Indian Textiles and the World Market


 
 
Concept Explanation
 

Indian Textiles and the World Market

India Textiles and the World Market : Around 1750 before the British conquered Bengal, India was by far the world’s largest producer of cotton textiles. Indian textiles had long been renewed both for their fine quality and exquisite craftsmanship. They were extensively traded in Southeast Asia (Java, Sumatra and Penang) and West and Central Asia. From the sixteenth century European trading companies began buying Indian textiles for sale in Europe.

( Patola weave, mid nineteenth century patola was woven in Surat, Ahemdabad, and Patna).

European traders first encountered fine cotton cloth from India carried by Arab merchants in Mosul in present-day Iraq.  So they began referring to all finely woven textiles as “muslin”- a word that acquired wide currency. When the Portuguese first came to India in search of spices they landed in Calicut on the Kerala coast in south – west India. The cotton textiles which they took back to Europe, along with the spices, came to be called “calico” ( derived from Calicut), and subsequently calico became the general name for all cotton textiles. There are many other words which point to the popularity of Indian textile in Western market. The order that year was 5,89,000 pieces of cloth. Browsing through the order book you would have seen a list of 98 varities of cotton and silk clothes. These were known by their common name in the European trade as piece goods- usually woven cloth pieces that were 20 yards long and 1 yard wide.

THE POPULARITY OF INDIAN COTTON CLOTHES IN ENGLAND AND EUROPE:

  • chintz, Cossaes ( khassa) and Bandanna were the most popular printed cotton cloth with many floral designs and fine texture at that time.
  • From 1680s, there started a craze for printed Indian cotton textile and very popular among the people of England and Europe mainly for their exquisite floral design, fine texture, and relative cheapness. rich people of England including the Queen herself wore clothes of Indian fabric.
  • Similarly , the word bandanna now  refers to any brightly coloured and printed scarf for the neck or head . originally, the term derived from the word " bandhna" ( Hindi for tying) , and referred to a variety of brightly coloured cloth produced through a method of truing and dying.
  • There were other clothes that were popular in Europe were the varieties of Kazimbazar, Patna, Calcutta, Orissa and Charpoore clothes.
  •   jamdinweave in early 20th century                                                                 printed design on fine cloth (chintz) produced in Masulipatnam, Andhrapradesh.

     

     
     
     


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