Journal Archive

Raghunath Nama A spirit of innovation, a desire to combine all the traditional printing processes of India. To keep up with the hand printing and dyeing practices and along with small machine makers create equipment which would remove the dreary and harmful processes involved in printing and dyeing.

He used to say that if the Government mandated Khadi as a uniform in organizations like the Railways, why would Khadi die? He shared with us the rampant corruption in weaving cooperatives, and the huge wastage in the unending stream of workshops organized by the state, shared between master artisans and craft bureaucrats. Despite this he always partnered with Government bodies for any project which he thought was useful, and officials in local Rajasthan craft marketing organizations gave him respect as Raghunath thought from all sides, the customer, the producer and the government. He gave equal thought to fair retail prices, wages, margins for retailers and wholesalers, and business practices along with quality of the product. Despite coming from a disadvantaged background he was neither bitter about people in power nor unfair to his workers. He was truly a trustee of his craft.

Raghunath did not want to remain just a job-worker for boutiques. He wanted to create his own brand and be visible as a designer-artisan-entrepreneur. He used to say that his desire and practice for innovation and experimentation would be like a free laboratory providing research and development to his community of Chippas. In the beginning, his own community laughed at the orders he took (of single saris and 18 meter fabric print runs) as they only took orders of hundreds or thousands of meters of cotton fabric in one print, one colour for exporters. Raghunath worked for the local Indian boutiques and small retailers doing very small orders. He knew that the diversity of his customers gave him protection from the boom and bust cycle of exports and huge rejections due to problems of infrastructure that artisans face in rural India and due to which they often could not deliver on time. In bucket dyeing, maintaining regular colour tone is very difficult and patchiness too results in rejection. There is also immense competition between Chippas to under quote each other and lower the workers’ wages. Raghunath refused to lower prices to self-exploitative levels. He always said that if a skilled artisan cannot make wages equivalent to an unskilled construction worker, practicing craft was of no use to him. Today his dabu saris and suits are copied by artisans in Bagru, Akola and Balotra, in fact the Surat textile industry is also making screen printed copies on their mass produced synthetic saris. Raghunath visited us regularly in Delhi to experience the big city. He wanted to see movies, theatre, and big retail, explore and give his opinion on everything from the inedible-ness of a McDonald burger to interesting comments on “Full Monty”. He never let his rural background and inabilities to speak English create awe or make him lose confidence. He was gloriously himself - sharp witted, perceptive and having his own unique sociological and political perspective. He bought his wife expensive saris from other weaving and printing traditions from Ikats to Ajrakh. He said that if he did not support other artisans who would? He freely shared his marketing and branding experience with other artisans and wanted them to be successful like him too. Raghunath was a classic jugadu, a problem solver. He bought a 15 year old Maruti Gypsy jeep and tried first to run it on LPG and then installed an old submarine diesel engine which gave him great fuel average. He continuously spent money, time and energy on new experiments in dyeing, printing and appropriate machinery.

Raghunath started his morning in the village with a 5 am tea at the village chai wallah, the tea shop with all his village friends from all castes and said that that was the best newspaper he knew. Rarely did he refuse any of them monetary help. He created an immense network of weavers and fabric suppliers from Kashmir, to Champa in Madhya Pradesh to Vidarbha to Kota. I saw a whole India that is entrepreneurial, artisanal and continuously experimenting with him. All of them utilizing state and NGO resources where possible and doing hardcore mainstream wholesaling to thousands of businessmen from all over India, from Indore to Mumbai, from Bhubaneshwar to Surat. On Raghunath’s death, so many of his artisan friends from all over India, suppliers of dyes and fabric came to his family to reassure them and promise support and cement relationships with his sons . It clearly showed he had built relationships not business dealings. From ultra rich ladies from the big cities where he exhibited and sold his saris, to a poor kabadiya (metal and waste recycler) all spoke fondly of him to his family and us. It was not just an artisan, but a friend who had passed away.

Mr. Jon Randall, who happened to find Raja ravi Varma playing cards during one of his purchases of old playing cards at an auction house in the U.K. was generous enough to add some significant insights as well as scanned images of the cards to Mr. Gordhandas' article on 'Playing Cards by Raja Ravi Varma.'- Asia InCH

On purchasing a lot of ‘old playing cards’ at an auction house in the U.K. I was aware the lot included a mix of cards, some with Indian court cards, but having arrived late I was more concerned with checking out the French cards in the lot that had initially attracted me. The lot cost more than anticipated, but I was a happy man carrying a small box of cards to my car. Instead of tackling the 2 hour drive home immediately I eagerly looked through every card and sorted the packs out correctly. I’d not noticed the Ace of Spades to the Indian pack in my brief viewing of the lot prior to the auction ... Ravi Varma Press, Bombay. Interesting I thought, a new name to me and one of only a handful of Indian packs I’d seen. Amongst the mix of cards in my box I sorted one complete pack with an elephant on the back of the cards, it includes the joker and is in excellent condition, 11 cards (3S - KS) of the same court and back design in more used condition, another pack missing the 8H and including several faults with different court cards and an Indian girl as the back design, and a single pip card (6H) with a 3rd different back design of what to me looks like an Indian deity sitting in a flower.

At home a couple of evenings later I thought I’d research my new Ravi Varma Press playing cards. Search pretty much anything and Google will spit out multiple related hits. Not so with Ravi Varma Press playing cards. One solitary hit ... an article written by Kishor Gordhandas on craftrevival.org (there are now two hits, the other a US forum post in search of information on RVP playing cards).

With great interest I read the article, re-reading the final paragraphs a few times to fully digest them. As it sank in that RVP playing cards were incredibly scarce, I became excited to contact Mr Gordhandas and inform him that I had a complete RVP pack with different court cards to the Mythological and to the Historical packs illustrated on the website. Both the Mythological and the Historical packs have rounded corners, yet this ‘new’ pack of mine has square corners, leading me to believe this ‘new’ pack is actually older than the two known packs. The AS is also a different design, similar to the Historical pack, but with quite a few differences.

The court cards are not named, and my knowledge of historical India does not extend to identifying the significant characters that adorn this pack. I welcome any information or lead a keen reader may wish to pass my way regarding the possible names of those depicted on the court cards or regarding the general history of Ravi Varma Press playing cards I believe the article was written in 2008, and I was saddened to learn that Mr Gordhandas had passed away the following year. I feel from reading the article that he would’ve been delighted to see these cards of mine. It is my pleasure to add this short text together with comprehensive scans of the my RVP cards to the webpage started by Mr Gordhandas.

The artistic zeal and passion of Rajasthani artisans have always shown great respect to 'God' and 'Nature', which had inspired them to convert the harsh environmental conditions of the region into the world of colours. The painting canvas of the Rajasthani painters is very vast extending from havelis, palaces, forts to temples. These paintings are the real reflection of Rajasthani culture. Several subjects from the religious to secular and scenes from court life to hunting seens have been painted by the miniature painting artists, who have worked in various courts of Rajasthan. There are many prominent courts such as Mewar, Bundi, Kota. Bikaner, Marwar, Kishangarh and Jaipur where the tradition of painting was encouraged and patronized. Each of these centers has the distinct characteristics, reflected in their miniatures painting schools. These have been studied by several scholars.' The painting tradition in Rajasthan is not restricted to the miniature paintings on paper only, rather it has been practiced extensively on diverse mediums i.e. wall, cloth, wood, leather, marble etc.' Rajasthani paintings on wood, like any other medium, also illustrates an interesting and fascinating aspect of their indigenous styles. This has been less studied and published so far in comparison to miniature painting. These artefacts are from architectural panels to everyday objects of utility. The main thrust of the paper is to discuss some of the beautiful paintings on various wooden artefacts preserved in the collection of National Museum, New Delhi. Before going in detail, a brief survey of the carpenter and painter community will be undertaken. Khati and Suthar The khati and suthar community in Rajasthan are mainly involved in the mending of carts and all agricultural implements, however many times they are agriculturists also.' They claim to be the descendants of Vishvakarma, the celestial architect. The word suthar comes from Sanskrit word saatradhara. In Marwar, the term khati is commonly used for suthar, this seems to have derived from word kath, which refers to wood. In some districts khati is known as suthar, which are based on the particular kind of articles made or mended by these groups, where they reside and work. Traditionally khati and suthar do not intermarry and try to maintain their caste sensitivity. The Brahma Purana mentions that the suthars are said to be the offspring of Visvakarma and wood carpentry is their main occupation. The suthar community is distributed in many parts of Rajasthan, with a large concentration in and around Udaipur. In the suthar community, Vishvakarma has a special place, as they belief their origin back to this god and they also worship Ganesha, Amba, Lakshmi, Hanuman and other Hindu deities. They have an expert knowledge about carpentry from their childhood, as they get trained by observing their elders in these traditional craft. They share the regional trend in oral tradition and folk songs with the other communities. Bhats (local singers) praise the wood craftsmen in their singing: "If khati does not create plough, how would we get grains If they do not make the axis of chakki how would we get ground ata If they do not make khat we have to sleep on the floor; " etc. Chiteraas and Chejaraas

Apart from the strong presence of the khati and suthar community in Rajasthan, there were the chiteraas and chejaraas also and often they work together to carve or paint the palaces, temples and houses in the region. The fresco painting artists were called chiteraas (painters) and the chejaraas (masons), since they work both as painters and builders.

