Ganga Mahila Mandal

Nineteen weavers, eleven looms, and a shed that floods most monsoons. The group keeps its dyed yarn in a raised loft and shifts the looms to a neighbour’s verandah when the water comes.

They print with wooden blocks carved by a local artisan, using azo-free reactive dyes and drying in shade rather than in direct sun, which keeps the colour from crocking.

Handloom fabric is sold by the metre as well as stitched into aprons and stoles, so the same yardage reaches a tailor and a retail buyer.