spinning-cotton-heybales Handspun cotton – gimmicks, Gandhi and economic growthHandspun cotton, known as Khadi, is of special significance to Indians because Mahatma Gandhi made this fragile thread of cotton into a symbol of strength and self-sufficiency, by hand-spinning Khadi himself, and using the cloth to make his own dhoti. Khadi provided employment for the millions during India’s freedom struggle, and that symbolism of wearing Indian cloth made by human hands has continued till this day.  Handspun cotton is now a luxury item, carried by only a few couture lines, and found only rarely in T-shirts.

Since 2002, an annual exhibition of Khadi designer clothing has been held in Delhi, to promote wholly hand spun, hand woven and hand patterned fabric, as a unique luxury product.  While the idea behind the exhibition is to preserve and promote an indigenous craft, the exhibition has upset traditional Gandhian followers who say promoting Khadi as a commodity for the rich goes against Gandhi’s philosophy of austerity.  The outfits, for both men and women and both traditional style and modern Western, are designed by many leading Indian designers, including Ritu Kumar, Abu Jani, Sandeep Khosla and David Abraham – many of whom also design for top brand lines and dress the famous and beautiful of Hollywood. The designers say it is important to popularise the fabric, in order to preserve an Indian heritage which is on the verge of disappearing.  According to a rough estimate, nearly five million small craftsmen depend on Khadi for a living.

hand spinning by heybales 

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