HANDLOOM - AN INDIAN LEGACY. SUB THEME - heritage handloom , handloom as a way of life , i know my weaver , handloom chic ,heirloom- discovery and recovry Write essay between 600 - 700 words .
Answers
The looms in India have been at work for over 5,000 years. The imagery of the loom is woven into our poetry – from the Vedas to our folk ballads. So powerful is the spinning wheel, that the charkha became one of the symbols of the struggle for India’s independence. The forms of the loom kept changing but handwoven cloth was and is an intrinsic part of the warp and weft of India’s intangible cultural heritage.
Answer:
Handloom is any form of looms or weaving device operated by hand. During earlier days, handlooms was quite common in India. Indian handlooms were often distinguished by their weaving methods, use of symbols and other imagery, color, etc. The looms in India have been at work for more than 5,000 years. The pictures of the loom is woven into our poetry – from the Vedas to our ballads. The spinning wheel was so powerful that the charkha had became one amongst the symbols of the struggle for India’s independence. Although handwoven cloth was and continues to be an integral element of India's intangible cultural heritage, loom designs have changed over time. From Kashmir to Kanyakumari, from east to west, India is crammed with various local and regional handloom traditions.
Handloom as a way of life is because handloom is the one of the prime industries in the traditional sector of India. It provides direct employment to over 65 lacs people in India making it one of the largest economic activity. It is also said that when you are buying handloom products, you are supporting the country's economy. From being an important source of livelihood, handlooms are also a part of various traditional inherited silk weavers.
I know my weaver. He is specialized in khadua or weaving the brocaded borders and motifs for which Benarasis are known. He says that he believes in his work. “If you weave good pieces, you will get good returns, this is what I feel,” he says.
Pashmina from Leh, Ladakh and Kashmir Valley, the Kullu and Kinnauri weaves of Himachal Pradesh, Phulkari from Punjab, Haryana and Delhi, Panchachuli weaves of Uttarakhand, Kota Doria from Rajasthan, Benarasi Silk of Uttar Pradesh, Bhagalpuri Silk from Bihar, Patan Patola of Gujarat, Chanderi of Madhya Pradesh, Paithani of Maharashtra, Champa Silk from Chattisgarh, Sambalpuri Ikat from Odisha, Tussar Silk from Jharkhand, Jamdani and Tangail of West Bengal , Mangalgiri and Venkatgiri from Andhra Pradesh, Pochampally Ikat from Telangana, Udupi Cotton and Mysore Silk of Karnataka, Kunvi weaves from Goa, Kuttampally of Kerala, Arani and Kanjeevaram Silk of Tamil Nadu, Lepcha from Sikkim, Sualkuchi from Assam, Apatani from Arunachal Pradesh, Naga weaves of Nagaland, Moirang Phee from Manipur, Pachhra of Tripura, Mizu Puan in Mizoram and Eri silk of Meghalaya are some of the handlooms products from all over India.
Indian handlooms had its way back in Indus Valley Civilization. Indian textiles were sold to Rome, Egypt, and China even in antiquity. Almost every village once had its own weavers who produced all the villagers' clothing needs, including sarees, dhotis, garment materials, towels, bed sheets, and kerchiefs but in some areas where it is cold in winter there have been specific wool weaving centers. But everything was Hand-Spun and Hand-Woven. However, during British rule, India became a major supplier of raw cotton and was inundated with foreign machine-made yarn. This led to the handloom weavers' dependence on manufactured goods and the utter loss of their spinners' livelihoods. At this time, Gandhiji launched the Swadeshi Movement and revived hand spinning under the name Khadi, which is essentially a catch-all term for both hand spinning and hand weaving. Everyone in India was exhorted to wear Khadi and spin yarn with Charkhas. This led to the closure of the Mills in Manchester and large turning point in the Indian independence movement. People boycotted imported clothes and chose to wear Khadi.
Spinning and textile factories in India kept running after the country's independence. In the modern era, there are numerous weaving techniques that use machine-spun yarn; these fabrics are known as handloom or handwoven, whereas fabrics manufactured from hand-spun yarn are known as khadi fabrics.
In Independent India, the textile and spinning industries persisted, but handloom and khadi were given extensive protection from unfair competition. As a result, the fabric was widely available and reasonably priced. However, after 1985, and particularly with the liberalisation of the 1990s, the handloom industry has had to contend with inexpensive import competition and powerloom design imitators. Government financing and policy protection also substantially decreased. The price of yarn made from natural fibres has also skyrocketed. The price of natural fibre is more expensive than synthetic.
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