HANDLOOM DAY 2020

In the last few years, khadi (khaddar) the handspun, handwoven fabrics, as well as handloom textiles, have lost their unique tactile quality and therefore their market share. Most of the handloom and powerloom fabrics available in the market use the same mechanised yarn that is strong and convenient to weave, and the fabrics end up looking similar in texture. Today, sophisticated computer-aided machines can reproduce the most intricately patterned handloom fabrics. What is lost in the process is the creativity of the artisan. In the past, weavers would manipulate the design, making changes as they wove the fabric so that no two pieces were identical.

The market is flooded with powerloom imitations of handcrafted textiles, offered at much better prices. To counter this, we need to create a distinctive new identity for the handloom fabrics. Beyond their heritage value and beauty, what would make handlooms unique and worth preserving? Why would a consumer pay more to sustain traditional artisans and protect their livelihood or the continuity of their traditional skills? What could make handcrafted textiles relevant again? I believe, the use of handspun yarn and natural dyes that are eco-friendly could become one of the differentiators to create a fresh identity for handloom fabrics.

The beauty of handspun, handwoven textiles is in the texture and inherent irregularity. The low-twist of handspun yarn unravels marginally every time the fabric is washed, giving it softness, a comfortable feel and a wonderful drape. A handspun warp is delicate and needs the sensitive touch of human hands to manipulate the threads. It requires skill, concentration and a great deal of patience to weave on a handspun warp, and this is best done on a pit loom or traditional loom. Today machines can recreate most of our intricate heritage textiles, but to recreate the feel and texture of a handspun, handwoven fabric is difficult.

We have a very large repository of our textile skills and techniques, developed for diverse ethnic communities, depending on the region, climatic conditions, and local needs as well as grand textiles developed under the patronage of the royalty, wealthy merchants and for religious purposes. These hand-skills our great wealth, offering us an opportunity to create ethical textiles for present needs.

Developing the handloom sector would offer many positive transformations and benefit the 30 million artisans involved in this segment, the second largest after agriculture. It has the potential of creating the much needed large number of jobs without huge investments, as well as empower women and marginalised communities involved in the sector. It could provide a sustainable livelihood to families and communities within their own geographical location, protecting them from the pitfalls of economic migration to cities where jobs are hard to find and living conditions are brutal. Handcrafted production is eco-friendly so it has a new meaning today as it addresses the two most crucial challenges, issues related to climate change and growing unemployment, and addresses most of the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals.