When I first visited Ahmedabad, I remember describing it as a whirlwind of everything grandiose. Jewel-box mansions, filigreed façades, ornate step-wells and the lacy Tree of Life... spun from stone, laden with Persian and Central Asian detail. Later, at the Calico Museum of Textiles, I saw the same patterns, geometry, and symbolism mirrored in fabric and thought of how artistic expression is universal, regardless of medium. It was a dazzling overture. So when Shilpa Sharma Sharma, founder of Breakaway - Engaging Journeys Pvt. Ltd. described Ahmedabad as ‘a perfect teaser trailer into the state’s craft legacy,’ a return was inevitable. This time, I would dive deeper with their immersive textile tour to uncover the nuances of Gujarat’s craft heritage.

Enter a textile studio, and you’re welcomed by the sounds of the loom clacking, with the weaver working tirelessly in a rhythmic fashion and the sight of colourful yarn slowly transforming into fabric. Now, imagine your next trip taking you through the journey of your favourite handloom sari or the intricate embroidery on your shawl. While crafts and handlooms often appear as brief stops in markets or resort demos during travel, textile tours offer a deeper, hands-on experience – tracing the stories of weavers and the skill behind beloved fabrics, weaves, and prints. This National Handloom Day, we explore the warp and weft of textile tourism – a tactile journey through local textiles, communities, and culture.

At business events or even at social to-dos, Shilpa Sharma has often faced a sudden tap on the shoulder, followed by an awestruck: “Omigod, you’re the founder of Jaypore?” Soon enough, women in the room flock to her with fangirl giggles and selfie requests. I, too, was keen to connect with her on LinkedIn, as an avid admirer. Sharma’s response to all this attention is an abashed, “I’m so deeply embarrassed, I want to crawl under the table and hide.”

Last week, Shilpa Sharma, founder of the bespoke travel agency Breakway, received an email from a “20-something girl from the UK”. “‘My mother is an event florist,’ she wrote,” recounts Sharma, “‘and I see a huge amount of flowers being wasted on a daily basis. I want to come to India and see what I can do around floral waste, and if I can put it to good use perhaps in printing textiles; maybe launch my own line at home. Who can I meet?’”

Co-founder of three different companies-- fashion and lifestyle, experiential travel, and hospitality—one would imagine Shilpa Sharma, co-founder of Jaypore, Break Away and Mustard, often covets the seductive pace of a single job. But that’s not the case. She says there is one ingredient that works as a reliable fuel to keep the passion high: travel.

More often than not, one would associate the word “resist” with a form of protest, but on a recent trip to Andhra Pradesh’s Pochampally villages, I learnt there’s much more to it.