Khadi is a hand-spun and woven natural fibre cloth promoted by Mahatma Gandhi as swadeshi (self-sufficiency) for the freedom struggle of the Indian subcontinent, and the term is used throughout India, Pakistan and Bangladesh
Mahatma Gandhi advocated Khadi to be the national cloth and as a medium in bridging the gulf between the rich and the poor.
Why could Khadi not popularize much?
- The idea did not make much sense to most people who could afford it better.
- Mahatma Gandhi’s idea of Khadi and Indian dresses also did not appeal to the Dalits and the Christian converts, who found Western-style dresses as giving them a sense of liberation from age-old prejudices.
- Khadi was costly and even difficult to maintain. That was also one reason why the idea did not pick up.
- The Muslims too did not accept Khadi.
- The elite women too did not find home-spun Gandhi very attractive. Congress leaders who were relatively well off switched over to Khadi.