Rupsi Garg Revives Punjab's Handloom Heritage, Empowers Rural Women

By: Women Entrepreneurs Review Team | Monday, 2 November 2026

Punjab’s traditional handloom industry is witnessing a revival as women artisans return to weaving through initiatives focused on cultural preservation, sustainable livelihoods and economic empowerment. In Faridkot's Malwa region, Rupsi Garg is doing this work with Nav-Trinjan where along with indigenous cotton; she is also promoting traditional weaving techniques to create jobs for rural women.

The work of the initiative was brought to the notice of the nation after Prime Minister Narendra Modi mentioned it in his radio program ‘Mann Ki Baat' highlighting the importance of supporting women artisans of the villages of Punjab who are traditionally involved in making textiles.

Rupsi started her work through her work with Kheti Virasat Mission (KVM), a sustainable agriculture group. While working with the organisation she became aware of the loss of traditional weaving methods and the diminishing cultivation of indigenous cotton. She recognised a gap to bring together cotton farmers and artisans, a rural livelihood model based on locally available resources.

Her initiative is based on cultural events of Punjab known as the trinjan, which were celebrated by women where they would meet together to spin cotton, weave cloth, sing folk songs and share stories. Once these gatherings were of great importance to the village communities, but they slowly started to vanish when mechanised textile production increased in villages.

Key Highlights

• Rupsi Garg connects indigenous cotton cultivation with traditional weaving livelihoods
• Rural women gain financial independence through structured handloom training programs
• Traditional Punjabi craftsmanship receives national recognition through Mann Ki Baat

Rupsi made a sincere effort to save this art and spent several years searching for expert weavers in Faridkot, Muktsar and Barnala. Her work inspired more skilled weavers to resume their work and to teach younger women techniques that were slowly dying out.

In 2023, a major step was taken with the founding of Bunkar Pathshala, a training centre focused on the traditional handloom skills. The centre gives hands on training to women with no knowledge of weaving and help build a skill which they can sell for livelihood.

One such beneficiary is Gurmeet Kaur who acquired the skill of weaving with a 45-day training program. She now has the means to provide some income for her household since she used to rely on agricultural income. Likewise, Shinder Kaur, an accomplished weaver who picked up weaving from childhood, is teaching younger women to weave.

The experiences show that vocational training and women entrepreneurship can have a positive impact on rural livelihoods and help maintain traditional knowledge. They also underscore the need to provide women with opportunities to engage in livelihood activities.

One of the key elements of Rupsi’s work is the link between traditional artisanship and sustainable farming. It is an initiative that uses indigenous non-Bt cotton and natural farming methods. The cotton is processed, spun and woven into various handcrafted items such as shawls, stoles, dupattas, khes and more.

This allows farmers to link farmers with weavers, therefore encouraging the local agricultural communities and provides an employment opportunity outside of agriculture. This also helps to promote sustainable textile production and encourages indigenous cotton varieties.

However, there are limited funding, poor design infrastructure and restricted market access. While participating artisans connect with the products via exhibition, internet and direct sales, wider market linkages are needed to enhance the commercial opportunities.

The initiative's long-term sustainability could be enhanced through better branding and access to the modern fashion markets, as well as increased institutional support.

Rupsi is showing the world how women's leadership, traditional knowledge and rural entrepreneurship can play a role in inclusive economic development. She is resurrecting the art of weaving in Punjab, empowering women to become financially independent and paving the way for the next generation of weavers.