Bapu’s Charkha

Ready Model to Demonstrate the spinning thread or yarn from natural or synthetic fibres. The word “charkha” literally means “wheel”. During Gandhi’s time there was in India a strong movement to promote self-sufficiency. A box spinning wheel was designed and made compact enough so that every Indian family could own one and spin the yarn for their own cloth. Gandhi himself contributed to the design of the charkha by adding an accelerated wheel drive for greater speed. On many occasions, he would spin and recommend spinning to others, saying it would bring them peace of mind. Cotton spinning was also meant as a political snub of the colonial British rule.