The Silk Industry of Bengal: A Review of Commercial Tradition, Culture, and Imperialism/ বাংলার রেশম শিল্প : বাণিজ্যিক ঐতিহ্য, সংস্কৃতি ও সাম্রাজ্যবাদের একটি পর্যালোচনা

Abstract

The silk industry is one of the oldest and most significant cottage industries of India, with Bengal historically serving as a major hub of production and trade. References to silk fabrics in ancient Indian literature, including the Vedas, epics, and religious texts, attest to its antiquity and cultural value. In Bengal, the term “silk” is derived from ab-resham. The industry flourished along both banks of the Bhagirathi River, particularly in Murshidabad, Kasimbazar, Saidabad, Jangipur, and Rajshahi, from where raw silk was exported to markets across Europe and Asia.

           The arrival of the Portuguese in the sixteenth century, followed by the Dutch, English, French, Armenians, and other European merchants, transformed Bengal’s silk industry into a center of international commerce. Although the Dutch initially dominated, the English eventually took control, aided by local gumastas who participated in the trade. Murshidabad’s rise as the capital of Bengal during the Nawabi period further enhanced the economic importance of the region.

           However, the Battle of Plassey (1757) and subsequent colonial policies brought devastating consequences. The East India Company’s duty-free trade privileges, along with the agency and contract system, disrupted traditional structures. The catastrophic famine of 1769–70, which decimated mulberry cultivators and weavers, inflicted irreparable damage. Coupled with declining European demand during the Industrial Revolution, the industry witnessed a steep decline.

            In the nineteenth century, firms like Watson & Co., James Lyall & Co., and Louis Pajen & Co. attempted to revive trade, but foreign competition, silkworm disease, and administrative inefficiencies hindered progress. Reformers such as Nityagopal Mukherjee promoted sericulture through pasteurization techniques, leading to the formation of the Bengal Silk Association in 1898. The early twentieth century saw renewed visibility through S. S. Bagchi & Co.’s participation in international exhibitions, but most European companies ultimately withdrew. The Textile Protection Act of 1934 and the establishment of a central silk research center at Berhampore were state-led interventions to safeguard the industry, but the disruption caused by the partition of Bengal ultimately marginalized its significance. Today, Bengal’s once-thriving silk industry survives mainly in historical memory and material remnants.