Why This Chamba Handkerchief Costs Rs 7 Lakh, And Why It’s Worth Every Stitch
At Shimla’s MSME Fest, a silk handkerchief priced exorbitantly has left visitors stunned, revealing the hidden world of Chamba’s royal embroidery tradition.
Published : January 7, 2026 at 11:55 AM IST
Shimla: At first glance, it looked like a delicate piece of silk cloth, on display in a stall at Shimla’s Ridge Maidan. But the price tag attached stopped visitors to look back and doubly make sure if it was actually a whopping Rs 7 lakh! At the HIM MSME Fest 2026, this unique Chamba handkerchief became the most talked-about exhibit, carrying centuries of history, months of labour, and a fading royal art form.
Displayed under the One District One Product (ODOP) initiative at the three-day festival held from January 3 to 5, the handkerchief was stitched and woven by Anjali Vakil, a national award-winning artisan from Chamba. At her stall inside Porter Hall, visitors crowded around the marvel to understand how a handkerchief could cost more than a car.
But it is not the extravagance, rather the craftsmanship that matters.
The Chamba handkerchief is not an ordinary textile. It is known for double-sided embroidery so that the design appears identical on both sides, a technique that is precise and even experts struggle to identify which is the reverse. Made on fine silk or Banarasi silk fabric using pure silk threads, every motif is hand-crafted without leaving a loose end anywhere.
“It takes us several months to complete a single handkerchief. Because everything depends on the complexity of the design,” says Anjali Vakil.
The prices typically begin at Rs 1,500, but intricate pieces, like the one on display, usually run into lakhs. According to Vakil, some commissioned works have even crossed Rs 30-40 lakh mark, depending on scale and detailing.
Anjali plunged herself into the world of this rare art form at home and learned the nuances from none other than her mother-in-law, Lalita Vakil, a Padma Shri awardee and one of the most respected names in Chamba embroidery.
“Usually, it takes years to learn the basics. But I picked up fast, say in just 15 days. Mastery came only with relentless practice,” Anjali recalls.
Her meticulousness and finesse earned her the National Award in 2018 and her work has since found admirers not just in India, but also in countries like Japan and Germany.
Once limited to handkerchiefs gifted during royal weddings, Chamba embroidery has evolved over the years. Anjali now uses the technique to stitch dupattas, shawls, and sarees, bringing the heritage craft into contemporary wardrobes without diluting its essence.
During Isha Ambani’s wedding, Lalita Vakil was invited and the Ambani family purchased two Chamba handkerchiefs worth Rs 2 lakh from her collection. For Himachal’s artisan community, this was a rare moment of recognition.
Apart from exhibitions and awards, Anjali Vakil is focused on passing the needle forward. She conducts training programmes at IIT Mandi, IIT Roorkee and many other institutions across the country.
“If young people are exposed to the right training and exposure, traditional crafts can become a sustainable livelihood,” she says, stressing that survival of heritage depends the younger generations who should be carrying forward the legacy.
Chamba handkerchief stretches far beyond today’s festivals. One piece, depicting the Kurukshetra war from the Mahabharata has found a pride of place at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London. It was gifted in 1883 by Raja Gopal Singh.
The oldest known example is believed to have been embroidered in the 16th century by Bebe Nanaki, sister of Guru Nanak which is preserved in a gurdwara in Hoshiarpur. Though the art dates back centuries, it flourished most prominently during the 18th and 19th centuries, when royal women used to spend their spare time to embroider these handkerchiefs as dowry gifts.
As visitors at Shimla’s MSME Fest marveled at the Rs 7-lakh handkerchief, they did not just witness luxury but a living archive of India’s textile heritage.
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