1881. That’s how long back it goes. To a place called Bhadohi, near the ancient town of Varanasi, where a talented carpet-weaving community is discovered by an Englishman. His name was A. Tellery, a pioneer of the Indian carpet export business.

When the Raj ended, a change of hands, saw the Patodias at the helm and the making of a new identity. They called it Hands. Today it includes hundreds of craftsmen in and around Bhadohi, with the third generation of Patodias, carrying forward the legacy.

Yet nothing has changed in the way a Hands carpet is crafted.