Pl.12.1: (from left to right) upper row; orange chapdi (orange lac) ; lower row; yellow clay (peeli mitti) ; chalk powder (khadiya mitti)

Pl.12.2: Micro photo of panels back showing a primer layer of yellow mitti with orange chapdi

The wood has to be prepared first, before painting, by coating a primer layer of lac and clay. The two types of lac are orange chapdi (orange or light golden lac) or black chapdi (black lac) is usually used while giving the primer coating on the desired panel or surface. Lac is not used alone; the yellow clay (peeli mitti) or chalk powder (khadiya-mitti) is mixed (Plate12.1). For preparing the peeli mitti paste, water and chapdi with spirit is mixed. For making the khadiya mttii paste, water and linseed oil or edible oil is mixed. These two things were mix together and then rubbed on to the wood directly with a cloth (Plate 12.2). Once the surface is dried, it is burnished to achieve the even surface. When the smooth background is ready the chetaras first use to do the line drawing and then the painting. Artists use only natural colours for their art work, for example lamp black (kajal) is used for black, lime (safeda) is for white, indigo (neel) for blue, red stone powder (geru) for red, saffron (kesar) for orange, yellow clay (pevri) for yellow ochre and so on. These natural colours are mixed in limewater and used for painting. They remained vibrant for almost as long as the building lasted.' Some of these examples are evident in wood panels of the museum collection. Rajasthani Wood Carvings The wood carving collection in the Decorative Arts Department of the National Museum, New Delhi is rich and vibrant. It has different type of artifacts such as portions of architectural dwelling, door, window, temple chariot, deities' vehicles used for temple procession, temple mandapa, palanquin, swing, screen, panel(s) depicting Hindu deities, floral patterns and utilitarian objects. These artifacts are intricately carved in round and in bold or shallow relief. Many of these are decorated in colourful ways, besides inlay ornamentation. These wooden artifacts were crafted at various centers i.e. Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Rajasthan. Among all these centers, the collection of Rajasthani wood carvings is significant in many ways. As these artifacts show the different categories like architectural dwellings to utilitarian objects, which portray vivid subjects such as from religious to secular and were adorn with various techniques i.e. carving, painted' and painting'. The first two techniques are prevalent in many other production centers, but painting tradition has been persuaded by the Rajasthani artists in a remarkable and unique manner. Miniature painters of Marwar, Bikanar, Kotah, Jaipur schools have done the painting on wooden artifacts also, besides the paper painting. Artifacts of the architectural dwelling, palanquin, mirror, decorative panels, cot and throne legs, boxes, ganjifa cards and yoyos were adorned with beautiful paintings in around 18th to 19th century. The few wooden objects ornate with excellent paintings will be discussed in detail here.

The first group discussed here is of five long architectural panels, which illustrates the painting in Marwar/ Bikaner style of 18th - 19th century. These panels depict popular genres and themes of Rajasthani miniature paintings such as Ragamala, Ganesha-Durga, Dhola-Maru, Krishna-Brahma and Hunting scene. All the paintings are executed in colourful manner on the red background except for the last one, which is on the black background. These panels appear to be from the upper portion of the door or window frame as the orientation of scenes in all the panels is horizontal. More importantly the narrow sockets on both the end panels are to fix the vertical panels or pillars, so that chauket (frame) of door or window should be properly completed.

Pl.12.3: Architectural panel depicting Ragas and Raginis, marwar, Rajasthan, 18th century, 76,485

Pl.12.4: Architectural panel illustrating goddesses queen Sraswati, Lord Ganesha and Durga Marwar, Rajasthan, 18th-19th century, 76,654

Pl.12.5: Architectural panel depicting the Dhola-Maru style Marwar/Bikaner School, Rajasthan, 18th -19th century, 76,695

The unique subject of 'Ragamala', the garland of Raga, is an interesting form of art that combines poetry and print to convey the mood of a melody.' This subject gained momentum in the early 17th century CE as miniature artists of Kotah, Bikanar, Jodhpur and Jaipur School had portrayed this subject extensively. Some of the raga-ragini themes are painted here in the first panel. (Plate 12.3) The panel depicts the concept of raga-raginis within the backdrop of within a temple, forest or an architectural setting depending upon the subject of the theme. Trees and architecture have been further used to divide the scenes. Illustration starts (from left to right) with the morning ragas, Bhairav raga, Kambati or Kambavati ragini, Ramkali ragini, Varari ragini, Maru ragini, Asavari ragini, Deshkhar raga and Nata raga." All the human figures are rendered with big eyes, sharp nose, broad forehead and wear traditional attires. The architectural pavilion, carpet, floor covering indicate that probably it was commissioned by royalty. The salient features of Marwari style painting of 18th century such as, well-built human figures marked with regional features and the blue-white clouds. The next panel illustrates Lord Ganesha in the center and queen /goddesses on throne i.e. Saraswati on a swan and Durga on a lion are seen on either side (Plate 12.4). Prominent depiction of trees, as dividers, full of leaves, fruits and birds make the entire composition very attractive. All the deities are adorned with colourful traditional Rajasthani outfit and lots ofjewellery and crown. A four armed Ganesh sits cross-legged on floral patterned carpet and holds a battle-axe/elephant goad (ankush), rosary and a bowl of sweets (modaka). Female devotees hold flywhisk (chauri), men standing in salutation gesture (anjali mudra) and children are seen standing around the deity. A four armed Durga is seen riding a lion, which moves majestically towards the center deity. She holds a sword, trident, umbrella (chhatra) and a disc (chakra). Goddess Durga is flanked by the trumpet bearer and the flag bearer. A four armed Saraswati sits on a swan facing Ganesha. She holds a book and a veena in her hands. A similar compositions depicting Ganesha and Saraswati in the grove are also seen in Marwar paintings.' Well dressed, crowned, two armed queen /goddess sits on throne. She is surrounded by four female devotees, who are paying homage to her. Sharp facial features, big eyes, broad forehead, proportionate bodies of all figures indicate their close resemblance of Marwar School made in the late 18th -19th century. This is a rare 19th century painting now housed in the Mehrangarh Museum Trust. Dhola-Maru, the famous love story of Rajasthan, is narrated in the third panel (Plate 12.5). Dhola-Maru, on a camel are moving towards the palace, which is being guarded by the watchmen. They are being chased by warriors, who are riding on horses and holding swords, spears and shields. The most interesting feature here is the depiction of desert topography shown along with trees in proper prospective. Such narration is often illustrated in the Rajasthani miniature painting as well. Composition of the theme includes, Dhola-Maru being chased by warriors while the pictorial divisions are added with trees. Illustration of human and animal figures and their facial features, their body movements etc, are quite close to Marwar/Bikaner school miniature painting tradition made around 18th - 19th century. The fourth panel portrays the most popular sport of Rajasthan royalty. This panel depicts the well dressed Rajasthani warriors in different groups, as riders on horses and elephants who are fighting and hunting (Plate 12.6). The lion hunters are using various kinds of weapons i.e. a bow, gun, sword, dagger and shield. The most interesting feature is the gunmen using two legged gun-stand, placed on the ground, for shooting the lion. The various animals like horses, lion, dogs, the jewelled elephant, and the movement of horse and lion is well illustrated in the panel. Such scenes are quite often seen in the Marwar/Bikaner school miniature paintings made around 19'h century.

Pl.12.6: Architectural panel illustrating a hunting scene marwar/bikaner, Rajasthan, 18th-19th century 76.486

Pl.12.7: Architectural panel depicting Lord Krishna and Brahma with Devotees, Bikaner, Rajasthan, 18th century 77.188

In the next panel of this group, Lord Krishna and Brahma are surrounded by attendants (Plate 12.7). Krishna stands under a tree playing his flute which everyone is enjoying and even the cows are looking at him affectionately. Brahma sits on the throne flanked by the chauri bearers and devotees on either side. Both the Lords are dressed in yellow dhotis, while devotees are in usual Rajasthani outfits. All the figures are slightly elongated, yet the facial features are prominent and resemble the Bikaner style of Rajasthani painting of the 18th century.

The next important object with a colourful and vibrant theme is a rectangular wooden mirror frame. The frame of the mirror, on both sides of the lid with a metal sheet as a back covering and richly adorned with beautiful paintings (Plate 12.8). The subject remains the same - Hindu deities, portrayal of women and floral arrangement. Such mirrors are usually fixed on the walls in palaces or forts of Rajasthan. Covering the mirror is an ancient belief in many communities in India, so that it should be protected from evil. Often people use to cover their mirrors either with a fabric cover or with a wooden lid, which was sometimes decorated with beautiful paintings as also seen in this object.

