Panipat

Panipat, what I read in history books was a place where great wars took place. Located up north jaha se Dilli door nahi is what I knew! Later after the phase history books, what I knew was that Panipat is a textile place, lots of fabrics, carpets and rugs and things of my interest. Now what I know is that Panipat is a place for carpets, rugs and bath mats all for export and also a lot of other fabrics and made-ups.

During my visit to Panipat, I explored the second side of its exports and that is export rejects and excess!! Local market place in town called as Kabadi market which sells sells loads and loads of bath mats and rugs, very bright and colorful. But one needs to be patient and smart to choose. I couldn’t find any tufted carpets though which I wanted to see, but other things were in heaps and piles. A lot of excess cotton and polyester yarn in various colors is also available. These are also sold on kilo basis. I’m quite sure that the bathmats we get in other local markets all over India come from Panipat which are export rejects for sure! Yea, but no issues they are nice and cheap!

Bathmats, bathmats and more bathmats

Similarly, like once when I was roaming around in the Crawford market, Mumbai, I suddenly realized that the placemats and runners sold there are also export rejects or things that come back to India as excess after the seasons turn over. As, in India we do not normally use runners and placemats. But now we do use placemats!! And I always wonder if luck by chance I find a placemat designed by me being sold in the Crawford market which of course was designed for the export market! :D Well this luck I do not know will be a good or bad one!!! :D :D :D

Anyways… but it is so much fun to think all this!!

Coming back to Panipat… here as some more pictures taken while passing by the market.

A man at his shop selling cotton yarn

Women sorting the yarn

Floor coverings or chaddars loaded on a cycle rickshaw. These are similar to the ones made in Solapur. All made for domestic market.

On the way, I also saw some textile fabrics/products which resemble to those developed in Solapur. These are for the domestic market with very gaudy color schemes. And yes, similar fabrics which are woven in Solapur are also woven in Panipat as it is jacquard after all and it is 2/20’s x 2/20’s.