INSIGHTS ON IDU MISHMI TEXTILES (craft documentation on Idu Mishmi textiles 2007, NID, Ahmadabad )

Idu Mishmi textiles hold a distinct place in the art and culture of Arunachal Pradesh. Unfortunately, onslaught of industrialization and modernization has put its existence and development under constant threat.Weaving among Idus is no longer a need. It has become more of a symbol of identity. Factors like easy availability and cheaper goods (clothes, mill made fabrics) in the market, more number of occupation options, influence of media on dressing style etc have diminished the significance of traditional weaving amongst Idus.Very few Idu women today are involved in traditional weaving activity. This group basically belongs to low income earning strata of the Idu society and practices weaving in order to support their family income. There are also few educated women who are engaged in production and sale of traditional woven goods (It was always meant to be bartered!). The works of these groups have shown great change in use of material in terms of yarns. They use more of synthetic yarn like acrylic yarn, because it is easy availability, sturdiness and colour fastness. Due to efforts of some organizations and individuals an interesting blend of tradition and modern has emerged and this certainly has contributed to the continuity of the tradition.And as the truth lies that, no culture is static but is alive and undergoes changes and evolution. So there still remains a huge scope and task to be done in innovating and adapting the Idu traditional art and weaving to the modern milieu.As a designer we could bridge the gap between traditional aesthetic with the modern aesthetic without diluting the strength of the tradition. By educating the weavers about the fashion trends and how they can be adapted to the tradition. And also making them aware of availability of loans from various organizations like banks and non-government organizations for starting a micro enterprises. We can bring awareness of the importance of promotions of their products and their art to the urban city dwellers and other town dwellers, so that they can appreciate their work. Encouraging the weavers and local entrepreneurs to use more of natural fibres and different counts of them, to achieve different weight of fabrics. This could invoke new ideas of using them. As a designer we could come up with various ranges of products and ideas for the craftsmen other than their ones, so that they could walk hand in hand with the global market.