National Charkha Museum, National museum in Connaught Place, India
The National Charkha Museum is a national museum in the Connaught Place area of New Delhi, India, dedicated to the traditional Indian spinning wheel. It sits within the Palika Bazaar garden and displays spinning wheels and textile tools that explain how handspun khadi cloth is made.
The museum opened in 2017 as a joint project between New Delhi's municipal authority and the Khadi Development Commission. It was set up on a site at the heart of the city, in a garden space that had long been part of the central commercial district built during the colonial era.
The exhibits show spinning wheels from different regions of India, ranging from simple wooden models to more elaborate weaving tools. Visitors can see how the charkha, the traditional Indian spinning wheel, became a symbol of everyday rural life.
The museum is in central New Delhi, close to Rajiv Chowk metro station, and easy to reach on foot from there. A daytime visit works best, as natural light from outside makes the objects easier to see inside the galleries.
At the center of the museum stands a giant stainless steel spinning wheel, several feet tall, that looks nothing like the wooden objects displayed nearby. It was designed not as a working tool but as a sculptural tribute to the charkha, meant to be seen rather than used.
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