A warp laid out before the street wakes

Meenakshi weaves cotton for everyday wear between silk commissions — lighter, faster work she says keeps her hands honest.

Meenakshi learned to throw a shuttle at twelve, sitting beside her grandmother at a loom sunk into the floor of their home. Today she weaves silk on commission and cotton for everyday wear, and trains two young women from her street in the evenings. She plans every border on graph paper before a single thread is set.