High up in the eastern part of Ladakh lies the Changthang plateau, home to the mountain goat. Living at a punishing minus-30 degrees Celsius in winter, the goat develops a warm coat, the famed pashmina fibre. The shepherds of the region comb this off in spring and send it to Kashmir for processing into the pashmina shawls we are all familiar with. For millennia, the entire economy and culture of Ladakh have been shaped by the pashmina. Borders have been sealed, treaties signed. It is, therefore, a paradox that Ladakh has not participated in the actual creation of the shawls. Until a few years ago.
Lena (pashmina in Ladakhi) is a Ladakh-based slow textile label that crafts pashmina products totally by hand, from spinning to dyeing to weaving. Started by two local women Stanzin Minglak and Sonam Angmo in 2016, Lena aims to put into practice the dying skills of hand-making textiles while providing livelihood to the women who for generations have quietly kept these skills alive.
The duo realised that the pashmina sold in Leh was either controlled by Kashmiris, or adulterated. This is the land that actually gave the world the fibre in the first place. Determined to change this, they spent more than a year understanding the fabric, local pashmina economy and its potential for livelihood generation. Their study gave birth to Lena, initially with seven women artisans, creating a product that is completely Ladakhi in its process, from spinning to plying and twisting, and then dyeing.
Today, Lena employs 22 women who are proud to contribute to their household economy. The product is sold in the fashion capitals of the world and has extended to shawls, stoles, gloves and socks, rugs and cute caps for children. It feels organic, thicker than the Kashmir pashmina, and more real. The colours are soft, unlike the acid tones common in Kashmir. And that’s because the dyes used are 100 percent natural. Marigold, walnut, rhubarb and arnebia grow locally. Indigo, madder and lac are brought in from other parts of India. Working with natural dyes yields different results each time, so no two products are exactly alike. The colour works best with the best quality of pashmina fibre, giving the finished product a brilliant vibrancy and limitless shades.
The nomadic communities of the Changthang plateau who domesticated the mountain goats still live in the unforgiving plateau, one of the last remaining communities in the world to follow the complete nomadic way of life. Their lives have traditionally been built around textile, from weaving their yak wool tents, to saddle bags, carpets and capes. Yet sadly, deterred by harsh conditions, the current generation migrates to Leh, to work as truck drivers and unskilled labour. In addition, the nomads make little money in the pashmina chain, though the product sells for thousands of dollars at retail.
Lena hopes to reverse this trend, by strategising projects that include nomads in the pashmina value addition chain, where they have greater involvement in the production process, rather than merely gathering the raw fibre. For Lena, it’s not just about preserving pashmina fibre. It’s about keeping the social fabric of Ladakh alive and thriving.