Kanchipuram Saris and Thinking Machines

Yeah I shouldn't have posted The Office meme. My bad. Unfortunately it's too late to edit my original comment.

Looking past the writing style, which I intensely dislike, I am very disappointed in how the article identifies a real problem (Hari is not paid enough) and gives inane solutions (saree NFTs).

Why is Hari not paid enough?

1. "The visual language of the loom is deteriorating into digital gibberish"

2. "the chemical dyes are poisoning the very water the weavers drink"

3. "the market is flooded with fakes that have destroyed consumer trust"

You understand why 1 and 3 are problems to be solved when you consider the solutions proposed: AI and Blockchains. If Hari happens to ask an AI and Blockchain company to help him out, the outcome is clear: after they take a cut, his remaining salary reduces from 5000 to 500, and the consultants walk away to next solve manual scavenging using LLMs and room temperature superconductors.

Naturally, the Cyber Lime வெறியன்s in Paris care whether the yalis are the right way up. The goal is to sell the sarees in "Upper East Side in New York or London’s Jermyn Street or haute Paris" while touting them as culturally authentic. Wikipedia dumps of 5 different kinds of vision models reinforces the idea that AI is, of course, the solution. The only question is which kind.

Using CRISPR-Cas9 for better microbial dyes is interesting. Unfortunately the one link provided is about R&D for food dyes in the US, so I am not convinced (without checking it up myself later) that this is feasible in Kanchipuram yet.

"[LVMH's] Aura Blockchain acts as a digital notary for their diamonds, recording the specific mine of origin and cut history." You can already verify that your blood diamond has been mined by an exploited, underpaid worker. The only thing you need to save Kanchipuram sarees is authentic Proof-of-Exploitation so no one can doubt that your precious clothes are hand-woven by Hari who can't afford his groceries.

Indian luxury clothes made "with a solid bar of silver and gold", the process enhanced with AI and Blockchains, to be sold to a Met Gala market as the solution to underpaid weavers in Kanchipuram is... idk. The cherry on top is them admitting to using AI art in an article about underpaid artisans.

"Even while developing this piece, the irony of using AI was not lost on us." I wish I could pull this off with a straight face.

Technically it’s a retroflex approximant [1] and is found in many places (often not as a separate character or phoneme).

But I think we’ve hijacked a cultural thread with enough phonetics for now!

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voiced_retroflex_approximant

All good :)

To add to your critique... The piece proposes fast fashion as a solution to the woes of essentially a bespoke, made-to-order craft. How can this not lead down the path from the alleged Prada-ification to a (inevitable) Zara-ification of the woven product... motifs clashing with motifs; culture and context loudly absent.

Quoting:

"For a heritage boutique, this offers a data-driven way to align traditional korvai patterns with modern market appetites knowing, for instance, that a specific shade of "Cyber Lime" will be trending in Paris next season and weaving it into a classic gopuram border."

Um. No please.

The buyer of a Kanjeevaram (or Paithani, or Navvari, or Balucheri, or any number of other traditions) is looking for something outside of time. The very inheritance exists because it is beauty, art, craft, taste of person-hood and---ultimately indescribable but deeply felt---quality that transcends the generations. To be worn until worn out, and then converted to another timeless piece with which the next few generations would adorn themselves.