Fluctuating fortunes of Kashmiri carpet
Naseer Ganai
WHEN Nazir Ahmad Dar started his carpet business in 1998, he had a clear sense of its potential success. Hailing from the Safakadal area of Srinagar’s old city, Dar, a graduate, came from a family with a long history in the carpet trade. Over time, he built his business, specialising in exporting Kashmiri carpets of various sizes and colours, all handwoven. His enterprise flourished, with looms scattered throughout the Kashmir region.
“The 1990s saw the peak of the carpet business in the Valley. There was a huge demand and we produced accordingly, particularly for the European markets,” he says. Dar employed 80 artisans at one point in time.
However, the business began to decline gradually. It commenced with the recession that struck the European markets in 2008, and the devastating floods of 2014 in Kashmir proved to be the final blow for the industry. Dar found himself shutting down one loom after another. By 2021, he had shuttered his business entirely, with his artisans seeking alternative employment.
Dar, known for his penchant for storytelling, says, “Last year, while constructing a hamam (traditional warming room) for my house, I hired some construction workers. To my surprise, two of them turned out to be my former artisans.”
The artisans used to earn a paltry Rs 200-300 per day for weaving carpets, but when it comes to constructing a hamam, they are paid daily wages of around Rs 800 to Rs 900, and there is no room for negotiation in this regard, he says.
He says during the 1990s, carpet dealers enjoyed good returns. With products finding buyers worldwide, it also helped them adequately compensate the weavers. However, with the downturn in the business, dealers struggled to achieve returns, resulting in a decline in the trade, low wages for artisans and lay-offs.
Kashmir’s rich tradition of carpet weaving dates back centuries. According to popular legend, it was during the times of Mir Syed Ali Hamdani, the revered Sufi saint of the Kubrawiya order (1312-1385), and the reign of Zain-ul-Abidin, affectionately known as Badshah or ‘great king’ (1420-1470), that artisans from Iran and Central Asia, including carpet weavers, were brought to Kashmir.
“However, historical evidence suggests that large-scale production began during the Mughal period,” says Saleem Beg, convenor of INTACH Kashmir and a prominent art conservator. “Master craftsmen from Iran and Central Asia came to Srinagar. They spread the knowledge of the craft and the establishment of a weaving community led to the widespread production of shawls and carpets.”
Mughals made Kashmir their summer sojourn, he notes, as nobles and royalty found it salubrious. “We know large-scale carpet weaving is undertaken in Agra, Lahore, Jaipur and some Uttar Pradesh towns, and most of these centres seem to have grown independent of the Kashmiri roots,” Beg says.
“Interestingly, most of the export markets to the US and Europe had a solid Kashmiri presence. The Agra factories were run by Kashmiri Pandit families, with Kailash Carpet Co being the most prominent. We know Amritsar was a major carpet production centre in the early 20th century, again controlled by Muslim Kashmiris,” Beg points out.
For centuries, the carpet industry has been a vital part of Kashmir’s handicrafts sector, offering employment and opportunities, especially in the old city of Srinagar and towns across the Valley.
In 1972, the government established the Handicrafts Department of Jammu and Kashmir, implementing training programmes to enhance weavers’ skills. The move helped in the spread of the carpet industry’s rural base further. As the weavers would work from home, receiving raw materials, and designs in the form of Taleem papers (coded guidelines for weaving) from the exporters, it became an alternative employment for farmers in rural areas, especially during the winters.
“The transformation in the Kashmir carpet industry is marked by a historical shift until the 1970s, when wool carpets from the region were internationally acclaimed for their superior quality. This narrative changed in the mid-1970s, transitioning towards silk carpets, aligning with the western preference for Iranian silk carpets. During this period, Kashmir had a direct market link, attracting buyers globally who visited the region,” says Mujtaba Qadri of Me and K brand.
“However, the situation took a downturn in 1990, severing the market connection, leading to a decline in design standards and innovation within the industry. The subsequent decades witnessed fluctuating demand. The emergence of Kashmiri businessmen opening stores in India and overseas in the early ’90s to mid-2000 temporarily revived the market. Yet, the industry faced challenges due to a lack of sustained market connection and innovation, resulting in another decline post-2000,” Qadri adds.
“Since 2008, the closure of many stores owned by Kashmiris in India and abroad has left a void in sales points. This underscores the need for strategic measures to revitalise the Kashmir carpet industry, addressing both market connectivity and innovation for sustained growth,” Qadri says.
