Once found only in remote villages hidden away in Nepal’s mountains, the bright and intricate designs of shyama panga are now decorating homes and adorning bags and clothing around the world. The traditional embroidery and weaving skills of Nepal’s mountain women have been rediscovered and has hit the modern textile market.

Using pure sheep’s wool and a locally fabricated wooden handloom, shyama panga is produced by hand. The wool is dyed in a variety of bright reds, greens, blues and pinks and woven into a striped, thick fabric. Floral features in the distinctive style are then cut and embroidered onto the striped fabric, which is used to create the traditional table mats, vests and hats, as well as the more modern shoulder bags.

Shyama panga weavers are usually women from the remote and hilly districts. Because of their isolation from Nepal’s major markets, the weavers are often susceptible to exploitation from middlemen. MEDEP has been promoting shyama panga producers in Rasuwa district, helping them to build both their entrepreneurship and technical skills and to develop market linkages with buyers in Nepal and abroad.

A variety of shyama panga products in a range of colours and designs are available in both wholesale and retail quantities from Saugaat Griha, the sales outlet of micro, cottage and small entrepreneurs’ products at Tripureshowar, Kathmandu.

For more details please contact:

National Micro Entrepreneurs Groups Association

Saugaat Griha

Tripureshowar (next to Department of Industry)

Tel: +977 (0) 16215404

Email: nmega.nepal@gmail.com