Instagram story viewer> @mekhalamama> Posts

Mekhala Mama

@mekhalamama

52.5K

followers

1942

following

I weave stories with indigenous textiles to demonstrate their relevance.
#mekhalamovement
#supportlocal weavers, designers & businesses

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

My contemporary Zeliangrong set with a blouse bought in 2017, my @shop_a_t_grace purse & @gifted__creations pearl earrings to attend Sunday service with my children. No profound thoughts today. Only gratitude for the company of my precious children. What a privilege it is to be their mother, imperfect as i am. Witnessing their struggles, celebrating their little victories, journeying together through life’s many unpredictable moments is a gift that keeps on giving. 💚

#momfirst #lifewithkids #zeliangrong #sundayvibes taken in Kohima, Nagaland by @mekhalamama

4k

24

17 hours ago

My Jese-kore galey belonging to the Galo tribe of Arunachal Pradesh gifted to me by my #ladycrush @essedagyir with a Yimkhiung Khinulak necklace & my faithful @chizamiweaves bag for Sunday service.

#sundaywear #madeinarunachalpradesh taken in Kohima, Nagaland by @mekhalamama

2k

15

8 days ago

Two Sundays ago, I took my newest mekhala purchase to Dehradun to minister to the women of @ncf_dehradun at their Women’s Fellowship. A cotton yarn mekhala woven with such finesse, I knew it was worth the spend. Paired with my @grace_o.p_design_studio blouse & earrings gifted by @dietho_chiets . In Dehradun, I met one of my first Sunday school teachers from @baptistmissionchurch , siblings of friends, friends of friends, a neice & old friends. An unlikely place I know, but one that offered the kind of uninhibited welcome that only comes from the company of ones’s own people. NCF Dehradun is shepherded by the versatile & affable Pastor Along & his team. What a blessing to have homes away from home. Along with my hosts @apilathonger44 no efforts were spared to make me comfortable - my whirlwind stay culminated with dinner at @kiya_patisserie_doon owned by a Naga sister married also to a Khasi. Discovering our shared history was already a highlight. But to have the opportunity to settle into a deep conversation with a woman whose life story is one of daring, uncompromising imagination was unsurpassable. Only her delectable desserts came close. taken in Dehradun, Uttarakhand by @mekhalamama

4k

13

10 days ago

A little beauty refresh for the lovely @mekhalamama — Microblading + Lash Extensions.

I absolutely loved how everything came together on her. 🤍
Thank you for trusting me with your brows and lashes, ma’am ! ✨

The result? Effortless, polished & still so beautifully YOU.

#LushLifeStudio #Microblading #LashExtensions #MekhalaMama #MekhalaMovement NagalandBeauty Kohima Nagaland PMUArtist taken in Jail Colony Kohima by @mekhalamama

2k

48

10 days ago

It’s that time of the semester where you’ve wrapped up your courses - with one last round of class presentations left this morning, I wrapped a mekhala over my workout clothes so I’d have less changing to do. I love that you always look dress up in a mekhala. Accessorised with @deeana_jewels earrings. taken in Kohima, Nagaland by @mekhalamama

584

3

13 days ago

Meet the Jury Members of the inaugural round of NLF Prizes 2026 for Short Story, Essay & Poetry.

AGNES TEPA is a Poet and Global Worker who lives in Tokyo, Japan. She is one of the poets from 35 countries for Media Associates International’s upcoming Anthology Still: Poems of Peace in Times of Turmoil.

AVINUO KIRE is a writer from Nagaland, India. Her fiction delves into identity, history, folklore, gender and relationships. She is the author of five books, two short story collections, The Power to Forgive & Other Stories (Zubaan), The Last Light of Glory Days: Stories from Nagaland (Speaking Tiger), a collection of poetry, Where Wildflowers Grow (Barkweaver). She has co-authored an anthology of oral narratives, Naga Heritage Centre: People Stories (PenThrill). Her last book is a folk fantasy novel, Where the Cobbled Path Leads (Penguin Random House). Kire has contributed to various literary journals and leading national magazines. She currently shuttles her time between Kohima and Thimphu, Bhutan, while she works on her next book.

EMISENLA JAMIR is a writer and educator based in Kohima, Nagaland. She is the author of two poetry collections: Loneliness is an Orange (Barkweaver, 2018) and This is How We Disappear (PenThrill, 2022). Her short fiction has also been featured in the Zubaan anthology, The Many That I Am (2019) and Everyman’s Library collection, Indian Stories (2026).