Pl.12.8: Rectangular mirror with paintings Bikaner/Marwar paintings with Nathwara style, Rajasthan, 19th century

The front of the lid illustrates five pairs of Krishna-gopis' raasalila around Ganesha, who sits in the center. Four armed Lord Ganesha holds a sweet (modak), lotus, elephant noose and beaded string. The crowned and bejewlled Ganesha has a halo and is dressed in yellow dhoti. He sits on a throne, which has a parasol (chhatra) covering; such a depiction is often seen in the Bikaner, Jodhpur and Jaipur style of miniature paintings. 1' Krishna and gopis are dancing with daandiya (dancing sticks) and are shown holding various musical instruments such as the dholaka, and manjira. The gopis are dressed in orange and green lehenga (long skirt), yellow choli (blouse or upper garment), orange odhani (head covering). On the reverse side of the lid, there is a royal portraiture of a Rajasthani lady on a bright orange background decorated with floral borders (Plate 12.9). She is dressed in an orange lehenga, a maroon choli and a green odhani along with a borlajhumar (head ornament), pair of long ear rings, many necklaces and bangles. These features indicate a blend of Bikaner and Marwar miniature paintings with the Nathdwara style of early 19^th century paintings.

Pl.12.9: Portrait of lady, Bikaner, Marwar painting with Nathwara style, Rajasthan, 19th century

Two small wooden boxes of rectangular and octagonal shapes are the next objects of discussion, which illustrates an interesting example of 20th century folk style painting. Some of the popular Rajasthani subjects have been illustrated on a brown and red background. The rectangular box has three inner divisions which gives the impression that it could also be a scribe box. It depicts the story of Laila-Majnu on a brown background (Plate 12.10). The outer case of the box depicts Laila-Majnu, wherein a man in a garden is shown smoking a huqqa along with an another horse rider and a camel rider, while the top portion shows a man, probably Majnu, resting with a women, perhaps Laila, while other warriors are about to attack them. The octagonal box has small in-built legs with religious motifs such as a rosary, holy books etc. (Plate 12.11). Depiction of Lord Shiva, Ganesha, Vaman, the scene of samundra- manthan and courtly scenes are depicted all around the box. The lid of the box depicts the scene of Krishna steeling butter from the gopis. Group of three small size fragmentary panels are the last one to be discussed in this paper, which could be from Marwar or Jaipur School probably dated to late 18th to early 19th century. These panels depict floral patterns rendered in naturalistic manner on a black or golden background. Colourful flowers, arranged in rows are beautifully portrayed in these panels. Such flower buties are very common in borders of Rajasthani miniature paintings and in printed textiles. These panels could be a part of a palanquin seat or a throne as it appears on one side of the panel, which has a decoration on both the sides and is slightly curved from the center (Plate 12.12). The small surface of the rectangular panel painting is composed of two parts, broad upper and lower narrow portions. One side of the upper portion depicts three men hunting a lion within an oval frame, which is further encased within rectangular double borders of red colour and floral creepers in between. The other side is decorated with three roundels set within rectangular frames, arranged in a row. A similar kind of a floral composition within roundels is seen on one of the side panels of Raja Man-Singh's throne depicted in a famous painting of Raja Man Singh's raj tilak (coronation ceremony). This painting depicts the coronation ceremony of Raja Man Singh, which took place in 1804 CE and is housed in the Mehrangarh Museum Trust. Painted by the court painter Amar Das, it shows Raja Man Singh sitting on a golden throne in an open courtyard under a canopy surrounded by courtiers and women. The lower narrow portions, of both the sides, illustrate small red-white flower buties with green floral creepers on golden background. This portion was probably fixed on the side frame of the throne.

Panels, mirrors, boxes all these paintings show the colourful and lively illustration of painting of Marwar, Bikaner and Jaipur Schools of Rajasthan. The use of bright colours, powerful line drawing for illustrating Hindu deities, human and animal representation are closer to the miniature painting tradition which was once profusely executed on paper or cloth.

Pl.12.10: Laila-Majnu story on a rectangular box, Rajasthan. 20th century

Pl.12.11: Octagonal depicting Hindu Gods and other scenes, Rajasthan, 20th century

Pl.12.12: Floral decoration on a rectangular panel, Marwar/Jaipur, Rajasthan, 19th century

Notes and References 'R. Parimoo, Rajasthani, Central Indian, Pahari and Mughal Paintings: (N.C. Meta Collection) Vol I-II (Ahmedabad; 2013); N. Misra, Splendours of Rajasthani Paintings: Gulistan of Alwar School (Delhi:2008); R.Crill, Marwar Paintings (Delhi: 1999); Daljeet, Immortal Miniatures: From the Collection of National Museum (New Delhi: National Museum, 1996); S.N Jai, Splendour of Rajasthani Painting (Delhi: 1991); A. Coomaraswamy, Catalogue of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Part-5: Rajput Painting (Boston: Boston Museum of Fine Arts, 1927). 1. Jaitly, Crafts Atlas of India. Delhi; A. Nath and Francis Wacziarg (1987). Arts and Crafts of Rajasthan. (Ahmedabad: 2012). 'Census ofI ndia (1901), 218. 'Author is thankful to Dr. Naval Krishna, former Deputy Director, Bharat Kala Bhavan for sharing this information. 'Author had gathered this information in a personal interview with traditional Rajasthani artists, who were skilled in painting on wood, besides other mediums in December 2012. `In the painted category, colours were applied all over the object. In painting category, on the prepared smooth surface (any medium) painting is done with the help of colour and brush. 'The length of these panels varies from 2.5 to 3ft. and width remains approximately 1 ft. 'Raga poems written in Sanskrit or vernacular languages describe in words the feelings evoked by a raga or musical mode. This group consists of five, six or seven notes arranged in a specific sequence, which expresses a mood (joy, yearning, etc.), and a season and a time of day or night. Each Ragamala usually consisted of thirty-six or forty-two leaves and was organized in a system of families where each family was headed by male (raga), who had several wives (raginis) and sometimes sons (ragaputra) and or daughters (ragaputris) Daljeet, V.K. Mathur and R. Shah, Fragrance of Colours (New Delhi: National Museum, 2003), 3-4. "Author is thankful to Dr. Daljeet, former curator (Painting), National Museum, New Delhi for help and guidance in identifying the ragas and raginis. 20. Diamond, Garden and Cosmos: The Royal Paintings of Jodhpur (USA: 2008), p1-20. Ibid.,p1-39 J.M. Dye, The Arts of India: Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (USA: 2001), 292-97. A similar style of an enthroned painted Ganesha with his vahana (vehicle) is housed in the personal collection of the Maharaja of Bikaner. This painting is attributed to the artist Hashim. Jaipur School at Bikaner, late 18th century. Gouache and tooled gold on wasli, 17.7 x 12.8cm.<www.Indianminiaturepainting.co.u1c/Bikaner_Ganesha_Hashim_16410.html> "Diamond, 31. First published in Rajasthani Miniature Painting- Tradition and Continuity, National Museum Institute

The Sarprakshak Training Program was organized in Pune and Ahmedabad by Craft Revival Trust in association with Jeevika. The aim of the workshop was to train the snake charmers as snake educators. The snake charmers were taken to the Zoo in Ahmedabad, exposed to lecture-demonstrations at the Pune Snake Park. They interacted with forest officers to educate them about wildlife laws. This was crucial as there is a ban on the snake charmers occupation as per the Wildlife Protection Act. The focus of the Sarprakshak project is to use the traditional knowledge of the snake charmers for conservation. Over 30 lectures were organized by the country’s leading snake experts and 21 snake charmers traveled from Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi to attend the workshop.

The piece below is by Raju Paswan, Community Coordinator, Sarprakshak Project. He has been working closely with the snake charmers and shares some of his experiences here. Prior to this workshop, whenever the name of the Jogi Nath snake charmers was mentioned the popular image of men with snakes draped around their necks, arms and in cane baskets in their bags would arise in my minds eye. My vision would blur with the image of thousands of snakes. Upon encountering and working with the snake charmers I came to realize that there was nothing to fear from them, that they were men just like me, earning a living, keeping alive their traditional livelihood. During the workshop my association with the snake charmers grew to a level where they showed their acceptance of me by referring to me as ‘Raju Nath’, awarding me the status of an honorary member of their community, a sign of their friendship and respect. 21 snake charmers (sapehras) between the ages of 25 and 60 participated in the workshop. They were actively involved in the various sessions, carefully listening to the information being provided them and actively responding with their own views and opinions. The sapehras were a well of information about their community and entertained us with oral narratives which are part of their culture. Though the snake charmers are commonly known for their acts with the snake, I was mesmerized by the skill of the sapehras with the been (bamboo flute used by the snake charmers) whose rhythm and beat had everyone swaying to the tune. They are also skilled in treating snake bites and have an immense knowledge of the medicinal properties of herbs and plants. The organizers learnt that the charmers were initially reluctant to come to the workshop and they feared legal action might be taken against them (Note: snakes are declared endangered species and under the Wildlife Protection Act, anyone caught with a snake can be prosecuted). But they were put at ease as the workshop addressed these issues and alleviated their fears. It was explained that the workshop was to help them to adapt their skills for a more viable employment opportunity while protecting their traditional knowledge. During the workshop the sapehras were asked to work in groups to make suggestions and responses to the topics in discussion. I found myself facilitating the groups’ productivity, understanding group dynamics and encouraging all members to participate. Rather then passively listening to the lectures the snake charmers were active in suggesting what they may do alternative to catching snakes. One day Roshan Nath (participant) suggested that as keeping and showing snakes is illegal and that the snake charmers are untrained for other work the perhaps the government can provide them with the task of protecting snakes. The sapehras repeatedly mentioned their love and respect for snakes and that their sense of community and identity stems from their work. Beyond my role as coordinator of the workshops I also became their friend, mentor and audience. After the days workshops would be over they would come to me and want to talk about what had been discussed, air their views and ask for clarifications. Though their chatter was constant I was constantly amused and entertained. I found that our endeavor to initiate a dialogue and mutual learning was achieved.

