BHOPAL (Madhya Pradesh): A few city residents have been wearing clothes made of handloom fabrics or Khadi either exclusively or mostly for decades. Their reasons vary from the ideological to concern for the weavers to the desire to look different. On the eve of National Handloom Day, the Free Press spoke with some of them.
Mondays were Khadi Days
Being a Gandhian, I have been wearing Khadi for the past 20-25. When I was in service, I requested my colleagues and juniors to wear handloom or Khadi clothing at least once every week. Monday was decided as the day and the response was good. For the past five years, I have been wearing only Khadi. I feel that by doing that, I help local artisans. If I wear factory-made clothes, I only add to the riches of the owner of that factory. Not only clothes but I even try to fulfil all my basic needs from handmade items. Instead of a branded shoe, I go for a shoe handmade by leather workers. —RK Paliwal, Retd Commissioner of Income Tax
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Smell of human labour
Khadi clothes are imbued with the smell of human labour. Wearing Khadi gives you a sense of satisfaction. I first got attracted to Khadi when, during a visit to a Gandhi Ashram, I realised that there are tens of thousands of women who earn their bread and butter by spinning cotton on a charkha. I have been wearing only Khadi clothes since 1980. Not only that but also I use only Khadi bed linen. All members of my family also wear only Khadi. —Ran Singh Parmar, President, Ekta Parishad
Simple, comfortable
For the past 10-15 years, except occasionally, I have been wearing only Khadi clothes. I first began wearing Khadi when I was studying at Sevagram Ashram in Wardha (Maharashtra). Slowly, it became a habit. I find Khadi clothes comfortable and simple. My father has been wearing Khadi for the past 40 years since his retirement from the army. — Aneesh Thillenkery, social activist
Began as a teen
I started wearing clothes made of handloom textiles around 1985, when I was a teen. And I have stuck to them since then. For me, whether it was a sari or a salwar suit or a skirt or a top, it has to be made from handwoven fabric. I find handloom clothing comfortable. I mostly wear Maheshwari, Chanderi and Kosa silk saris. I also love to wear sari in Bagh print. — Dr Anjalika Chaturvedi Tiwari, Professor at Barkatullah University
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Every piece is different
Machine-made clothes are mass produced and look exactly the same, whereas every piece of clothing made using handloom fabrics is different. Wearing handloom clothes can help you look different. Besides, it is a source of livelihood for lakhs of weavers. I went to the US recently to attend the convocation ceremony of my son and there too, I stuck to only handloom saris. We have also formed a group called Satika Granth Group to promote handloom saris across the country. I have been wearing handloom saris for the past 20 years. —Shalini Gupta, artist
