The oldest reference to Kantha is in Sri Sri Chaitanya Charitamrita" by Krishnadas Kaviraj, written some 500 years back. Kantha was said to be a lady's self expression. The real kantha narrates a story, the emotions and the life of the artist.

Kantha evolved out of the necessity to drape or protect against cold. Kontha on Sanskrit means rags. It can rightly be called the recycling art. Instead of throwing the precious silks and muslins which became worn-out, women piled them in layers and stitched .Another legend relates Kantha’s origin to Lord Buddha and his disciples. It is said that they used to cover themselves with the thrown away rags patched and stitched together.

The process involves laying the worn clothes in layers and stitching them together. Though the stitch used is variations of running stitch, the motifs can range from being simple to very intricate. It is a typical example of how a simple stitch can create elaborate motifs. Usually the motifs are gods and goddesses, flowers, animals or geometric patterns. There are seven different types of Kantha based on how it is made and the end use.