The Brothers Who Brought Kashmir's Looms Back To Life

When Mir Nawaz and Mir Waseem were growing up in the Kashmir Valley in the late 1980s, the rhythmic clatter of looms was a familiar sound in the neighborhood-a song of craftsmanship passed down for centuries. It is a sound they would later chase across states and decades, long after it fell silent in their homeland.

Today, the two brothers stand at the helm of Miras Carpet Industries, a thriving enterprise that has quietly become one of India's leading names in hand-knotted carpets and pashmina shawls. Their journey, however, began far from the design studios and export ledgers of modern business.

Raised in a middle-class family-sons of a junior engineer in the power department-Mir Nawaz and Mir Waseem were instilled with values of integrity and discipline. But they were also witnesses to a slow unraveling. In the 1990s, as political strife gripped the region, Kashmir's fabled artisan sector-renowned for its intricate carpets and heritage shawls-began to collapse. Master weavers laid down their tools. The looms went quiet.

“It was heartbreaking,” recalls Nawaz.“These were craftsmen who once wove art that could hang on museum walls. And they were being forgotten.”

In 2005, the brothers took a leap of faith. With a loan of just Rs 50,000, they opened a small carpet store in the ruins of Hampi, a town in Karnataka known more for its ancient temples than its textiles. The decision was both improbable and symbolic: resurrect a dying tradition from the soil of a distant land.

They called it Miras, an Urdu word meaning“legacy.”

From the outset, Miras was more than a commercial venture. The brothers sought out Kashmiri artisans who had left the trade, offering them fair wages and respect. They prioritized quality over scale, tradition over trend. Each carpet, each shawl, they insisted, had to tell a story.

The gamble worked. Today, Miras operates over 20 production units and 36 active pashmina looms. Its team includes 250 artisans, and its products-delicate silk-on-silk rugs, handwoven Sozni shawls-are exported to markets in Europe, the Middle East, and the United States. The company now derives 80 percent of its revenue from international sales.

But the revival hasn't stopped at commerce. Miras has quietly become an ecosystem for skills, employment, and cultural preservation. In an industry increasingly threatened by machine-made replicas, Miras carpets are known for achieving 40 knots per square inch-a technical feat that few global manufacturers can replicate.

In 2019, the company launched Miras Crafts, an e-commerce platform with separate portals for Indian and global buyers. The move brought centuries-old artistry into the homes of urban consumers-with just a click.

Next, the brothers are returning home in a way they never have before. Construction is underway for a 65,000-square-meter headquarters in Gulmarg, Kashmir. It will serve as both a production hub and cultural center, complete with live loom demonstrations for visitors.“We want people to see the magic happen,” says Waseem.“To understand what it takes to weave history into every inch.”

The company is also expanding its retail footprint, with ten new stores planned in major Indian cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, and Chennai.

And yet, despite its success, the core of Miras remains deeply personal. For Nawaz and Waseem, the business is not just about selling textiles-it's about reclaiming a narrative. A region known globally for conflict is, through their work, being remembered again for craftsmanship.

In Kashmir, where many youth still struggle with unemployment and limited opportunity, Miras is quietly altering futures-one artisan, one loom, one legacy at a time.

“Reviving this industry was never just about carpets,” says Nawaz.“It was about restoring dignity-to the art, and to the artist.”

• – The author is a staffer at Kashmir Observer.

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