Namda - The traditional felted craft of Kashmir

A weaver making traditional Kashmiri carpet called Namda, which originated in the 11th century when Akbar ordered for a suitable coverage for his horse who was affected by biting cold. (Waseem Andrabi / HT Photo)

Updated on: Feb 17, 2017 1:07 PM IST

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A weaver making traditional Kashmiri carpet called Namda, which originated in the 11th century when Akbar ordered for a suitable coverage for his horse who was affected by biting cold. (Waseem Andrabi / HT Photo)

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The carpets are made by felting sheep wool rather than weaving it. The felted carpets are predominately made of pure sheep wool. (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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The woollen flakes are evenly spread all over it and with a long curved stick in one hand and the carded wool in another. (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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Namda is usually a sandwich of many layers of wool flattened over each other. After a layer is spread, it is sprinkled homogeneously with water and pressed with a tool known as ‘pinjra’ (woven willow wicker). (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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The tradition of making Namda is handed down by fathers to their sons and is a closely guarded family secret. In Srinagar, most of the namda making units are located in the older part of the city. (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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Colours to dye threads which are used to make colourful threads for embroidering the Namda carpets. (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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The manual dyeing of threads has been an industry in Kashmir for a long time now. The practice though is on a decline as creating dyes is exhausting and often takes a toll on workers (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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A worker dyes threads at a dyeing center in Srinagar. (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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A Kashmir woman assembles the colourful thread for the embroidery. (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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The plain Namda is then embroidered with the beautiful Kashmiri Aari Embroidery. (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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Kashmiri artists doing hand embroidery ‘Aari Kaam’ using colorful dyed threads and the ‘aari’ on a Namda . (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )

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Namda is then washed and dried, and made ready to use. Marketed as a beautiful piece of Kashmiri handicraft, Namda carpets are sold both in local and international markets. (Waseem Andrabi /HT PHOTO )