FIVE PLACES TO EXPERIENCE INDIA’S SLOW FASHION

From Tamil Nadu to Varanasi, explore workshops and craft villages where you can learn the stories, skills, and sustainable practices behind India’s handlooms

- Jatan Kalra

Inthe era of fleeting trends and purchases just a tap away, fashion’s relationship with sustainability has become increasingly fractured.

According to environmental website earth.org, today’s fashion industry emits more greenhouse gases than international flights and shipping combined, and uses one-fifth of the world’s wastewater through dyeing alone.

However, rising awareness of climate change and the growing emphasis on Sustainability are fuelling the slow fashion movement, which is beginning to mend that bond. At its core lies a return to consciousness: knowing where our clothes come from, who makes them, and the stories woven into every fabric.

India, home to one of the oldest textile traditions in the world, is now seeing a quiet revival of handloom literacy.

BHUJODI, GUJARAT

In the weaving village of Bhujodi in Gujarat's Kutch district, the craft of pit-loom hand-weaving is still alive and immersive. Participants in the weaving experience here spin raw cotton on the charkha, warp the yarn, learn the traditional kanji/rolled-yarn preparation, then sit at the pit-loom and weave alongside the artisan community. Vankar Chetan's workshop at the Handloom Design Centre, which has been running in his family for ten generations, is open to visitors who want to learn about handlooms while also living the life of an artisan.