In 1007 A.D. Raja Sopi, who had fled from the terror of Mahmud Ghaznavi, occupy the seat of Kotwara that lead to the beginning of a new dynasty. In 1488 witnessed the conversion of Raja Mall of Kotwara to Islam.
In 1704, during the reign of Emperor Aurangzeb, Raja Baz Khan of Kotwara refused to pay the imperial tribune in sheer rebellion. Khan had to flee and take refuge in the neighbouring forests as his lands was handed over to Syed Badar Khan, from that point it fell to ignominy until 1827 when Raja Madar Baksh Khan, the 28th descendant of Raja Sopi finally won back the throne of Kotwara.
In 1924 that Raja Syed Sajid Husain ascended the throne. At the age of 25 he fought the first elections of 1935 as an independent candidate and went on to be MLA until 1952. A man of revolutionary ideas this visionary stood for humanism and communal harmony, audio - visual education, family planning, hydel power and promotion of the roman script.
His son Syed Muzaffar Ali is a filmmaker, painter and designer. Having made several award winning films like Ganga Jamuni, Gaman, Umrao Jaan, Aagaman and Anjuman, Muzaffar Ali has been organising the international Sufi festivals in Delhi titled Jahan-e-Khusrau. The event is dedicated to Hazrat Amir Khusrau and nurturing a hope of bridging the widening east west divide.
Kotwara, the label is signed in by Meera and Muzaffar Ali, was created in 1991. It is their joint effort to revive the traditional craft of the region and give it a contemporary thrust.
With an eye for creating a modern day relevance, the label integrates various craft skills in Kotwara like weaving silk, wool, brocade and durries along with embroideries in Chikan, Kamdani and Zardozi integrating innovative stitching techniques of tukri and daraz.
Understanding its ethos, this creative couple is consistently upgrading its design content thus spearheaded a vast movement in the area.
The theme for Kotwara's Spring Summer '07 Collection is Khatati. The flow of Urdu calligraphy is fascinating blend of visual and spiritual beauty. The carefully crafted thick and thins of the alphabets presents a unique design statement.
The couple have tried to abstract these elements and lay them out on the silhouette/form of the garments to create pure design without any reference to their meaning. In this collection they have effectively captured the whispering movements of the wind on shapes and silhouettes. Their palette is pure magic of colours that comes into play with movements. Pure form in monochrome is minimalist and modern.