UNESCO launches list documenting 50 iconic Indian heritage textiles

Source: The post is based on the article “UNESCO launches list documenting 50 iconic Indian heritage textiles” published in The Hindu on 30th September 2022.

What is the News?

UNESCO has released a list of 50 exclusive and iconic heritage textile crafts of India under the title “Handmade for the 21st Century: Safeguarding Traditional Indian Textile”.

What are the textiles listed in the UNESCO document?

The UNESCO document lists the histories and legends behind the textiles, describes the complicated and secret processes behind their making, mentions the causes for their dwindling popularity, and provides strategies for their preservation.

Some of the textiles mentioned are: 

– From North: Khes from Panipat, Chamba rumals from Himachal Pradesh, Thigma or wool tie and dye from Ladakh and Awadh Jamdani from Varanasi.

– From the south: Ilkal and Lambadi or Banjara embroidery from Karnataka, Sikalnayakanpet Kalamkari from Thanjavur, Toda embroidery and Sungadi from Tamil Nadu and Himroo weaves from Hyderabad.

– Other states: Kunbi weaves from Goa, Mashru weaves and Patola from Gujarat, Himroo from Maharashtra and Garad-Koirial from West Bengal and Bandha tie and dye weaving from Sambalpur in Odisha.

Significance of this document: This list by UNESCO is significant as one of the major challenges to the safeguarding of Intangible Cultural Heritage in South Asia is the lack of proper inventory and documentation.