Carpet Capital | India

Weavers use a 400-year-old tradition to make exquisite hand-knotted carpets at India’s rug-making hub. Looms like these operate through the day as artisans work tirelessly on wooden equipment to produce one of India’s finest exports to the world, the hand-knotted carpets of Bhadohi. 64-year-old Ramlal Yadav and his son are among the 3.2 million rural artisans engaged in this industry that started nearly 400 years ago under the patronage of Mughal emperor Akbar.
The finesse is in the precise manual weaving technique passed on through generations. The artisan makes a knot, interweaving the weft thread on the warp thread. The quality of the carpet and its cost increases with the number of knots per square inch.
India is the world’s third-largest exporter of carpets, sending nearly $1.75 billion worth the worldover. Nearly 80 percent of it comes out of this hub in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. Obeetee is the largest handmade carpet maker in the country. While modern methods of finishing a carpet have taken over at this 100-year-old company, their focus on craftsmanship has been unwavering.