Home to several tribes, Nagaland is one of the north-easternmost states in India. Each tribe uses distinctive patterns with bold clean lines, stripes and bands and has particular designs and motifs that represent their clan. The colour combinations and designs are fraught with symbolism and carry enormous social significance. The way a person dresses denotes his or her position in the tribal hierarchy. The fabrics that clothe a tribal family are produced by the Naga women using age-old backstrap looms. Black and white are the common colours used, while the motifs are usually red or green and give an additional weft to the garment being woven. When it comes to the textile industry, Nagaland has made a place for itself because of the skill involved in the production of their woven fabrics. The fabrics produced here are entirely unique compared to that of any other state. Weaving, spinning and dyeing are three of the most important industries of Nagaland, with weaving being the frontrunner for commercial use. Every single house in Nagaland has a simple tension backstrap loom on which the women weave textiles and garments for their families. Weaving process on a backstrap loom is slow and laborious and the finished garments are therefore sold at an expensive price.
The distinctive backstrap loom used by the Nagas is called the Naga loom. Another name for it is the Indonesian tension loom and it contains a backstrap with a continuous warp that comprises six different sticks with individualistic functions like the warp beam, lease rod, beating sword, extra warp beam and stick. An expert weaver would take about 10 hours to complete weaving a plain strip of cloth and about 30 hours to weave a complete length of fabric. For example, the unique Naga shawl consists of three strips of fabric that are woven separately and then stitched together. The central strip is the one that contains the patterns and motifs and is generally more adorned than the other two strips.
The men and women of each Naga tribe wear clothes that vary from one group to another. The patterns and colours used in weaving are so distinctive that one can tell the different tribes just by their clothing and the colours used to make their attire. The Konyak, Angami, Sema, Ao, Lotha, Chakesang, Kheimungan, Mokware, Yimchunger, Sangtam, Chirr, Tikhir and Rengma are some of the more popular tribes with individualistic attire.