The Harivansha, Gita Govinda and Vishnu, Bhavata, Bharmavaivart Purana are a few important texts which talk in detail about Krishna’s life and his spiritual teachings. These teaching were propagated through religious teachers, priests and saints in different periods in their own ways. Various stories from Krishna’s life, his lilas (his deeds/performances towards the human being) became the source of inspiration for the artists to carve, or put in paint the life stories on stone, bronze, terracotta, paper or cloth, which became the most effective way to reach the common man. Interestingly, weavers and embroiderers also followed the path of other artisans and they made a number of pichhavais, Odhanis, dusbalas, coverlets, hangings etc. which illustrate various life-scenes of lord Krishna though weaving, printing and embroidery work. Krishna in textiles is usually represented in his famous posture of Venugopal through weaving. Episodes of Krishna’s life were illustrated in Kalamkaries through printing and painted techniques. The maximum depiction of Krishna’s life scene was done through the embroidery work of different regions. The most popular motif often found in textiles is the Rasamandal or Rasa through embroideries in Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat, painting on Nathadwara picchavais, and machine made lave pichhavai. Authors have discussed sculptures, terracottas and paintings at length but Rasa on textiles attracted little attention. Rasa as a subject, as a motif is difficult in weaving, but it is beautifully illustrated on embroidered rumals/coverlets from Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat; it has stylistic variations-painted and lace pichhavais. There are few points in this context, which will be examined here. Before going to the subject of Rasa in textiles in detail, brief explanation of the concept of ‘Rasa’ as discussed in literature is necessary. ‘Rasa’ or ‘circle dance’ of Lord Krishna with gopis (cow herds) on the Autumn Moon is one of the most passionate lilas of Bhagwan Shri Krishna, Which is full of life, yet close to God. The most appropriate meaning of Rasa is that the ‘gopis’ are individual souls (jivatmas) and ‘he’ is the supreme soul. (Paramatma) their love is the longing of the individual for the divine. All impediments must be removed before the union takes place. Artistic composition of such a highly philosophical subject is well conceived and transcribed by the Indian artists as reflected in various art forms. Artists had portrayed the subject as beautifully as narrated in literature. The usual depiction of Rasa as it appeared in different mediums is that of Krishna dancing, with the gopis in circle around the seated or standing image of Krishna who is sometimes with Radha. Musicians, drummers, plants, trees, birds, moon etc. are often portrayed around the Rasa to give the ambience of forest. The whole composition is done within a square frame, which adds to the beauty and the artistic sense of the artist.

Any motif, when it starts from the temple (our temples have the credit of introducing most of the art motifs) and reaches the common man makes evident the real achievement of the artist. Almost a similar thing happens with the Rasa motif. Starting with stone sculptures it reached the hands of the women of Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat who expressed it in the form of delicate embroidered coverlets which makes clear the popularity of the subject. As Rasa motif is often found in embroideries, and embroidery is considered to be a folk art so it is a real achievement of the artist that he had made the complex motif in such an easy way that it communicated even the spiritual meaning effectively. Carving of the Rasa motif in relief, on the plain surface of stone and terracotta, or making the colourful painting on paper is easy in comparison to weaving. First we will consider Rasa as it appeared on different textiles. The embroiderers of Himachal Pradesh generally exploit this motif by doing embroidery on rumal, better known as ‘Chamb rumal’. Apart from Chamba rumal this motif is quite often found on ‘Chaklas’, embroidered coverlets, of Gujarat. Two types of pichhavais are also found with the similar motif, one is painted pichhavai and the other is, the machine made lace pichhavai. Before the study of numerous Rasas on Chamba rumal, let us consider the Chamba rumals of Himachal Pradesh. The most picturesque and colorful embroidery was done on Chamba rumals of Himachal Pradesh, which gained popularity around 18^th -19^th century. The best-known rumals are from Chamba, probably they were made at Chamba and hence it got the name of Chamba rumal. Usually these rumals are embroidered on white hand spun muslin cloth (the use of coloured rumals is also attested, National Museum has red coloured muslin Chamba rumal) with colorful floss silk of untwisted threads. Double satin and chain stitches are the main stitches used for embroidering these rumals which give the effect of do-rukha or double sided. Sometimes it becomes difficult to identify the reverse side of the rumal, which is its beauty. These rumals were made for covering the gifts offered to bridegroom from bride’s side or vice versa at the time of marriage, or as cover to the offering made to God. ‘Folk’ and ‘Classical’ are the two types of Chamba rumals, which were found simultaneously during the 18^th 19^th centuries. As far as the patterns and motif are concerned. Depiction of the Rasa motif is most popular, other motifs are inspired by Krishna’s life-scenes, Siva, Rama, Hanuman, Hunting, Nayika-bheda and geometric designs. The National Museum has several Chamba rumals in its collection, which depict the Rasa theme both in folk and classical style. Both types of rumals beautifully illustrate the Rasa motif in their own way. It is very difficult to draw a line between the folk and classical style, still, by placing together and studying them thoroughly it can be said that there is a drastic contrast between them. In comparison to the classical style, the folk style of rumals often show the poor lines drawn in bright colours, even the embroidery work (stitches) is done in a very rough manner. After studying the folk style of Chamba rumals, few observations can be made about them. Mostly, the folk style Chamba rumals (which are in larger numbers in comparison to classical ones) depict four or five pairs of Krishna and gopis, in dancing posture. These figures do not give the clear facial features; the human figures are done in folkish style. In some of the rumals it becomes very difficult to identify the figures of Krishna and gopis. Generally, Krishna is embroidered in the centre, but sometimes, the floral motif is also done in the centre. Most of these rumals are done on coarse cotton cloth embroidered with bright colour silken threads. The National Museum has several such rumals. One such rumal depicts four pairs of Krishna and gopis dancing around the Vishnu figure (PI. 1). Here the artist had made both the figures in similar fashion; both wear long tunic type langha, choli and patka. The blue colour of the face and crown indentify Krishna. The Gopis and Krishna are dancing, holding a flower in hand. The usual floral creeper borders is done in colourful manner. Depiction of animals and birds are around the Rasa and side borders. Double satin and cross-stitches are used for embroidering the patterns, while edges are worked in buttonhole stitches. Cotton cloth has been used for embroidery and interestingly there is a triangular seal, which reads, “FINLAY CAMBELL & Co. MANCHESTER” On the basis of line work, done in folk style, the embroidery work, and the use of bright colours, this rumal can be dated to the first quarter of the 20^th century. Some of the rumals are worked in the folk style but done in a relatively better way from artistic point of view. The National Museum has one such rumal which depicts four pairs of dancing couples around a seated Vishnu image within a circle (PI. 2) on the muslin cloth. Treatment of dancers and their facial appearance indicate that it was done in folk style, but the balance of colours and the beautiful costumes make it a rather good quality work. The pattern is embroidered with double satin stitch, which is of a good quality when compared to the earlier one. Cross and buttonhole stitches are also used –all this appears to be of the last quarter of the 19^th century. So in folk style also rumals are done in the beautiful manner.

The second group of Rasa on Chamba rumals is of the ‘classical’ style, done in the most beautiful manner with good line work, soft subdued colours and good embroidery work. After studying the classical Chamba rumals depicting the Rasa subject a few observations may be made regarding its stylistic variation in regard to composition, movement and number of figures, colours, stitches, etc. These variations appeared because these were made in different periods and regions of Himachal Pradesh. The most common features in these rumals is that the artists of Chamba rumals have generally used blue colour for the depiction of Krishna (same as n paintings), Kesariya (yellowish orange) for depiction of Krishna’s dhoti. Gopi are portrayed in a colourful manner, usually in langha. Choli and odhani. Apart from similarity, some variations are also there.

