Raphael Warjri

One of the most admired and popular fabrics of Meghalaya, Eri silk is woven with pride as well as with a lot of history behind it. Worn by the both males and females, eri silk has been worn by kings, queens and traditional heads of ri bhoi district of the state. That is the reason why this particular type of Eri silkworm is reared in most villages in the district, some of which are Raid Nongtluh and Raid Iapngar. Raid Iapngar has a lot of history behind it, where a part from hosting the Lukhi dance, the area is also famous for its traditional handicrafts and weaving. The raid has been divided into 15 - 16 villages and interestingly, a majority of the households earn their living through weaving of the eri yarn into beautiful accouterments like stoles, scarves, shawls, waistcoats and accessories such as earrings and shoes.

When one visits the place, one would be able to witness the womenfolk spending their entire day in extracting the eri yarn from dried cocoons that have been traditionally treated with soap and water. The Media Plus team had travelled all the way to Kdonghulu village under Raid Iapngar not only to explore the place but also to interact with some of the weavers of the area. The secretary of the Raid Iapngar hand-loom weavers cooperative society, Kong Iaishah Rymbai, had been taught the art of weaving since her youth and had mastered the same for the past 12 years now. In fact, the knowledge of weaving had been passed on to her from her mother and since then, she has continued to promote this kind of art not only amongst her family members but more so, amongst the womenfolk of the village. Her group, Kamai Haba Shong, is comprised of weavers of Kdonghulu and neighbouring villages.

The Raid Iapngar handloom weavers cooperative society that had been founded by Kong Iaishah Rymbai, has been promoting the production and marketing of eri silk products. While competition in the textile market has become quite stiff, the society has been working on creative ideas to produce different products and finally, came up with footwear. The society has tied up with some of the shoemakers of shillong city for marketing their designer footwear which are customized according to the customer's needs. Despite the ongoing pandemic, the members of the Raid Iapngar handloom weavers cooperative society have been consistent with their work and this has sustained them through the challenges faced during the lockdown.