President APJ Abdul Kalam with a muga umbrella designed by Dulal Chowdhury

Guwahati, April 28: Derby Day at Epsom, near London, is the occasion for the noble English ladies to flaunt their exotic headgear. This year?s event, on June 5, will give them a piece de resistance in the form of an umbrella made of Assam?s famed golden fabric, muga.

The muga umbrella, designed and produced by Assamese innovator Dulal Chowdhury, will be on display on Derby Day, considered one of the oldest and most popular horse races in the world which draws a crowd close to one lakh.

In fact, Derby Day will mark the international debut of the umbrella, which has been scientifically tested to absorb 80 per cent of the harmful ultraviolet rays in sunlight and is expected to attract the West.

Chowdhury, who has applied for a patent for his product, said ?besides protecting from ultraviolet rays, the umbrella also emits a golden glow scientifically proven to be helpful in removing wrinkles?. In fact, Chowdhury plans to market his product under the brand name, ?Beautycare Umbrella?.

London-based NRI Rini Kakoti, who was impressed with Chowdhury?s innovation during a recent visit to the state, is co-ordinating the muga umbrella?s display at the Derby.

?He feels for this (muga) industry that has not been able to attract outside market and because it is unorganised, the product is little known outside Assam,? Kakoti said in an e-mail.

A mechanical engineer, who turned to muga by default, Chowdhury?s main innovation is giving a completely different feel to muga, turning a stiff fabric to something ?very soft and silky?. He has applied for a patent for this innovation, too.

?What aroused my curiosity to fiddle with the fabric is the fact that muga will never get recognition from the world in its old form, being too stiff, like paper. Though people from outside India always appreciated muga clothes for their designs, nobody was actually interested in buying,? he said.

But after he turned the fabric ?very smooth?, he has got inquiries from as far as New Zealand.

Chowdhury was honoured with the young innovator award in 2002 by the National Innovation Foundation. But he said his most satisfying moment was when President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam picked up one his umbrellas and put in words of admiration during a business meet at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Mumbai.

Chowdhury, in his late forties, lives in Guwahati with his lawyer wife and a son.

The engineer was optimistic that once commercial production of the new-look muga started, it will usher in an economic revolution for the industry. ?Right from those who rear the silkworm to people who grow the mulberry bushes, everybody will benefit,? he said.

The Assam silk industry is mainly concentrated in Sualkuchi, a small town 30 km from Guwahati and also known as the`Manchester of the East.

For the man who loves to be known as Mugadulal, it will be the crowning glory when the muga umbrellas find a permanent place in the lifestyle of the West.