Carpet looms once dotted Tangmarg, Kunzar, Hajin and other areas in northern Kashmir. However, over time, most of these ceased operations. In certain villages of Tangmarg, many artisans continue to work on the looms during the winter months, while others have opted for labour jobs over traditional artisanal work.
Some artisans cite inadequate wages as the reason for seeking alternative jobs, while others struggle to find any employment. “In some cases, senior artisans who have dedicated their lives to carpet weaving and have never sought employment elsewhere find it challenging to go for labour work at a construction site,” Dar says. “It is these people who, due to their age, are compelled to remain and die at the loom.”
Experts say the primary market for Kashmiri carpets should be the United States. However, Kashmiri carpet exporters have been predominantly selling in Germany and the Gulf region. In the 1980s, when Americans began ordering Kashmiri carpets, they apparently grew frustrated over the lack of an organised structure. Despite their interest in Kashmiri carpets, the disorganised activity hindered their efforts. As a result, they turned to Bhadohi in Uttar Pradesh for carpets, leading to the rise of the Bhadohi carpet industry and the decline of Kashmiri carpets.
Besides, in the 1990s, Kashmiri exporters made the transition from wool carpets to silk. “When the Iranians heard it, they got excited. They were not competing with the wool carpet of Kashmir anymore. Iran and Turkey were masters in silk and they were ruling the industry. Kashmiris couldn’t beat them in their own game,” says an expert.
In Srinagar’s old city area of Waniyar, Shahnawaz Ahmad Sufi acted differently. A graduate of the Institute of Fine Arts and Design School in the University of Kashmir, he deliberately chose to continue his family’s carpet business legacy. With five uncles already engaged in carpet weaving and sales, and his father also involved in the trade, Sufi decided to pursue the same path rather than opt for a different career.
Beginning in 2002, he witnessed the world evolving around him and adapted his business model accordingly. Employing his artistic skills learned at the design school, Sufi began to differentiate his carpets by incorporating unique designs featuring birds, flowers and animals. One of his creations depicts a shepherd and his goats as a painting within the carpet. However, his primary focus has been on wall-hanging carpets, particularly those featuring calligraphy. He says these handwoven carpets have a significant market in the Gulf countries, where they are favoured as wall hangings for grand halls and residences.
“This worked well for me. I have looms at different places across the Valley,” he says. He adds that the government exhibitions in different cities and the Gulf also helped sustain the industry and improved the trade.
Sufi says his five uncles left the carpet trade due to their inability to adapt to the changing times. “Traditional floor carpets have fallen out of favour in today’s world, with people preferring handwoven carpets as wall hangings. I observed this shifting trend early on, and it has greatly contributed to the growth of my business,” he says. “I regularly monitor market demands in the carpet industry and adjust my products accordingly.”
Sufi says they have been giving weavers a good rate and it would encourage the existing businesses to remain in the industry and others to join in.
The government says there has been a consistent expansion in the carpet industry over recent years, especially in export figures, after the craft policy came into vogue in 2020. Mehmood Ahmad Shah, Director of Handloom and Handicrafts, Kashmir, says the export revenues have surged to Rs 357 crore in 2022-23, up from Rs 251 crore in 2021-2022 and Rs 299 crore in 2020-2021. However, there has been a decline from Rs 452 crore recorded in 2017-18.
Shah says that there are currently 56,699 registered artisans in the industry. He says in the unorganised sector, the minimum support price for carpets and pashmina ensures that sellers do not undercut prices. With Srinagar now designated as a UNESCO Craft City and poised to join the World Craft Council, the status has significantly benefited all crafts, particularly carpets.
Carpets were the first to receive Geographical Indication (GI) tags, with around 11,000 carpets having been tagged to date.
The department also provides financial assistance to artisans, with the past few years seeing the establishment of 4,004 cooperative societies and disbursal of around Rs 22 crore as aid to artisans. “It is not much, but it generates goodwill,” Shah says.
At the Institute of Carpet Industry, operating under the Handicrafts Department, a facility has been established for the natural dyeing of raw materials used in carpet weaving. “We must expedite the transition to being an organised sector, which will help us enforce the Minimum Wages Act and provide fixed wages to artisans,” Shah says.
“The government is actively supporting the establishment of common facility centres. We have identified land in Bandipora, North Kashmir, for this purpose,” he adds. These centres, termed carpet villages, “will safeguard designs, ensure regular wages for artisans and promote organisation within the industry”. He says the necessity of transitioning back to woollen carpets from silk will be of great help. Whether this back-to-the-wool initiative proves to be a success, only time will tell.