First is the central figure in the rumals. Usually Krishna is depicted either scated or standing on a lotus in the innermost circle, sometimes we get Radha also along with Krishna. Apart from Krishna the lotus is also found in the innermost circle in some of the rumals. So it can be said that the depiction of lotus is the symbolic representation of Krishna. Besides these, there is an interesting Chamba rumal in the collection of the National Museum that represents the sun symbol in the innermost circle (PI. 3). This rumal depicts five pairs of Krishna gopis dancing around the sun. The large circular sun having flames all around is depicted with eyes, hair, mouth and moustache. All the dancers are in motion and interestingly they are holding sticks and playing with it in a fashion similar to the Guarati community’s ‘Dandiya Dance’ during the Navaratri Festival. The broad border illustrates the heavily embroidered floral creeper designs and are worked in bright colours. Use of bright colours, style of gopi’s costumes ornamention, jewellery and the use of double satin stitch (not with fineness) give the impression of its late workmanship, around first quarter of the 20^th century. The next important aspect that appears in the classical Chamba rumals is the number of dancing couples in the circle. Four pairs of dancers is the minimum number and the maximum is eight pairs. Quire often five, six and seven pairs of Krishna and gopis are found in these rumals. Early rumals generally depict four or five pairs of dancers and slowly and gradually it increase up to eight pairs. The National Museum has a very early rumal which depicts four pairs of dancers; all are holding each others hands while dancing (PI. 4). These are embroidered on fine muslin cloth in fine double satin stitch with Chinese threads. Extremely fine line work and use of soft subdued colours for dancer’s costumes suggest its date to first quarter of nineteenth century. In the number of dancers there is one rare and most important rumal in the National Museum collection (PI. 5). In this extremely rare Chamba rumal depiction of double circles of dancers around the seated Krishna and Radha figure, is noteworthy. Interestingly enough, seated Radha-Krishna is shown in the square frame instead of circular frame. In this rumal Krishna is dancing with gopis who had formed the two circles. This type of narration can be seen in some miniature/pichhavai paintings of Rajasthan. Loard Siva, Ganesha and Brahma are witnessing the dance of Krishna. Musicians, trees and peacocks are worked all around. Although the line work and style of embroidery are not of good quality and appear to be in folk style, still this type of double circle dance is rarely seen on textiles. It is an important work of art. The subject, narrative style, subdued coloured silk thread and stitches indicate its date around second quarter of the 19^th century.

The third point is the dancing posture of the dancers. In most of the rumals the dancers are depicted in two different postures while dancing. In the first style the dancers are shown dancing and facing each other, while in the second style these dancers do not face each other, they are depicted dancing behind each other. Another observation is that in some of the rumals dancers are depicted facing the inner most circle and in some rumals they faced the outer side. Next is the dancing movement of the dancers in the rumals. Usually, the steps of dancers are shown in movement, in rhythm, as if they are dancing on the fast music with full involvement. In a few early rumals dancers are shown in static form without any movement, as if they are dancing at one place only. It reminds the prevalent dance style of Himachal region where the movement of dancers is slow in comparison to Punjab areas, where the movement of dance is very fast. As noted earlier, the folk style rumals do not care for line work and therefore fee hand work can be seen. On the other hand, most of the classical Chamba rumals are done with extremely fine line work, which indicates that this kind of work is definitely done by the experienced and trained artists. By examining the line drawing, composition, subject, embroidery work and the colours it has been found that there is a close affinity between the classical Chamba rumals and miniature paintings of this region. The use of soft and subdued colours, well balanced colour contrast and the subject composition all point towards the workmanship of professional artists who were actively working in the courts of Himachal Pradesh. By now most of the scholars have accepted that Pahari miniature artists had done the line drawing of classical Chamba rumals. in this context there is an interesting point to be noted regarding the subject of Rasa. This Rasa motif is not found in Pahari miniature paintings as prominently as in the numerous Chamba rumals. The reason could be that the Pahari miniature artists who were working for the court of Himachal Pradesh probably were not free to work accordingly to their own choice. Artists had to follow the instructions of their masters; usually they were supposed to paint the rulers or the court activities or whatever their masters asked them to paint. And while making the rumals these artists were free to depict the subject of their own choice, which means that the subject of Rasa was close to a Pahari miniature artist, and that is why this subject is found so often in Chamba rumals. Apart from Chamba rumals, one more kind of embroidery, ‘Chakla’ of Gujarat, also illustrates the Rasa motif. ‘Chakla’ is the term used for square embroidered rumals, made of either cotton or satin silk base cloth and embroidered with silken threads. These Chakla were popular among the kati communities in Katihawad region of Gujarat in and around 8^th-19^th centuries. The Indian tradition of re-cycling things helps not to waste things, but indirectly it is a loss of old traditional things, especially in the field of handicrafts and handlooms, therefore early textile pieces cannot be found. Chakla is one such example, which was used for wrapping the gifts of bride often given to the bride by her mother. Later on these were used as hangings to decorate the bride’s new house or often converted into covers and stuffed with cotton. Usually, the Chaklas were embroidered with elongated darn stitches and a type of feather stitch. Later on, around the 20^th century, mochi craftsmanship was introduced and Chaklas were made in the chain stitch also. Generally, mochi embroiderers were engaged in the service of Kathi nobility of the period. They were employed mainly for preparing the embroidered articles for the dowry of the Kathi brides. The ground cloth of Chakla is generally of cotton or silk in indigo, red, orange, yellow or green colour. For embroidery, the artists always used the silk threads and the bright colours like red, yellow, green, maroon, white and black. These Chakla usually depict vividly subjects or motifs such as geometric patterns, flora-fauna and the Rasa. The National Museum has a beautiful Chakla that depicts the Rasa motif in the most colourful manner (PI. 6). Four pairs of dancing Krishna and gopis around the central figure of standing Krishna and Radha, is shown in the circle. All the four pairs are facing each other very passionately and with full involvement. Dancers are in full movement and they are holding, the stick in their hands. Around the Rasa there is the circular floral border and corners of the Chakla depict wrestling, a pair of peacock, parrot and monkey are on the other side. The Chakla is beautifully embroidered with close herringbone stitch and outlined with chain stitch on the yellow satin silk background, which has a purple border. This border depicts the floral creeper pattern in a colourful manner. An additional zari border is attached to the purple border which indicates that this Chakla may have been used for hanging after being used for wrapping gift. Its date appears to be around the first quarter of the 20^th century.

It will be interesting to compare the Rasa on both the rumals as these have some similarities and some differences. Before discussing the similarities let us see the differences. The basic difference between the two rumals is the base fabric. Muslin cloth had been used for embroidering the Chamba rumal while coarse cotton or satin silk has been used for embroidering the Chakla. It may be noted that double satin stitch is generally used in Chamba rumals and mochi stitch is frequently used in Chakla. Colours used for embroidering the Chamba rumals are soft and subdued, while Chaklas were generally of bright colours. As compared to differences, there are more similarities. The first and the foremost similarity between both the rumals is their utility. Both rumals are for covering gifts during the marriage used. Next is size. The Chamba rumal and the Chakla are quite close to each other. The usual size of the Chamba rumals is 78x77 cm. and the size of Chakla is 79x80 cm. The third point is, that in Chamba rumals the floral creeper border is done to make the square frame that is used as the main pattern for decorating the rumal. This is the case of Chakla also. The subject of both the rumals also has a few motifs common to each other, such as geometric forms, ogee, flora and fauna and Rasa. Now let us look at the Rasa rumals. In both the rumals composition of Rasa subject is done in similar manner. Depicting the four pairs of Krishna and gopis within circular frame, movement of dancers, depiction of Krishna and Radha in the innermost circle in Chakla – all these are worked in the same style as in Chamba rumal. By comparing other things also it appears that there are ore similarities in composition, design and size. It will not be out of context to mention the discovery of B.N. Goswamy regarding the original homeland of Chamba Miniature artists. Prof. Goswamy is of the opinion that some of the miniature artists of Chamba had come from Saurashtra as mentioned in the “Babis of Pandas” of Haridwar. If this theory is accepted then the reason of similarities in both the rumals is clear. Probably some Gujarati artists, who settled in Chamba, Combined their own traditions with the local traditions to produce the rumals. Next are the two pichhavais (used as hangings behind the images of gods in the shrine),- the painted pichhavai and lace pichhavai. Painted, embroidered or woven, large (around 121 to 315 cm) pichhavais, were used as hanging at the back of the image. Sometimes these were used to decorate the temple and walls, especially during, the ceremonies, related to Krishna, which were the main features of the vallabhacharya had founded this sect. Usually painted on dark blue or white cotton cloth, these pichhavais were painted with white grey, blue-black, yellow and orange colours with touches of silver and gold dust. These large pichhavais depict vividly Krishna’s life and different festivals related to Krishna. Among a number of festivals (there are 24 main celebrations) depiction of Rasa or Sharda Purnima festival is the most popular one, which usually shows Krishna dancing with gopis in the grove. In some of the Nathadwara style pichhavais the number of gopis is more. There are groups of musicians around the Rasa. In some of the pichhavais, the border is quite broad. This border is divided into several sub-sections, which illustrate the life-scenes of Krishna. Painted Rasa pichhavais were very popular because of their colorfulness and good line drawing work.

Second, the lace pichhavais were made in Germany for export purpose. This type of work was very popular in northern Germany in the 18^th and 19^th centuries. At first designs were made by hand and later on these were woven with machine. These lace pichhavais depict several eposdes of Krishna’s life like, Dana Ekadashi, Nauka Vihar and Rasa. The National Museum has beautifully made cotton lace pichhavai depicting the Rasa (PI. 7). This pchhavai illustrates eight pairs of Krishna and gopis, but here the number of gopis has been increased. Instead of eight gopis with eight Krishnas sixteen gopis are depicted. Two gopis are standing on either side of Krishna, which is the style of Nathadwara painting. Radha and Krishna are dancing in the centre. All the figures are worked in Nathadwara style costumes and crown. Peacock and peahen are dancing while musicians are standing in the corner. The border depicts rows of cows and dancing peacocks. Usually these cotton lace pichhavais are made in white colour and to give a clear view, the artists took the support of dark colour cotton lining. Made by the foreign weavers on the basis of the patterns and compositions, which were supplied by the Indian artists, these pichhavais were very interesting. Thus the subject of Rasa has been examined and found that the embroidered, painters and lace weavers mostly used this subject. But to articulate and transcribe the Rasa motif through weaving in traditional Indian textiles is very difficult, because weaving has its own language, chemistry and manipulation, which is a long, lengthy and complex process. Execution of a motif from the artist’s mind to a weavers loom is complex path. In brief, the first stage of crating the motif is doing the pattern with line drawing on paper, done by the artist. The second stage is the transformation of the motif form paper to graph, indicating the same colour scheme as depicted in the drawing. In the third stage the graphed motif is converted on gata (hard paper) by punching. Now accordingly this punched gata is tied with Naksha and jala is prepared. Once the jala is prepared the pattern comes out automatically, while weaving on the loom.

