Weaving, as a means of sustenance, is rewarding. But as a culture, it is almost on the verge of disappearance in Lam Pangthang of Thrimshing Gewog in Trashigang.
Today, there are only a handful of women in the village keeping the practice alive.
Jigme Choden is the lone young weaver in the village. Unlike others in her age group, the 25-year-old decided to take up weaving after quitting school.
“Most women of my village are away living with their husbands. The elderly ones do not weave anymore. I fear the practice might disappear in future,”said Jigme. Her mother, Sonam Yuden, is among the few others in Lam Pangthang who still depends on weaving for livelihood.
“In the past, my daughter used to weave less but now, with limited weavers, they weave more textiles. Things have changed drastically compared to the past. Today, we earn more than a civil servant,” said Jigme’s mother Sonam Yuden.
A kira fetches as high as a hundred thousand ngultrum. Yet, Sonam reasons that younger women in her village could have left weaving because it is time consuming and tiring.
With that said, at the moment, people like Jigme and Sonam will continue reaping the benefits of lesser competitors. But in the days to come, when they take their hands off the handloom, there are odds that people of Lam Pangthang can only reminisce about and that is a thriving weaving culture the village once had.
