Unearthing Jharkhand’s Forgotten Natural Dyeing. Our Journey to Simdega

Simdega, a serene district in the southwestern part of Jharkhand, is known for its lush greenery, deep forests, rural charm, and its proud identity as the “Cradle of Hockey.” But to us at ANVRAT, Simdega was more than a place on the map. It was a doorway to forgotten heritage. Being from Jharkhand and a textile designer, I have always been driven by curiosity for the state’s hidden and untouched arts and crafts. I believed that if we dug deep enough, we would uncover stories waiting to be told, stories of people, forests, and traditions stitched together through generations. After a month of persistent research, travel, and conversations, our journey finally led us to a weaving community rooted deep inside Simdega, “The Mehars of Jharkhand,” known as one of the state’s indigenous weaving communities.

A quiet village of the Mehar community, Gujhariya, Simdega, Jharkhand

Into the village of Gujhariya

We reached Gujhariya, a remote village where looms are not just tools, they are heirlooms. Every house whispered a story of craftsmanship. Inside the weavers’ homes, we saw primitive pit looms unlike anything we had encountered before. From the smallest bobbin to the shuttle, every part of the loom was crafted by the weavers themselves using resources gathered from the surrounding forests. There was an unspoken bond between the artisan, the loom, and the land, a sustainable ecosystem of creation that has survived quietly for generations. While we documented their loom design, weaving style, and motifs, there was one discovery that changed the course of our research.

Weaver Somaru Mehar from the Mehar community at his Primitive Pit Loom

The Pit is dug into the earth where artisans sit low with pedals beneath.

The 100-Year-Old Handspun Yarn

In one of the homes, we were shown a bundle of century-old handspun yarn delicate yet powerful, preserved like a piece of memory. It was more than just fiber. It was proof.

Proof that Jharkhand once practiced cotton cultivation, and that weavers here grew their own cotton, hand-spun it, and wove their fabric pure Khadi, born from self-sufficiency and deep agricultural knowledge.

100 Years Old Handspun Yarn

The Red Thread That Spoke Without Words: Jharkhand's forgotten Natural Dyeing

What caught our eyes next was a spool of radiant red thread at the home of Tulsi Mehar. On asking about it, he said with pride and uncertainty:

“It is decades old… naturally dyed. My father and grandparents used to make it. I don’t know how.”

This one sentence was enough to send us deeper into history of Jharkhand's forgotten Natural Dyeing. The red thread, dyed with extracts gathered from the forest hinted at a forgotten dyeing culture of Jharkhand. A knowledge system once rooted in nature, now nearly lost to time. We couldn’t ignore it. We knew we had to trace its origin, rediscover the recipe, and give it life again.

Weaver Tulsi Mehar and Ms. Nidhi Singh with decades-old Natural Dye Yarn

Anvrat’s Mission Continues

During our field research in Simdega, we uncovered not just threads but a legacy of cotton farmers, yarn spinners, dyers, and weavers who lived in harmony with the land. The century-old handspun yarn and the naturally dyed red thread are not just artifacts. They are symbols of Jharkhand’s rich, self-sustained textile tradition, one that deserves recognition, revival, and respect.

At ANVRAT, this discovery has become more than research. It has become a responsibility.

We continue to dig deeper to decode the lost red dye, to document the Mehar weaving heritage, and to revive the stories that have been waiting silently for decades.

Because Jharkhand has always had its own colours. The world simply forgot to look.