Last month we had the opportunity to introduce photographer Ayan Biswas to the community of Kharnak. We have always been wanting to take back our textiles to their source and finally could do so. Here we are presenting four of our products, worn by the locals - the people who sold us the wool - and share more about them, their lifestyle and beliefs. We hope you enjoy this! Dolma AngmoFor Dolma Angmo it is essential to pray every day.Since this summer on request of a holy monk, every night one person of each household attends a praying session in the community hall of the camp.To the people of Kharnak prayer is important as they are often facing challenges regarding...
What does a working experience at We Are KAL look like? We would like to introduce our intern Jimmy to you, the first one who accompanied us during our wool harvest and processing. He was a great part of our team and we are very, very grateful for his commitment. In this post Jimmy will share his background, the experience with the KAL team in Ladakh in July and August 2018 and his ideas for the future. Enjoy! Jimmy and Angtak collecting the sheep wool in Kharnak. "But who am I? I am from the French countryside, not far from Lyon. I grew up surrounded by fields and since a very young age nature attracts me. I first studied anthropology...
Whenever I connect my hard disk to my computer and spend some time looking through old material, I always come across the videos I made during the first year of KAL's existence. Everything was new, breathtaking and important to document. These times are magical when one discovers a place for the first time, especially such a precious place like Changthang. This is a video documenting this place and what I've seen, with the story told with a voice over - even my first efforts at Hindi are there :) I hope this video will bring you closer to the people of Kharnak and how we first made the connection with our team. Enjoy! "This is the story of our first...
As I’m sitting here in Assam, feeling the tropical heat of this place and smelling mustard oil, chatting about eri yarn and natural dyes with Chandan and Latika, I realize that I have not had the opportunity to tell the story of our summer trip in Ladakh. I returned to Ladakh on the 28th of June, full of energy for another wool sourcing trip and time in the mountains, working on the endless possibilities of the Kharnak wool and meeting all the dear people again. The first two weeks were mostly spent around Kharnakling, where our products are spun and woven. Kharnakling, only 9 kms from Leh, is a small village of settled nomads, most of them from the...