Now let us examine the case of Rasa motif in brocade textiles in the background of complexity of weaving, Indian has a tradition of brocade from very early days. The zari brocades that have ome down to us are from the 16^th century onwards. As far as the patterns or motifs found on saris and odhani are concerned it is found that Indian weavers had woven the most figurative patterns onn loom. Baluchar of Bengal, Patola of Gujarat, Banaras, Gujarat and Kanchivaram brocade are the few best examples of Indian brocade textiles. These woven fabrics illustrate human figures on train, a number of persons riding on a train, a number of persons riding on a boat, horse rider, Nawab smoking a buqqa, flora and fauna, kalka, jala, buta, buti, etc. in spite of such a figurative depiction none of them ever illustrates the Rasa motif, although the illustration of the medallion in silk and zari weaving does appear in Banaras and Gujarat brocade of early 20^th century. Char-bagh type Banaras brocade adhani depicts the beautiful medallion in four colours. These odhanis illustrate the floral creeper designs in between the medallions. Gujarat brocade sari depicts the medallion near the pallu, the end piece of a sari. Generally this medallion depicts the floral creeper, sometimes it depicts row of lions in movement (PI. 8). But they do not illustrate the Rasa motif in Zari brocade weaving. Probably this motif is very complex to weave as a pattern. To make a minimum four to five pairs of human figures in motion, that too within a circular frame and treatment of human figures facing each other is very difficult to create, since the usual practice of making the motif/pattern is one block of motif, which is repeated all over the fabric to create the entire design. And the entire pattern comes all over the fabric for the design. Probably it is difficult to create a pattern that has limitations in carrying out several figures within the circular frame. Similar to brocade medallions there is one more variety of medallions found in the dye odhani of Saurashtra and Kachchha. Fabrics used for odhani were generally made of satin silk or cotton. Usually the entire Odhani is decorated with figurative designs, floral creepers, parrots, elephants and a medallion in the centre. The medallion generally ill.

Two important marks of luxury are customization and hand-work. Paradoxically, craft is often valued as inexpensive. How do we bridge this gap so that the artisan benefits, so that we can insure that quality hand work will continue? What is the most ethical way to engage artisans in luxury work? When I originally made this presentation, it was as a keynote address for the International Textile and Apparel Association. At that time, I was asked to consider the role of textile artisan work in the fast-emerging “creative economy.” I had to think on that. Traditional craft in the contemporary world is an evolving relationship. Society evolves, the market evolves-- at an ever faster pace. Artisans try to keep up their own evolution, with integrity. There is an inherent challenge, however, because craft is NOT fast. The stage at which we have arrived, which is just that: considering traditional craft in the context of the creative economy, is the most challenging yet. I do not yet have solutions, but I am working on defining the points we have to address… To me, the key point is Value. While we celebrate the unique, how do we insure that we also value it? There is a range of craft practiced today, from traditional to professional/ commercial. I am focusing on traditional crafts, those that are an integral part of culture, and express identity and cultural heritage, and those that are designed as well as made by the artisan. I believe that we need to address traditional craft to keep genuinely valuable hand work not only alive but evolving. We know there is a market for good, tradition-based craft, (which is also called "folk art.") In India, we are blessed with a robust urban domestic market. In addition, a growing number of artisans from India, and all over the world, have had the opportunity to attend The International Folk Art Market| Santa Fe, now considered the apex of the traditional craft market. The IFAM |SF has been growing since 2004. Here are some statistics for 2015: 173 folk artists from 57 countries 19,000 visitors $2.9 million of folk art sold in 21 hours Average booth sales over $20,000 This is some good evidence that there is a market- and value- for craft with excellent design, production and market readiness. But the Santa Fe Folk Art Market’s reach is limited. What percentage of world artisans would 173 be? And a number of these artisans are returnees who have come to depend on the market for a comfortable livelihood. If we want to celebrate the unique, how can the other thousands of artisans all over the world find a market to value their work so that they can increase their income to an equitable and sustainable level? Because in many places, when artisans cannot earn equitably, they simply leave craft. How are artisans going to market? We can we learn a lot from the International Folk Art Market. It celebrates- and values the unique. The event has been voted #1 art festival in the USA and a top 20 must-see event globally! Buyers fly in from all over the country and the world to experience this event, when surely they could buy craft closer to home. One key to its success is the personal, joyful connection between maker and user-- the original essence of traditional craft. But, where to go from here? One thing I hear continually is "scaling up craft production." Funding agencies overtly or covertly make this a prerequisite for fundable projects. Sometimes scaling up is mentioned in the same breath as lauding the personal aspects of craft! I keenly question the fit of "large scale" and "Folk Art." Is this simply an assumption based on an industrial-oriented society? Who is asking for scale in craft? Do Artisans want scale? Traditionally, craft was never done in big scale. In fact, in Kutch it was a part-time occupation, practiced in lulls of the agricultural cycle. The consumers, traditionally, were well known and production was close to customized. My concern is that scaling up will extinguish the essence of hand made craft. If craft is mass-produced, what is the meaning of hand work? Did we not invent machines to do just this: mass produce? The next question is, how much do artisans need to produce to be economically viable? I asked the three SKV artisans who participated in the IFAM| Santa Fe in July 2015 their views on scale. Interestingly, they represent three levels of scale: Junaid, a block printer does large-scale work. He said, "There is demand for scale, and an advantage, but it requires standardization, accurate costing, and a good capital base. We have both scale and quality, but we have problems with colour variation. So we work with customers who accept this. Abdulaziz, a bandhani artist, has increased his scale to mid-range. He said, "With increase in scale, there is a compromise in quality. We need and want to increase scale. But the question is, how to do it and keep the quality?" Dahyalal, a small scale family production weaver, said, "I don't believe in large scale for craft. It is then not craft." Scaling up is the industrial model, with the goals of faster, cheaper, and more standard production. For craft and artisans, growth must engage the vital aspects of traditional art:

First, folk art is hand made. It is the creation of the human hand guided by the human spirit.
Folk art is slow, labour intensive,
Folk art limited in production- or one of a kind, and full of quirky character.
Folk art has meaning. It is the expression of cultural heritage and identity.
Traditionally, folk art is crafted of natural materials, with ecologically sound practices.
Folk art is produced in rural, remote regions of the world.