THEYIESINUO KEDITSU (PhD) is a poet, academic, educator, advocate for the conservation of indigenous culture and media personality. She writes creatively under the pen name T. Keditsu and has published two books of poetry, Sopfünuo and Wake and three children’s books, Ukepenuopfü, The Boy Who Loved Food and Wrestling Day. She has contributed to a number of anthologies, journals and books in her creative & academic capacities. She is also a recipient of the Neev Literature Festival (NLF) Fellowship 2025 for children’s book authors. by @mekhalamama

610

6

13 days ago

Khiamniungan traditional nüjam because it’s Tsokum and because the temperature’s finally dipped to winter level - perfect for this two ply piece. Worn with my thrifted @daisy_bloom_closet blouse for work and to meet @nagamibonsai at my daughter’s school @badzeleshuki .

#khiamniungan #indigenousnagatextiles taken in Kohima Village by @mekhalamama

2k

19

14 days ago

And before I’ve had a chance to post about spending the previous Sunday as her guest, @apilathonger44 is already in Kohima as mine. She, in a Chakhesang Azheküsamüni set & I, in a contemporary Konyak mekhala by @mykinagaland & @butterrfly_natu earrings for Sunday service. And after, tea at my place with the parents. What a blessing to have inspiring friends who get along with one’s parents. An afternoon of storytelling with this kind, god fearing couple - the son & nephew were particularly enraptured by the Major’s adventures. As was my beloved father who got to revisit a boyhood fascination🥲. taken in Kohima, Nagaland by @mekhalamama

2k

7

15 days ago

Midweek textile focus on nearby Mizoram, a puan with a @jigmat.couture top from far far away Ladakh & accessorised with @zaben_murry_design earrings gifted by @zuby_ovung . A light & fuss free outfit that allowed for a workout in between classes -only creases to hint at the outfit change.

#mizopuan #madeinmizoram #madeinladakh #madeinnagaland taken in Kohima, Nagaland by @mekhalamama

893

8

19 days ago

Though I literally wore a terrible case of blues, my photographer managed to coax a smile out of me. In my contemporary poly mekhala wrapped over a dress & @gifted__creations earrings for work, & then a restorative workout at the gym. taken in Kohima, Nagaland by @mekhalamama

783

7

20 days ago

Wore my @kin_tem Ayong necklace as a belt & contemporary Sümi inspired earrings to add Naga accents to my @ampmfashions set to speak at @shivnadarschool ‘s 2nd Annual ILM (Inquiry, Learning & Mindfulness) conference. The highlights were listening to @jilpanz & Geetanjali Shree speak. A day of unlearning, listening & facilitating deep discussions on how to steer children into reading that is meaningful, pleasurable & useful.
For most of us, the Dewey Decimal System is synonymous with library. I remember how excited I was to learn about this classification in 5th grade and how I returned home to classify all the books in the house into the DDC and started a home library—which ran with great success for a few years. From that time, one of my reading pastimes has been to play with classifying my books: to take A Suitable Boy from the 800s and place it in the 300s, or after a third reading, in the 400s. What began as a childish whimsy taught me to regard the Dewey Decimal System with a kind of irreverence that has unfettered my reading journey. It also exposed the corollaries of classification: where we place knowledge determines what we place it beside, what relationships become visible, and what conversations become possible. My session ‘Nurturing Roots’ began from this premise and asked librarians to imagine other ways of organising knowledge—through our lived experience & the immediate world we inhabit. But I also proposed moving beyond collecting & curating to co-creating. Begin by noticing who is included, who remains outside, and whose version of a story has acquired authority. And then to ask what still needs to be written, recorded or published, and how librarians might influence writers and publishers to address those absences. A living library need not resolve these differences. It can allow contradictory, even warring, perspectives to sit beside each other and initiate conversations. That way our libraries can participate in shaping what can be known, what might yet be written, and the conversations through which a community continues to understand itself. And thereby fulfil its true essence and purpose - mediate epistemology itself. taken in Shiv Nadar School, Noida by @mekhalamama

2k

17

22 days ago

An over 20 year old contemporary Rongmei mekhala with a 40 year old blouse - both handed down from my mother with my newest @deeana_jewels earrings for works And after workout, a quick change to my @collected_things_store dress. Tried the breakfast option @naga_bowl_bakery for the first time - clean, unfussy and delicious. The daughter dressed herself. taken in Kohima, Nagaland by @mekhalamama

1k

12

a month ago