Story of Tussar Silk — One of the India’s Dying Art

Tussar Silk also known as (Sanskrit) Kosa silk) is produced from larvae of several species of silkworms belonging to the moth Antheraea, These silkworms live in the wild forest in trees belonging to Terminalia species and Shorea Robusta as well as other food plants like oak and jamun found in South Asia, eating the leaves of the trees they live on. Tussar silk is valued for its rich texture and natural deep gold colour, and varieties are produced in many countries.
Tussar is a natural silk and its silkworms are reared on trees. Its exposure to nature results in its truly multi-tonal look, which can never be duplicated by manmade fabric. This makes it a truly wild silk, much sought after by connoisseurs around the world. The yarn is used to weave exquisite stoles and scarves, throws, sarees and fabric, which in turn are marketed and sold through partners in India and across the globe. The Silk produced is a source of livelihood and hope for a better future for thousands of women and tribes who otherwise have no wage opportunity in their remote villages.

Woven around the aspirations of tens of thousands of tribal silkworm rearers, poor rural women, handloom weavers, yarn makers in the hinterlands of India, Dying Art was compelled to create a project primarily aimed at helping to provide a sustainable livelihood for them. Dying Art was begun by few Yoga-preneurs and Green Entrepreneurs, based and located in Asia.This project provides for natural commercial aggregation of Tassar silk yarn from these sources.
“We wish to build and run a sustainable business which shall create wage opportunities for a large number of small, artisanal, rural and home based producers’’
For benefit to reach the lowest in the pyramid, good intentions are not enough. The key lies in strengthening the entire supply chain and utilizing technology to connect the grassroots to the global market place!
Objectives of the programme that inculcate a positive social impact on the communities involved, include:
Imparting knowledge to producers/labourers
Creating opportunities for empowerment of women
Creating awareness about opportunities of employment and livelihood in its value chain
Collaborating with NGOs to involve local marginalised communities in its value chain
Tassar Silk Fabric (Handmade in India )


Products of Tassar Silk


