Independence day: Google doodle pays tribute to India’s rich textile heritage

New Delhi: Google Doodle celebrated India’s Independence Day 2023 with a tribute to the country’s rich textile heritage. The doodle celebrates India’s textiles and their profound connection to the nation’s identity. Today’s doodle is illustrated by New Delhi-based guest artist Namrata Kumar. On this day in 1947, a new era dawned as India became independent from British rule.

“Symbolic of this first day of independence, an annual flag-raising ceremony is held at Red Fort, Delhi, with the Prime Minister in attendance. Citizens sing the national anthem and commemorate leaders of the independence movement. Movies about freedom fighters are broadcast, and various cultural programmes are held in schools and neighbourhoods, with children participating in plays and competitions,” Google Doodle shared while explaining significance of the historic day on their page.

Speaking about the creative process for this doodle, Namrata said, “Identified the textile craft forms: Researched and identified the diverse textile craft forms present in India. I sought to cover a broad spectrum of techniques, encompassing embroidery, different weaving styles, printing techniques, resist-dyeing techniques, hand-painted textiles, and more. Additionally, I wanted to ensure that I represented different geographical regions of the country in a balanced manner.”

“Throughout the creative process, the overarching goal was to honour and celebrate India’s textiles and their profound connection to the nation’s identity. My hope was that through this artwork, I would be able to shed a light on the rich cultural heritage and artistic brilliance of India’s textile traditions and create something that would resonate with audiences through the Google Doodle platform,” she added.