Odisha weaver Prafulla Kumar Sahoo receives National Handloom Award 2025
The artisan has spent 45 years preserving traditional techniques and training over 200 people in weaving.
Prafulla Kumar Sahoo, a 59-year-old weaver from Dodunda Singipur village in Odisha’s Jagatsinghpur district, was conferred the National Handloom Award 2025, according to the Times of India. President Droupadi Murmu presented the award during the 12th National Handloom Day celebrations in New Delhi on August 7, 2026.
Sahoo specialises in creating Patta sarees using 80s single-count cotton yarn and Lio silk shirting. His process for a single specially designed Patta saree involves approximately 30 days of work, including preparation. The technique requires the manual insertion of extra weft threads to create intricate motifs and geometric patterns.
The weaver has trained more than 200 unemployed young people and women in basic weaving and jalla dobby techniques. These six-month programmes have reached various areas, including Boudh, Nabarangpur, Koraput, Gunupur, Athagarh, Dhenkanal and Kendrapara. Some trainees, such as Rupashree Behera from Odisso village, now earn between Rs 10,000 and Rs 12,000 per month.
Sahoo is a member of the Netaji Weavers Cooperative Society Ltd, which provides raw materials and buys finished products. He earns between Rs 20,000 and Rs 25,000 a month from weaving, plus approximately Rs 20,000 from his training work. He previously received the Tantakruti Award from Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi in 2025.