The Himroo Revival Project

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"Himroo: The Finest Fabric of the Deccan" ~ Marco Polo

Himroo is a luxurious handwoven brocade fabric made with silk and cotton yarns.

It was brought to Aurangabad by Sultan Mohammad bin Tughlaq, when he shifted his capital from Delhi to Aurangabad in the 13th century. The name originated from the Persian word Hum-ruh which means 'similar'. This is because Himroo is similar to the Persian “kinkhwab” fabric. It was borne out of the interaction between Persian weavers and the local weavers of nearby Paithan. Himroo designs are traditionally ornate in nature with paisleys, marigolds, vines and fruit being popular motifs.

Himroo's popularity grew with Mughal rule and reached its pinnacle during the reign of the Nizams of Hyderabad who ruled over Aurangabad until the mid-1900s. However, post Independence, the craft has been gradually in decline and appears to have died out completely in the last 10 years. The challenge of this monumental revival project has been taken up by LoomKatha, a social enterprise working for the economic empowerment of handloom weavers. Over the last 1 year, we have re-started some of the defunct looms and trained a small group of women weavers.  The products have been highly appreciated and our work has been featured in Hand/Eye Magazine and the Marigold Diary Blog

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The Impact of COVID-19: An Appeal

Just as our project was all set to scale-up, the pandemic crisis hit India. Production was completely stalled for over 4 months but we continued to pay our weavers a stipend. We launched the #kaamnotdaan campaign on Instagram to book pre-orders for our weavers. The response was amazing and provided us a much-needed lifeline to tide by till August. However, the future looks shaky as people are spending conservatively on apparel and our project remains highly vulnerable. We are looking for pre-orders for the Himroo product range that can continue to sustain our small band of weavers.  

 

You can view our entire Himroo collection here

Please email or WhatsApp us for more info.

Email: arushi@loomkatha.in | WhatsApp: + 91 9811723139

 

Look forward to your support.

Let's not let Himroo die a second time!