Kota Sarees, Generation After Generation: Firoz Ahmed Keeps Rajasthan's Handloom Alive

My name is Firoz Ahmed, and I am from Rajasthan. My family has been in handloom for as long as I can remember — and before that too. This is not something I chose so much as something I was born into and decided to continue.

We specialise in Kota sarees — the Kota Doria, woven in the traditional check pattern that has made Kota district synonymous with fine cotton and silk weaving. The fabric is known for its lightness, its delicacy, and the characteristic square pattern called khat that runs through every metre. Making it right takes training that cannot be rushed and knowledge that cannot be found in books.

In our family, the knowledge has passed from hand to hand, generation to generation. Each person who learned the loom learned it from the person before them. That continuity is what keeps the craft alive in a world that often chooses speed over skill.

Kota sarees are in demand — they always have been — but the labour is hard and the margins are narrow for the weaver. What keeps us going is the weight of what we carry: a tradition that has survived through droughts, festivals, and changing fashions, always finding its way back to the loom.