Sualkuchi

Sualkuchi, on the north bank of the Brahmaputra near Guwahati, is Assam’s best-known weaving town and is often called the “Manchester of the East/Assam” because silk handloom dominates local life. Historically, its weaving tradition is traced back to the 11th century, when King Dharma Pala of the Pala dynasty is said to have sponsored the craft and settled weaving families in the area, helping form a dedicated weavers’ village.

Sualkuchi’s reputation expanded further in the Ahom period. Accounts credit the 17th-century Ahom administrator Momai Tamuli Barbarua with organizing Sualkuchi as a major silk-weaving centre during the reign of Swargadeo Pratap Singha, strengthening production and royal support for fine textiles. Over generations, the town became especially celebrated for Assamese silks—Muga (the prized golden silk), along with Pat and Eri—woven into traditional garments like mekhela chador and saris.

Today, Sualkuchi remains a living craft landscape where looms, dyeing, motifs, and family-run workshops continue a heritage that shaped Assam’s cultural identity and textile economy for centuries.