A Love Affair with Khadi- The Journey of charkhatales
Today we complete 3 years of working hard towards making something worthwhile in khadi. When w look back today we have had mix days we have jumped with happiness when we got orders , sad days when all did not work as per the plan, but we kept it all on !! Recount with you all the experiences of charkhatales journey .
Roopika Rastogi had a thriving legal career after finishing her masters from University of London. She had been practising for 4-5 years and one day, she decided to give it all up. Why? For preserving the true heritage of our country- Khadi.
Her “love affair”, as she calls it, with khadi began when she was researching about a report that she was preparing. She was looking at the Khadi and Village Industries and on going in depth, she saw the legacy of the fabric and how modern India was missing out on one of the most versatile fabrics known to us.
Thus began the journey of charkhatales aptly starting operations on October 2nd 2016, the birthday of the great man who brought about a revolution through khadi, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi. Following in his footsteps, charkhatales now procures fabric, stitches, finishes and delivers khadi products all over the globe.
The uniqueness of Khadi can be traced back to indian freedom movement, wherein Mahatma Gandhi promoted the spinning of Khadi for rural self‐employment and self‐reliance. In this machine‐age, khadi craftsmen work round the clock to produce the handspun fabric. We, as citizens of the country, owe a duty to promote and preserve our heritage for the value it holds to us and the generations to come.
charkhatales supports sustainable practices and aims at nurturing the beauty of traditional craftsmanship. We emphasize on curating merchandise from best khadi brands across the globe with an intent to deliver products that are unique, comfortable, and of heirloom quality.
One of the main shortfalls Roopika saw during her research was the state of the weavers. “They have so much skill but no way to earn a livelihood out of it” says Roopika. charkhatales works mainly with weavers from Zaidpur village in Barabanki and Hardoi, both in remote Uttar Pradesh, providing them not just the fabric and technology but also raw material.
The team of 8 sees a lot to be done yet. They are now aiming to scale up operations and increase the number of weavers they have on board. More awareness about the fabric is a vital component of their operations and it is something they will keep doing. Honestly, when we saw their product line, we were impressed by how khadi had been combined with modern styling. A true “Make in India” venture, charkhatales is a brand we all should be proud of.
