Yangang: Where Threads Tell Stories

AMONG SOUTH SIKKIM'S RIDGES, WOMEN WEAVE STORIES OF HERITAGE, RESILIENCE, AND RENEWAL AT YANGANG

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Yangang sits in South Sikkim's hills, where the pace of life is slow and the mountains seem to hold every sound.

Small clusters of homes line the ridges, surrounded by millet fields and bamboo groves. It is one of the few places where the Lepcha community, the original inhabitants of Sikkim, still practice their crafts in everyday life. Known for their deep respect for nature, the Lepchas have long expressed their connection to the land through weaving, music, and oral stories.

I visited the Gagyong Handloom Training Centre, a government-supported initiative set up to preserve and promote Lepcha weaving while creating new livelihood opportunities for women. Inside the hall, around 20 women sat at wooden looms, each guiding colourful threads through the warp. The rhythmic sound of weaving filled the air, steady and unhurried.

Phurki Lepcha, 28, a trainee at the centre, told me she joined the three-month workshop earlier this year. "Before this, I only knew a little," she said, tightening a pattern with her comb.