Khadi
Cloth that is both hand-spun and handwoven, tied in India to Gandhi and the swadeshi movement.
Also: khaddar, khadder
Khadi means cloth made from yarn spun by hand on a charkha or a takli and then woven by hand. Under Indian rules, it must be both spun and woven by hand, whatever the fibre. Most khadi is cotton, but silk and wool khadi also exist. Mahatma Gandhi promoted khadi from the early twentieth century as a way to give rural people work and to answer imported mill cloth, and it became a symbol of the freedom movement. It is coarser and cooler than mill cotton and softens with washing. The Khadi and Village Industries Commission certifies it.