India Textile and Handicrafts Heritage: Banarasi, Pochampally, Pashmina, Kanchipuram, Jamdani, Chanderi Complete Guide 2026
Browse more guides: India travel | Asia destinations TL;DR I plan an India textile heritage tour around eight protected craft regions: Banarasi silk in Varanasi (GI 1992), Pochampally Ikat in Telangana (GI 2005), Kanchipuram silk in Tamil Nadu (GI 2007), Pashmina from Kashmir (GI 2005), Jamdani (UNESCO ICH 2013), Chanderi from Madhya Pradesh (GI 2005), Bandhani tie-dye (UNESCO ICH 2012), and Patola double-ikat from Patan (GI 2013). Best Oct to Mar. Why Visit India Textile in 2026 I have travelled across India for years, and I keep coming back to the weaving towns. The India textile industry is now valued above USD 250B (2024) and supports more than 45M direct workers across four main weaving regions in the North, South, East, and West. There are sixteen GI tagged saree and handloom traditions, and I have a personal goal to see most of them at the loom rather than in a showroom. Banarasi silk from Varanasi received its GI tag in 1992, and the Banarsi handloom tradition I follow g...