vadodara mashru as an indigenous craft of gujarat has found a mention in the list of 50 exclusive and iconic indian heritage textile crafts published by unesco recently going by the un agency one major challenge to safeguard this intangible cultural heritage is lack of proper inventory and documentation but now a phd student of m s university has bridged this gap the researcher has not only documented the journey of this languishing craft but has also helped the craft get rejuvenated with design and product diversification the craft has its roots in patan and kutch region of gujarat mashru is mainly made in combination of rayon and cotton in patan and cotton by cotton in few villages of kutch but priyanka kumari has developed multiple varieties of mashru including mulberry silk by cotton tasar silk by cotton korea silk by cotton mulberry silk tasar silk and cotton along with existing varieties for mashru weaving we all know about celebrated handloom fabrics like brocade and ikat mashru is a beautiful bliss of these two fabric techniques this functional fabric is very suitable as per the climatic condition of hot regions said kumari who took up the project as part of her phd work under the guidance of professor anjali karolia from the department of clothing and textilesthe researcher took up the project to rejuvenate the craft with design and product diversification kumari currently an assistant professor at the department of textile design at the national institute of fashion technology nift gandhinagar has tried to reintroduce the techniques of mashru through her project long back ikat and brocade buttis were the characterizing features of this craft unfortunately the use of these is not seen now it is commonly identified by its stripe pattern said kumari who with the help of patanbased mashru weaver has even prepared mens wear kids wear office wear furnishings to provide a wider market to mashru fabric weaving is usually considered as mens task we talk of women empowerment now but women mashru weavers in patan were actively involved not only in preloom and postloom processes but in the entire process of weaving they had headed towards economic empowerment in their traditional setting long back said kumari adding that with just 40odd mashru weavers left in patan and kutch the craft has huge potential for rejuvenation if these initiatives are introduced in craft cluster on regular basis it can create diverse product quality providing wider options to consumers as well she added her research work has also broken the myth surrounding the craft it is a myth that mashru came to india from ottoman empire turkish empire but if we investigate the technique and characters of the fabric it is a fabric of indian origin she said