Meghalaya's Umden-Diwon may be world’s first Eri Peace Silk village

SHILLONG:

The Meghalaya Textiles Department, on February 12, will formally declare Umden-Diwon as Meghalaya’s first Eri Silk village in recognition of the age-old rich textile tradition of the state’s indigenous tribal communities.

Umden–Diwon village has emerged as the epicentre of ericulture in the state. It continues to draw researchers and visitors for its exceptional ethically produced and organically sourced products.

The National Institute of Fashion & Technology (NIFT), in collaboration with the Design Resource Centre (DRC), will portray professional presentations of Eri Silk products and design research outcomes in special display areas.

The initiative would also provide a unique branding and identity to the Eri Silk Village by depicting the speciality of the region, in terms of the colour, motifs, usage and looms through appropriate visual merchandising.

What sets Umden-Diwon silk village apart from other silk communities are the striking unique features found in the Eri Peace Silk, popularly known as the Ahimsa Silk.

They process the Ahimsa silk from cocoons without killing the larvae inside. This type of silk also has thermal properties, making it cool in summers and warm in winters.

Besides this, there is the Eri Silk fabric locally known as Ryndia, which is handwoven by the weavers.

Local and upcoming designers from Umden will also reveal their myriad of Eri costumes and creations to showcase the interesting and varied range of Eri products woven in the state.

The Department of Textiles is also roping in renowned folk-fusion musical outfit Summersalt to package the age-old story of the Ryndia in the audio-visual format. The journey has been ecstatic yet purposeful for the folk-fusion group.

The nitty-gritty of the narrative was captured during the many trips of Summersalt to Umden-Diwon village.

In this ongoing effort, Summersalt has taken the audio studio into the wild by professionally capturing the voices of some village singers and non-singers as well.

(Edited by Ladiangti Rani)

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