When you hear the word Khadi, you think of Gandhi’s charkha, of freedom fighters spinning yarn, of rural women weaving fabric under a lantern, of self-reliance, purity, and pride. You do not think of plastic. Yet, under the Khadi India brand managed by the Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC), a silent shift has taken […]
Polyester in Khadi? A Betrayal of the Charkha and Gandhi’s Dream Read More »
How imported yarn and mill-made fabric slip into India wearing a ‘handloom’ mask—and how to stop it. Let’s be blunt: a huge slice of the “pure handloom” you’re seeing online is nothing more than imported yarn or fabric stitched in India and sold with a desi fairy tale. The price is premium. The label is
Your ‘Pure Handloom’ Kurta Could Be Made in China — Here’s the Proof Read More »
What’s really happening (no sugar-coating) Powerloom + polyester = “handloom” (on the tag). Add a bit of zari, throw in a GI name, print a romantic backstory—and boom, margin magic. Marketplaces and multi-brand stores treat “handloom” like a search keyword, not a legal category. Verification? Often zero. Buyers are set up to fail. Even many
The Fake Handloom Economy: How Counterfeit Sarees Are Killing India’s Weavers Read More »
India’s handloom tradition has survived invasions, colonisation, and the industrial revolution. But today, it faces an enemy more dangerous than any loom-destroying policy or foreign import — the silent, systemic, and organised counterfeit handloom trade happening on so-called “trusted” e-commerce platforms like Amazon, Flipkart, and JioMart. These platforms claim to empower small businesses and artisans.
Last fortnight, Jammu & Kashmir moved from making promises to taking action. Dealers were given just seven days to remove machine-made imports being passed off as Kashmiri handicrafts — or face blacklisting and deregistration. One retailer has already been blacklisted for putting a forged QR label on a machine-made carpet and selling it as an
Kashmir’s Crackdown on Fake Handicrafts Is a Wake-Up Call for the Entire Country Read More »
On National Handloom Day, August 8, 2025, the Indian Textile Ministry unveiled a grand promise — the “Weave the Future – Regenerative Edition” exhibition at New Delhi’s Crafts Museum. This wasn’t just an art-and-culture showcase; it was positioned as a defining moment in India’s textile story, a supposed leap into the ESG era — Environmental,
For centuries, handloom has been more than just cloth in India. It is heritage woven into threads, the livelihood of millions of weavers, the pride of villages, and the essence of slow, sustainable fashion. But today, a dark shadow hangs over this industry — fake handloom products flooding the market. Powerloom fabrics, synthetic yarns, and
Fake Handloom in India – The State-by-State Map of a National Scam Read More »
Fast fashion didn’t just steal designs—it stole the word sustainability. And now, one of its kings, Shein, just got publicly slapped. Italy’s competition authority fined the brand €1 million for selling lies dressed as eco-friendly fashion. Let’s call it what it is: Shein was never saving the planet. It was saving face. The Tricks They
Let’s do some quick arithmetic: Andhra Pradesh is now offering its weavers 200 units of free electricity per month—no strings attached. That might not sound like much to your typical Netflix-bingeing household—but for a handloom weave, where the shuttle never quite quits, that’s pure, hardworking power that doesn’t get billed. In a world where even
Every year on National Handloom Day, India’s streets, social media, and shopping malls are flooded with “heritage” posts and “tradition” campaigns. Politicians pose in handloom shawls, celebrities post in “handmade” saris, and brands churn out emotional ads about “empowering artisans.” But let’s rip the wrapping off the truth—more than two-thirds of what is sold as
