A gamchha is a thin, coarse, traditional cotton

Cotton

Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective capsule, around the seeds of cotton plants of the genus Gossypium. The fiber is almost pure cellulose. The botanical purpose of cotton fiber is to aid in seed dispersal....

 towel

Towel

A towel is a piece of absorbent fabric or paper used for drying or wiping. It draws moisture through direct contact, often using a blotting or a rubbing motion. Common household textile towels are made from cotton, rayon, bamboo, nonwoven fibers or a few other materials.-Types of towels:* A bath...

 found in India

India

India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 and Bangladesh

Bangladesh

Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...

 that is used to dry the body after bathing or wiping sweat. The term "gamchha" derives from the Bengali গা মোছা (gā mochha), which means "wiping (the) body". Gamchha is the local term for a sweat towel.It is often just worn on one side of the shoulder.However its appearance varies from region to region. Gamchhas are most commonly found with check

Tartan

Tartan is a pattern consisting of criss-crossed horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven wool, but now they are made in many other materials. Tartan is particularly associated with Scotland. Scottish kilts almost always have tartan patterns...

 and striped patterns of red, orange or green. Plain white gamchhas with coloured (embroidered or printed) borders from Orissa

Orissa

Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...

 and Assam

Assam

Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...

 (for traditional Assam

Assam

Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...

ese Gamchha, please check Gamosa

Gamosa

The Gamosa is an article of great significance for the people of Assam.It is generally a white rectangular piece of cloth with primarily a red border on three sides and red woven motifs on the fourth...

) are local handicrafts, and may be worn around the neck with traditional Indian attire. In western parts, gamchhas are primarily made in red colour and are plain like cloth. In southern India, gamchhas are more coarse and are available in various dyes. Even home made light weight fur towels are also popularly termed as gamchhas. Gamchhas remain popular in South Asian Countries, especially in the Indian states of Bihar

Bihar

Bihar is a state in eastern India. It is the 12th largest state in terms of geographical size at and 3rd largest by population. Almost 58% of Biharis are below the age of 25, which is the highest proportion in India....

, West Bengal

West Bengal

West Bengal is a state in the eastern region of India and is the nation's fourth-most populous. It is also the seventh-most populous sub-national entity in the world, with over 91 million inhabitants. A major agricultural producer, West Bengal is the sixth-largest contributor to India's GDP...

, Jharkhand

Jharkhand

Jharkhand is a state in eastern India. It was carved out of the southern part of Bihar on 15 November 2000. Jharkhand shares its border with the states of Bihar to the north, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh to the west, Orissa to the south, and West Bengal to the east...

 and the Purvanchal

Purvanchal

Purvanchal is a geographic region of north-central India, which comprises the eastern end of Uttar Pradesh state...

 region, because they are not as thick as Western-style towels and better suited to the country's tropical, humid

Tropics

The tropics is a region of the Earth surrounding the Equator. It is limited in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the northern hemisphere at approximately  N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the southern hemisphere at  S; these latitudes correspond to the axial tilt of the Earth...

 climate.In Afghanistan they are also used and are commonly referred to as dismaal.They may also be found in Central Asian, Middle Eastern and Turkish hamams as a traditional male loin cloth and towel worn during bathing and massage.

Other uses

Gamchhas are also worn as knee long loin cloths by people of the poorer sections of society, especially menial labourers and farm workers.They are also used as a headscarf, similar to the Middle Eastern Keffiyeh

Keffiyeh

The keffiyeh/kufiya , also known as a ghutrah , ' , mashadah , shemagh or in Persian chafiye , Kurdish cemedanî and Turkish puşi, is a traditional Arab headdress fashioned from a square, usually cotton, scarf. It is typically worn by Arab men, as well as some Kurds...

 in rural areas.Gamchas can be turned into an effective weapon against wolf

Indian Wolf

Indian wolf and Iranian Wolf are two common names for Canis lupus pallipes, a subspecies of grey wolf which inhabits western India, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and southern Israel. Some experts have suggested at least some C. lupus pallipes populations be re-classified a canid species...

s, leopards

Indian leopard

The Indian leopard is a leopard subspecies widely distributed on the Indian subcontinent. It is one of the five big cats found in India, apart from Asiatic lion, Bengal tiger, snow leopard and clouded leopard....

, wild dogs

Dhole

The dhole is a species of canid native to South and Southeast Asia. It is the only extant member of the genus Cuon, which differs from Canis by the reduced number of molars and greater number of teats...

 or feral dog

Pariah dog

The term pariah dog originally referred to Chinese/Indian feral dogs of a particular type, but it is now used by the United Kennel Club to refer to a purebred dog category.- Feral dogs of India :...

s or even dacoits, by knotting a large stone pebble into one end and using it like bolas

Bolas

Bolas are a throwing weapon superficially similar to the surujin, made of weights on the ends of interconnected cords, designed to capture animals by entangling their legs...

.