| National Handicrafts and Handlooms Museum, New Delhi | |
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| Established | 1956 |
| Location | Pragati Maidan, Bhairon Road New Delhi, India |
| Website | Official site |
The National Handicrafts and Handlooms Museum (NHHM) commonly known as National Crafts Museum in New Delhi is one of the largest crafts museums in India.
It is run by the Ministry of Textiles, Government of India. The museum is situated on the corner of the Pragati Maidan, facing the Purana Qila complex.[1]
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It was set up over a period of over a period of 30 years starting in the 1950s and 60s, when the area was envisaged as an area where craftsmen from various parts of India would come in to work towards preservation of various traditional arts and crafts by 1980s it already had a substantial collection, and in time the museum space gradually evolved and transformed into its present shape.
Today the museum holds over 20,000 rare and distinctive pieces reflecting continuing tradition of Indian Craftsmen through painting, embroidery, textiles, various crafts of clay, stone and wood, all housed in a building designed by architect Charles Correa[1][2][3], from 1975 to 1990, incorporating traditional architectural vocabulary into a modern design [4].
Various galleries within the museum include the Tribal and Rural Craft Gallery, Gallery of Courtly Crafts, Textile Gallery, Gallery of Popular Culture etc.[5]. Some of its prized collection include, the 250-300-year-old, Bhoota Collection from Karnataka, rare Kashmiri 300-year-old ‘dushalas’, hankies from Chamba, known for their unique embroidery, rare brocade and Baluchari saris, Kutch embroidery, precious metal jewellery and much more.
The museum also houses a village complex spread over 5-acre (20,000 m2), with 15 structures representing village dwellings, court yards and shrines from different states of India, with items of day-to-day life displayed. The entire village complex is a remnant of a temporary exhibition on the theme of rural India, held in 1972. Today several traditional craftsmen in residence at the museum, can be seen working in a designated area within the museum complex, who also sell the crafts they create.
Apart from the collection, the museum houses Research and Documentation facilities, a reference library, a conservation laboratory, a photo laboratory and an auditorium. It is open from 9.30 am to 5 pm, except on Mondays. It is accessible through Pragati Maidan Delhi Metro Station.
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