Photos: Trump's tariffs threaten Kashmir's carpet-weaving legacy

Al Jazeera

17-04-2025

Mohammad Yousuf Dar and his wife, Shameema, sit cross-legged in front of their loom, deftly tying consecutive knots to create the floral patterns of the famed Kashmiri carpets that are now threatened by the Trump administration's sweeping global tariffs.
Genuine hand-knotted Kashmiri carpets are typically made from pure silk, and sometimes pure wool. Generations of artisans have for centuries handed down the craft to ensure its survival, and while the carpets are expensive, most craftspeople can barely make ends meet.
'I just help my husband so that we have a modicum of decent income to run our household,' Shameema, 43, said as she and Mohammad rhythmically plucked at the colourful silk threads in their dimly lit workshop in Indian-administered Kashmir's main city, Srinagar.
They periodically glance at a yellowed scrap of paper, known as Taleem, or instructions, showcasing the pattern they are working on in an ancient shorthand of symbols and numbers and a cryptic colour map.
Mohammad and Shameema learned the craft at the ages of nine and 10, respectively.
The industry has survived decades of conflict over the disputed region between India and Pakistan and withstood the fickleness of fashion to stay in demand, adorning mansions and museums alike.
However, Kashmiri traders say that US President Donald Trump's tariffs on imports can deal a hard blow to an already threatened business that is vying to survive amid mass-produced carpets, which are less costly, and artisans abandoning the industry.
Although the tariffs were primarily aimed at chief exporters like China, they have inadvertently ensnared traditional handicraft industries from regions like Kashmir, which depend on US and European markets for survival.
Carpet exports from India to the US alone are valued at approximately $1bn, out of a total global export value of $2bn, according to official data.
Mohammad, 50, said he is the only weaver left out of more than 100 who shifted to other jobs about 20 years ago in his neighbourhood in Srinagar city's old centre.
'I spend months knotting a single rug, but if there is no demand, our skills feel worthless,' he said.
Still, thousands of families in Kashmir rely on this craft for their livelihood, and the steep 28-percent tariff imposed by the US means the imported carpets will become significantly more expensive for American consumers and retailers.
'If these carpets are going to be more expensive in America, does that mean our wages will rise too?' Mohammad asked.
Not likely.
The increased cost to consumers in the US does not translate into higher wages for weavers, experts say, but rather often leads to reduced orders, lower incomes, and growing uncertainty for the artisans.
This price hike could also push buyers towards cheaper, machine-made alternatives, leaving Kashmiri artisans in the lurch.
Insiders say that unless international trade policies shift to protect traditional industries, Kashmir's hand-knotted legacy may continue to fray until it disappears.
Wilayat Ali, a Kashmiri carpet supplier, said his trading partner, who exports the carpets to the US, Germany and France, has already cancelled at least a dozen orders in the making.
'The exporter also returned some dozen carpets,' he said. 'It boils down to the hard arithmetic of profit and loss,' Ali explained. 'They do not see thousands of knots in a carpet that takes months to make.'