If artisans are not interested in scale, is it craft consumers who want scale? Most often, the customer for craft is not interested in mass production; that is why s/he is buying craft. An informative study of craft markets done by the Craft Council of England in 2010 elaborates on what craft consumers want.[1] First, in England craft consumption is significant. 63% of the population consumes £913m/ of craft a year. Craft consumers tend to be women, educated, older, culturally active, open and independent thinking. More important, the study defines cultural consumption and it correlates craft buying choices to current consumer trends. English consumers value craft in terms of authenticity, quality, workmanship, and personal touch. In a time termed the Era of Consequences, consumer demand has shifted towards value-centered products that meet emotional as well as functional needs. People buy craft as a unique and also ethical route for consuming objects. They consider craft buying as an experience, and a new way of signaling connoisseurship. In short, scaling up hand craft production will not likely meet the needs of these consumers. The study I am citing was Euro-centric, where there is a sense of "creative economy," and hand craft is relatively rare and perceived as valuable. In applying its findings to traditional craft in developing countries there are some significant differences. In India, for example, craft is not so rare. There are large numbers of traditional artisans (as well as others who have acquired craft skills). Foremost in this scenario is the core issue of value, which becomes aggravated with scaling up craft. In the social hierarchy of India, working with one's hands is equated with low social status. In order to create a greater supply of lower value craft, Master Artisans, those who are economically stronger, employ other artisans as job workers at the lowest possible wages. This further reinforces the perception that the artisan is a laborer. Thus the artisan as well as the craft is de-valued. India is not yet conscious of a creative economy. Although- as in the West- machines have taken over the work of the essential, craft continues to be considered in terms of productivity. Government policies view craft as languishing, an inferior type of production, and subsidize handloom artisans to produce plain white cotton-polyester sheets for the Indian Railways, and yardage for children's school uniforms. Higher value products such as saris and scarves are woven by power looms. Clearly, the essential characteristics of craft that are valued by consumers in England are not yet well recognized! In addition, because artisans are perceived as anonymous workers- hands without heads. many good artisans aspire to not working but supervising others- the Peter Principle. But, the cultural consumption market is not primarily price conscious. So, thinking from the needs of both artisans and consumers, can we think of enhancing value rather than volume? This would mean better wages and better quality of life for more people- horizontal expansion Genuine enhancing of value for craft begins with perceptions of artisan and craft, from the perspectives of artisan, society and consumer. Thinking on this, and beginning with self worth of the artisan, I launched design education for traditional artisans of Kutch, which I have run for a decade. Design is recognized as valuable-- til now, more valuable than craft. It was in directing the program, that I realized that a key result of the education was to encourage the unique. In 135 graduates, we had clear success in individuals emerging in better markets-- and no duplication. After operating the design course for 8 years, I realized that to reap full economic benefit, a bit of business was also needed. So in 2014, I started a course in Business and Management for Artisans. The key learning from this course was the importance of ownership, which dramatically increased capacity, and the value of artisan and craft. Both courses end in public events. Fashion shows compel the public to value craft and artisans in other ways. Student- planned and implemented exhibitions in prestigious venues in Mumbai provide immediate confirmation of increased value. Design and entrepreneurship tap individual creativity and unquestionably generate higher value, as well as diversity. Diversity has in turn expanded the market. Artisan designers have increased their income from 10 to 600% and enjoyed new opportunities. Significantly, when asked when they felt their craft was most valued, several artisans responded, "When we are teaching." Education for artisans has increased the value of the unique among artisans in one region of a developing country. From this microcosm, we zoom out to the original question: where are artisans with increased capacity going to market their work? Or, perhaps this can be re-worded: how are artisans going to tap that craft market that we have begun to define? I would like to think of creating a model from the original situation- scaling out, rather than up. This would look like small-scale artisan designer entrepreneurs creating one of a kind or limited edition, highly valued craft. The amount of work produced would be about the same- maybe more! But diversity, de-centralization, ownership, and value would be increased, and benefit would be widely shared. To build such artisan enterprise, we need to develop an appropriate market. Arjo Klamer, Priyatej Kotipalli, and others at Erasmus University write of nurturing a Creative Craft Culture.[2] In such a culture, crafts would encompass what we are achieving through education for artisans: -Young people viewing the creative crafts as a career worth striving for -Strong traditions of apprenticeship -A strong sense of tradition, -Recognition of the masters; fair and effective -A strong sense of collegiality among creative craftspeople -A spirit of creativity and innovativeness -A strong appreciation of entrepreneurship - Core values and a clear sense of mission (promoting and sustaining quality, contributing to a joyful and inspiring life) Equally critical for this culture are: -people who know the world of creative crafts -appreciation of creative quality -willingness to pay -Significant local demand as well as international interest- So, what Artisans- and craft consumers need is a network of venues in congruence with unique work. Imagine a marketing organization that comprises small, unique venues across the country…. Or the world. The point of developing local demand is an important one. It will insure broad sustainability. To raise the value of craft to that of design, Marketing is essential. Consumer trends indicate directions --targeting consumers of luxury goods who are looking to signal connoisseurship in new ways, and people with ethical or ecological motivations. Do we dare to market traditional craft as valuable for its creativity, authenticity, and uniqueness, and as luxurious for its limited edition, bespoke quality? The final, critical third component in developing a Creative Craft Culture is: strong intermediaries- in addition to special shops, experts, journalists, scholarship, and intensive discussions of the works of creative crafts people. Success is first determined by experts, then by others who pay attention and are able and willing to pay the price. As a wonderful example, three Somaiya Kala Vidya artisan designers- Dahyalal Kudecha, Abdulaziz A. Khatri, and Khalid Amin Khatri- were included in the contemporary design section of a major exhibition at the V&A Museum in UK, Fabric of India. Not only that, but it has been noticed and discussed! We all can play a part in building a Creative Crafts Culture, insuring that unique craft traditions are not just celebrated but also valued, and insuring that artisans benefit equitably in the process. [1] McIntyre, Morris Haargreaves, Consuming Craft: the Contemporary Craft Market in a Changing Economy. London: Crafts Council of England, 2010. [2] Klamer, Arjo, Priyatej Kotipalli, Lili Jiang, Dr. Anna Mignosa, Prof. Dr. Kazuko Goto, and Thora Fjeldsted , "Crafting Culture: The importance of craftsmanship for the world of the arts and the economy at large." Erasmus University, June, 2012.

Issue #10, 2023 ISSN: 2581- 9410 In the jurisdiction of design and production, there exists a contradiction that demands our immediate attention. As a design initiative, we keep designing products and mass produce them. What will happen to every product created, and where will they end up in 10–20 years or even longer? Few people can say we recycle. Can we recycle for a few more cycles after that? The answer would be waste generation. When we develop something, it could initially appear to be beautiful, but sooner or later it will end up as waste material dumped somewhere in the globe. So, it has become necessary to think about "slow," "sensible," and "sustainable" means of existence and modes of production.

Hill Cotton Cultivation at Nimmalavalasa village, Srikakulam District Desi cotton farming, hand spinning, hand processing, inexpensive indigenous technologies, and hand weaving are the finest examples of such alternatives. These methods not only encourage sustainable practises but also provide opportunities for livelihood. Additionally, you stress the importance of funding research and development, particularly with regard to domestic cotton production. Focusing on regionally grown cotton with low energy requirements and developing affordable, adaptable spinning and weaving technologies can enable communities and villages to embrace sustainable practises while generating income-generating opportunities.

Desi cotton farming in Shegeon area, Maharastra Insight- Enlightenment As Buddha said, it is all about living in the present and having awareness of our actions. But how aware are we of what we consume, what we wear, or what we do? When we take a closer look at this, we will know that we are ignorant in many ways. In our system, we constantly believe or are made to assume otherwise. In my own experience since I began working with cotton 23 years ago, I have come to realise how little we actually know about the material we use. In design education, we often learn certain things as facts and principles that become ingrained in our understanding. For example, in the case of cotton fibres, we are taught about staple length and how longer fibres are considered superior to shorter ones. We also learn about the importance of the right twist in yarn for consistency and stability. However, as we enter the world of professional design, the actual design process frequently consumes us. We focus on working with the available raw materials in yarn format, and we might not have the time or opportunity to fully explore the knowledge we learned in college. Artisans from various regions of the country have refined and preserved an astounding variety of textile art forms over centuries, creating the vast array of diverse handmade textiles produced in various regions of our country, each of which has its own distinct character, tradition, and appeal. An indication of its renowned importance is the fact that, at its peak, the Indian textile market accounted for more than 35% of the global market. These textiles were crafted using diverse Indian short staple cotton varieties sourced from different parts of the country. From Bengal's Muslin Jamdani to Maharashtra's Paithani, Andhra's ‘Pondur’ Khadi, Bihar's ‘Motayi’ fabrics and countless others. These textiles represented a rich tapestry of craftsmanship, techniques, and designs. For centuries, the Indian textile industry not only clothed the nation but also supplied fabrics to the entire world. However, it is disheartening to realise that this thriving industry unravelled in a relatively short span of less than a hundred years. Today, it stands as an underdog, grappling with various challenges. A look into the past Cotton, also known as Gossypium, has been grown in India for thousands of years. It has a rich history of cultivation, and various species have thrived in the country's diverse terrains. Before the British introduced American cotton to India in the late 18th century, the native varieties G. Arboreum and G. Herbaceum were prevalent. These Indian or desi cotton species had adapted to the local conditions over time and were well-suited to the region's climate and rainfall patterns. The British colonial rule had a significant impact on India's textile economy. They banned the export of finished Indian cotton fabrics to England and instead imported raw materials from India at lower prices. They also aimed to promote the cultivation of American cotton varieties, particularly G. Hirsutum, which had longer fibres suitable for the industrial mills in Manchester, England. Despite India gaining independence in 1947, the dominance of indigenous cotton species continued. At that time, more than 95 percent of the cotton grown in the country was still desi. However, the British had sown the seeds of change. In subsequent years, the Indian government favoured American cotton and actively shaped the seed market in its favour. They encouraged the adoption of high-yielding hybrid varieties of G. Hirsutum from the 1970s onward, marking the beginning of a shift away from indigenous cotton. The introduction of Monsanto's Bt cotton in India in 2002 further accelerated the transformation of cotton cultivation. Today, around 96 percent of cotton grown in India relies on Monsanto's seeds. These genetically modified seeds cannot be saved and replanted like traditional seeds. Instead, farmers are required to purchase new seeds each season, leading to increased dependence on seed companies. However, some indigenous cotton varieties have managed to survive and are still grown in India today. These local landraces, such as Konda patti, Erra patti, Kanrunganni, Jayadhar, Kala cotton, Naga cotton, and others, have persisted due to the continued practice of local hand spinning and hand weaving skills. These varieties contribute to the country's biodiversity and preserve traditional textile practices, which are significant for sustainability and cultural heritage. Desi cotton is grown successfully both as a single crop and as an intercrop alongside dal, potato, garlic, and chilli. Not much expenditure is needed for sowing or weed management. As it is a local strain, it has excellent disease- and pest-resistant qualities and also survives in the most severe heat conditions of the summer. Unlike hybrid cotton, this strain does not require too much water or any chemical pesticides. Even in dry soil conditions, this variety yields three to four quintals of cotton.

