Kumar said it is the responsibility of the designers to make sure that the works of these craftsmen do not die out. 'It is our duty to bring out the best of the talents from these craftsmen into the ramp,' she added.

With the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation declaring 2009 as 'The International Year of Natural Fibre,' KFW-11 has 'Earth Couture' as the theme celebrating India's ethnic roots.

'As far as silhouettes are concerned, I started with the Mughal period, moved through Indian history, where we showed the sarees and the unstitched garments. In between, we showed modern India with jackets with paintings,' the Delhi-based Kumar said.

One of the paintings was by city-based Jayshree Burman.

Kumar added: 'Our craft is very multi-dimensional where you can actually customize every generation and for everybody and that was the whole essence of it.'

The show ended with the bridal collection.

Talking about recession and its effect on the industry, she said: 'It's a cyclic phenomenon that will keep happening but craftsmen will continue with their work.'