ICYMI, the new Parliament building was inaugurated in New Delhi by the Prime Minister on May 28.
The new building has been designed to represent the diversity of cultures and crafts in India, with symbols and inspirations taken from different parts of India and its history. One thing that caught most people’s eye was the stunning carpet that was spread across 35,000 sq ft of area.
The magnificent work is from renowned carpet makers Obeetee Carpets, who are also responsible for carpeting Rashtrapati Bhawan. The 103-year-old brand is known to employ some of the best Indian artisans to create handwoven carpets that stand the test of time in design and quality.
For the prestigious project, 900 weavers were called upon to hand knot 158 carpets for the Lok Sabha and 156 for the Rajya Sabha before stitching them into a single carpet in the form of a semi-circle. The Lok Sabha carpet features a peacock motif, representing the national bird, while the Rajya Sabha one has the motif of a lotus, our national flower.
Craftsmen and women from Bhadohi and Mirzapur districts of Uttar Pradesh spent around 10 lakh man-hours to create the carpets. The ancient craft of hand-knotting results in intricately woven carpets, featuring a total of 600 million knots.
“The carpet designs were conceived with great reverence for the halls, exuding intricate artistry, vibrant colours, and subtle elegance,” says Rudra Chatterjee, chairman of Obeetee Carpets, “Crafted at Obeetee’s own factory headquarters in Mirzapur, the manufacturing procedure was a tedious process as the weavers had to craft the carpets for halls measuring up to 17,500 square feet each. This posed a significant challenge for the design team, as they had to meticulously craft the carpet in separate pieces and seamlessly join them together, ensuring that the creative mastery of the weavers blended harmoniously to create a unified carpet that can sustain heavy footfall.”
If this doesn’t give you a renewed admiration for Indian artisans and craftsmen then we don’t know what will!
