[1] Bafta is a coarse, cheap woven material made in long, narrow pieces, chiefly of cotton.
[6] Bharuch was a major textile manufacturing hub from 1500 to 1700, known for producing bafta for the West and Southeast Asian markets.
Bafta was among the leading textile products exported to Europe from Western India for printing in the 18th century.
The city's location near to the port of Surat and close to the banks of the Narmada River helped Bharuch to exploit its potential.
Where wealthy women used to wear expensive clothes made of silk, fine cotton and muslin, working-class women wore clothes made of coarser cotton fabrics, such as bafta, dyed in different colors.