Ancient Indian Craft Heritage: Centuries of Slow Fashion

Before factory lines and fast fashion, there existed a land where craftsmanship thrived. India’s artisan legacy can be traced back nearly 5,000 years, beginning with the Indus Valley Civilization (2600 to 1900 BCE). Excavations at Mohenjo-daro and Harappa have found compelling evidence of a sophisticated textile culture, including cotton fragments, dyed fabrics, spindles and sewing needles, all indicating early mastery of weaving and dyeing practices. The craftsmanship was expressive and intentional, signalling that in ancient India, garments were culture in motion.

India holds the distinction of being one of the earliest civilizations to cultivate and spin cotton. The cotton fibres found wrapped around silver relics at Mohenjo-daro are among the oldest preserved textiles in human history.

Techniques like hand spinning and hand weaving on primitive looms allowed artisans to manipulate texture, density, and strength with finesse. Cotton muslins from Bengal, so fine they were called "woven air", would later go on to stun Roman and Arab traders.

Natural Dyes Were India’s First Colour 

In a world without chemicals, ancient India turned to nature to colour its cloth. Indigo, extracted from Indigofera tinctoria, provided rich blue hues and was in high demand globally for centuries. Madder root (for reds), turmeric (for yellow), saffron, and even onion skins and bark were used for dyeing fabric.

At Mohenjo-daro, archaeologists discovered remnants of madder-dyed cotton, further confirming how advanced and eco-conscious ancient dyeing techniques were. These were colours that held medicinal and symbolic meaning across regions.

Indian Prints Were Global

India’s textile language was loved worldwide. Block-printed cotton fragments, believed to be among the earliest, were found in Egyptian tombs dating back to 3500–1300 BCE. These textiles had journeyed from India across trade routes to North Africa, which shows the value and demand for Indian craftsmanship worldwide.

Each region in India developed its own distinct style of block printing, from Ajrakh in Gujarat, with intricate resist-dye methods, to Bagru and Sanganeri prints in Rajasthan, using floral patterns and earthy tones. These are golden crafts passed down generations.

The earliest evidence of sewing needles in India comes from the Indus Valley, dating back to around 2000 BCE. Likely made from bone or copper, these needles indicate early practices of hand stitching, embroidering, and garment construction. The presence of tools like spindle whorls, dyed threads, and even buttons from this period reveals how garments evolved in ancient India.

It’s not far-fetched to imagine embroidered tunics, stitched robes, or ornamented sashes being worn by people thousands of years ago, long before the term fashion even existed.

Although China is credited with the earliest silk production, India had its own, dating back to at least the 1st millennium BCE. Indigenous silks especially in the eastern and southern parts of the subcontinent were popular.

The art of pottery, dating back to 10,000 BCE in India, was more than just utilitarian. Many pots featured geometric and floral motifs that later inspired textile patterns. Designs were often echoed on fabrics, hinting at a shared visual culture across mediums.

The Colonial Disruption

Then came the British.

Colonial rule in India did more than exploit resources, it systematically dismantled the traditional artisan economy. Indian weavers, once revered worldwide, were reduced to poverty. British mills copied Indian prints, mass-produced them, and taxed Indian-made cloth heavily, making it unaffordable in its own homeland.

Can Machines Match This?

Never. Machine-made textiles are fast and scalable, they lack soul. Fast fashion can only speak the language of landfills, not legacies. The slow art of handmade products are irreplaceable. To wear Indian crafts is to wear time, a heritage that's tied to stories from 5,000 years ago. It’s still not widely appreciated, but that’s slowly beginning to change. Especially in the recent days, as conversations around colonial cultural theft are making the rounds again and it’s important now more than ever to recognize where these legacies come from.