National Handloom Day: 7th August 2021


Handloom weaving is perhaps one of the oldest family-based cottage industry and it's documented history goes back to the Indus Valley Civilisation and the Maurya's
Weaving techniques are mention in our Vedic literatures such as Ramayana and Mahabharat.
In fact spinning,weaving and dyeing techniques were advanced in comparison with other ancient civilizations.
Our Indian handlooms is huge and varied as our country’s diversity,you can find different weaves across the districts. Every state and region in the have developed it's own traditional design and craft, which has passed from one generation to another.
From the Ikat sarees of Orissa, the Pashminas of Kashmir and the Kanjivaram Sarees of Tamil Nadu to Ilkal in Karnataka and the Muga saris of Assam, each handloom has a unique warp and weft,reflecting local creativity and skill of weavers and the cultural heritage of that region.
The strength of handlooms is it's intricate craftsmanship, which cannot be replicated by  powerlooms effectively. The handloom sector is less capital intensive, uses minimal power (electricity), hence eco-friendly, open to innovations,and adapts to the dynamics of fashion and market forces.
It's nice to see fashion icons and leading designers patronize and promoting Indian handlooms, at international fashion events.
The utility of handlooms need to percolate among millions of indians for which our community weavers's cooperative societies need to rise to the occasion.
National Handloom Day is celebrated on 7th August.
This day is observed annually to create awareness about Handlooms. Over 70% of handloom weavers and allied workers are women,it acts as a key to women empowerment.
The first National Handloom Day was organised by Prime Minister Sri Narendra Modi in 2015 at Chennai.
According to the Fourth All India Handloom Census 2019-20, 31.45 lakh households are engaged in handloom, weaving and allied activities.
As we celebrate National Handloom day, let us think our forefathers who enrich our civilization and created Indian Textiles's name and fame down the millennium. Weaving by hand is a part of our country’s cultural spirit and the handloom sector also provides livelihood to lakhs of people. 
The industry gives scope to explore creativity with the help of art and craft present in Indian handlooms and in recent times has seen a lot of experimentation and innovation by encouraging people to reach in power not just at the national markets, but to also make a mark globally.
How eloquently Nightingale of India and freedom fighter late Sarojini Naidu described weavers in her classic poem:
                  Indian Weavers
WEAVERS, weaving at break of day, 
Why do you weave a garment so gay? 
Blue as the wing of a halcyon wild, 
We weave the robes of a new-born child. 
Weavers, weaving at fall of night, 
Why do you weave a garment so bright? 
Like the plumes of a peacock, purple and green, 
We weave the marriage-veils of a queen. 
Weavers, weaving solemn and still, 
What do you weave in the moonlight chill? 
White as a feather and white as a cloud, 
We weave a dead man's funeral shroud.
~ Sarojini Naidu.
In my opinion this poem must incorporated in the teaching syllabus in schools and colleges for students to understanding weaving and contributions of weavers.
On this occasion I request each one of you, my brothers and sisters you ought to commence by wearing fabrics woven by weavers atleast three days in a week, this initiative will resurrect our weavers's prosperity and bring smiles on their faces.
The priorities and mindsets of leaders and bureaucrats must change, after all it is their responsibility to nourish and preserve this timeless craftmanship for posterity.
"I do regard spinning and weaving as a necessary part of any national system of education." ~ Mahatma Gandhi
GaviRangappa S P.
Devanga's Vidhana.
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