All rights reserved with the author
Date: 30/11/2025
Travel through Assam once, and you will notice something unusual—silk is not just a fabric here; it is memory woven into cloth. The two jewels, Eri and Muga, carry stories older than most written histories.
Eri, often called the ahimsa silk, begins with the “leta” — the Assamese word for the worm stage, where the silkworm feeds on castor leaves before forming the cocoon. Villagers care for these tiny lives with remarkable patience. Unlike other silks, the cocoon is processed only after the moth leaves, making Eri warm, soft, and ethically treasured.
Muga, on the other hand, is Assam’s pride—its natural golden sheen deepens with age. The silkworms are raised in open environments, feeding on Som and Soalu leaves. Producing Muga is demanding; the climate, timing, and handling must align almost perfectly. That is why the GI tag protects it—because no other land can replicate its glow.
To wear Eri or Muga is to wear a piece of Assam’s quiet resilience, its forests, its people, and its craft sustained through generations.
Rajat Chandra Sarmah
Guwahati, Assam, India
Instagram: rajatchandrasarmah5
YouTube: Converse With A Smile
musingofrajat.wordpress.com 