the Sittlingi Valley resides a community of Lambadi tribe artisans who dared to dream big.

The traditional craft of the Lambadi tribe was lost for nearly 2 generations and neared total extinction. Only two elders in the community, Neela and Gammi, held the skills of Lambadi embroidery, and under the support of Dr Lalitha Regi (founder of Tribal health Initiative) miraculously revived their craft.

Smiling faces from our March 2025 visit

Porgai Artisans Association now empowers over 60 stitching women with a living wage and the opportunity to express themselves through their art.

At their core, Porgai represents self-sufficiency and independence, be it for our women, the villages or the ecosystem they call our home.

With most of their workers being farmers themselves, majority of Porgai’s products are made from locally grown organic cotton. This cotton, untrammelled by pesticides and unpolluted by chemical fertilisers is then hand-spun, hand-woven and dyed with natural dyes by cooperatives.

Every step in the process of bringing Porgai reinforces their commitment to protect, cherish and celebrate the oneness of the village ecosystem - with the forests around them and the earth beneath.

Stitching Stories Exhibition

More than just a fashion label - The ANJELMS Project is a vehicle for wholesome change within the industry. We contribute to sharing the stories of often un-heard artisans by initiating community engagement projects with our makers.

We have a very strong and personal connection to the women at Porgai and feel them as family - having spent time being welcomed into their villages, and reciprocally welcoming them into our home in Fremantle.

During her visit to Tamil Nadu in 2023, The ANJELMS Project Founder, Gaelle Beech, came in contact with the Porgai Artisans and was so heart-warmed by an art project they were working on that she dared to take the dream another leap further.

What if the collection was exhibited internationally, in the heart of Fremantle?

And so Porgai Artisans broke beyond India's borders onto an international stage. Stitching Stories was born as part of the Indian Ocean Craft Triennial (IOTA24) Program and saw the Fremantle Fibonacci Centre at maximum capacity for its opening night.

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