Fine count Hand spinning in Pondur village-Srikakulam District According to CICR, Nagpur possesses more than few hundred accessions of Indian cotton, but only 10 to 12 of the desi kinds created by scientists can be cultivated. However, there is no widespread commercial availability because demand is lower. It is clear from the practices in Maharashtra and Gujarat that farmers sought to return to desi varieties willingly after their prolonged struggle with BT cotton. When the majority of the cotton general crop (BT) was impacted by drought three years ago, desi varieties were able to withstand the drought and give farmers a moderate yield of cotton. Farmers could understand that although the leaves are reddening due to water stress, this desi cotton has fewer bugs than BT cotton. Additionally, the farmers get more benefit as Desi varieties continue to grow as their roots go deeper in search of water. Given the fact that desi cotton is significantly less expensive to produce than BT cotton, even if farmers only receive three quintals per acre, it is still worthwhile. Based on these findings, we realised that in order to work with indigenous cotton varieties, we needed to reach out to two different types of farmers: those who have been producing desi varieties for a long time and those who wish to revisit and investigate them. We wanted to investigate various desi cotton kinds from various locations to obtain some variety and see how the fibre might be spun and subsequently weaved. Collaboration with farmers and organisations to grow Desi Cotton The journey started with the collection of "Punasa" patti, or cotton, from S. Suramma in the Srikakulam district's Kishtappapeta. Every year, they grow cotton and sell it to women who use Gandhi charkhas to manually process and spin the cotton into yarn. They initially cultivated "Konda" patti, not even knowing that the kind had evolved into Punasa patti. Cotton, or Konda patti, used to be grown throughout the entire hamlet, but there are now only a few remaining. Konda patti is purchased from a farmer close to Nimmavalasa Village for about half a quintal.

Interaction with the spinners in Banthuvalasa Village, Srikakulam District Many farmers in the area were inspired to return to Desi and non-BT varieties by the tremendous efforts of Karuna Tai and Vasant Phutane of the Gram Sewa Mandal Trust (GSMT), Wardha, Maharastra. The old ginning and carding machines at GSMT further supported the farmers efforts to procure what they grow and process the short and medium staple cotton. However, the amber charkha spinning could not bring diversity or character to the yarn that was produced. But, as an organisation, we still have an immediate solution to process the desi cotton to fit the new spinning machinery without contaminating it with any other long staple. Cotton seeds are saved by farmers for the following year's crop, and some are offered to other framers. Farmers that grow Indian varieties are increasing in number each year. To investigate the spinning process, we gathered three cotton varieties: AK-6 (desi), Anmol (desi), and Videhi (brown-coloured cotton). Trijan Kala Sangham is an organisation that collaborates with organic cotton farmers. They grow two varieties in and around the Bathinda region: one kora and the other brown. Using locally farmed cotton, they are attempting to reintroduce hand spinning in that area. Because the kora cotton has a short staple, we procured some cotton from them to process and spin. The search for young cotton farmers willing to invest in Desi cotton varieties was ongoing. Mr. Vasant Phutane ji assisted us in meeting an interesting group around the Shegaon and Jalgaon districts of Maharashtra, led by Pratap Maarude, Manjit Singh, Sourav, etc. These young farmers realise the value of growing everything organically and are willing to take the risk of lower productivity. They liked the idea of adding value by processing raw cotton and spinning yarn at the grass-roots level. To minimise the risk, they were prepared to investigate combining cotton with other crops. They were given a few Desi seeds to experiment with in order to determine which seed best suits them and keep the cycle going. Learning from this experience and the way ahead 1. Cotton used as a raw material has to be precious, unlike BT cotton. Raw material used is extremely valuable. When a person uses their hands to create anything with love, whether it's farming, spinning, or weaving, why should the material they use is compromised? Awareness of material is very important and will further help to value and appreciate the process of doing the act and oneself in the long run. 2. Energy invested is precious In the cotton farming, we only discuss the yield, or how many quintals of cotton are produced, rather than the true investment, which is the amount of land resources that have been consumed. a. Water usage: Organic cotton cultivation uses far less water than conventional methods for a variety of reasons. When compared to conventional cotton, organic or indigenous farming practices can retain up to 30% more water in soils because they use natural methods to increase soil organic matter. Because chemical pollution is prevented, it also helps to improve the quality of the water. b. Chemical / fertiliser use: It's frequently misinterpreted how organic cotton growing and the use of synthetic chemicals and pesticides are related. Artificial chemicals are prohibited in organic farming, and the use of pesticides is strictly controlled. It relies on natural methods such as sustainable crop rotations, using wildlife to control pests and disease, and preserving nutrient-rich soils and resilient crops. For this reason, approximately 2.8 kilogrammes of hazardous pesticides and 363 kilogrammes of chemical fertilisers are avoided for each kilogramme of organic cotton produced. In India, 70% of the total pesticide production goes into cotton farming. c. Energy use: Surprisingly, it has been claimed that organic farming is associated with higher greenhouse gas emissions. Instead, cultivating cotton using organic methods results in significantly fewer emissions than doing so using conventional methods. Growing organic cotton does not add to the considerable emissions linked to the manufacture and use of such inputs because organic farming does not rely on fossil fuel-based fertilisers and pesticides. Additionally, humus, a permanent form of organic carbon, is very well stored in soils because of the natural farming techniques used in organic agriculture. As a result, compared to non-organic cotton, it is predicted that organic cotton has a 46% lower potential to contribute to global warming. d. Biotechnology: It has been claimed that applications of biotechnology, such as the use of genetically modified (GM) seeds, have contributed to efficiency gains and thus the overall sustainability benefits of conventional cotton farming. When it comes to cotton growing, the costs are not always financial. The negative environmental and social externalisation of conventionally grown cotton is not included in the final retail price. Supporting organic also means supporting a system that is dedicated to enhancing environmental protection, promoting a long-term and resilient cotton sector, and enhancing farmer livelihoods. Lower yield production is one of the main issues that constantly pops up when we talk about organically growing cotton. Clarity on this issue is important for understanding how far the lower social and environmental costs of organic cotton production are realised in any given practice. More focus on indigenous and perineal cotton The investment would be land and a little energy. When it comes to cotton growing, the costs are not always financial. The negative environmental and social externalisation of conventionally grown cotton is not included in the final retail price. Supporting organic means backing a system that works to improve environmental protection, foster a long-lasting and resilient cotton industry, and enhance farmer livelihoods. 3. Why can't cotton be a secondary crop in addition to being a primary crop? The expectation for cotton production will be reduced if cotton is the secondary crop because the farmer will already be assured income from the primary crop, which may be a food crop. It also prevents him from investing more in the fertilisers or chemicals that a farmer is often taught to use to produce more. Instead of being sold for a price determined by the market to ginning and spinning mills, the cotton crop will enable the locals to make a living locally. The experiments with growing cotton alongside other crops like gongura, kandi, and many others are shown in these photographs. Simple methods to promote friendly pests and thwart hostile pests. For better understanding, different natural manures are tested on the same plot of land. It is a procedure to comprehend alongside the farmer and investigate options within the constraints. 4. Why a decentralised process? Spinning or weaving? Why small-scale home-based workshops? In decentralised process, the control is in the hands of the people, and more individuals have access to opportunities that promote flexibility and diversity. A community or people can facilitate and support small technologies and workshops. Small workshops have the ability to make exclusive designs for every individual and every occasion (samay and sandarbh ke anusar). Small workshops don’t require extra time or money to make new design variations. Every home can be a workshop. It is a slow process where thought and improvisation take over. Man is given importance over systems, technology, and machines.

Meeting in KORA Office Chilakapalem-discussing desi cotton cultivation, hand spinning and weaving More than 90% of the khadi production done right now in India is done on Amber Charkhas. On an Amber Charkha, we have to have processed cotton in roving format to spin it into yarn. We usually look into just the spinning process done under any shed and the process is as easy as roving transforming into yarn on multiple spindles, and there is electric or solar support to further reduce the human labour. It is mandatory that Khadi societies procure roving and sliver from the Khadi sliver plants to give to spinners. The machines in these sliver plants are advanced export machines that are fast and only support and process long-staple American BT varieties. In a community, the farmer cultivates cotton; the spinner spins; and the weaver also weaves. The raw cotton is first spun into yarn, and the yarn is further woven into a cloth. This is what everybody imagines is the process and understands it as Khadi. But in reality, the cotton grown has to travel hundreds of kilometres to get ginned and further to Khadi sliver plants to be converted to sliver and roving. The processed roving has to travel all the way back to the villages to be spun and weaved. Amber charkha is setup in a way to spin a fixed count, and the roving is to be ordered as per the desired count. There is no flexibility in playing around with count number, or twist, unlike any other hand process. Spinners can do nothing until they receive roving cotton of that particular count to spin yarn. The only involvement would be labour to run the unit and piecing yarn when it breaks. The power and control lie with Khadi Sliver plants, which decide what variety of cotton it can process (definitely not desi varieties as they are short staple fibres), when it can process, and how it is going to process (some of the roving supplied by the sliver plants has poly-mix in it for faster production). Then how can one say that the system is sustainable or self-reliant when there is so much dependency and the power does not lie with the farmer, spinner, or weaver? Apart from this, Amber Charkhas produce consistent yarn with even thickness and a set twist, like any mill yarn. Then what makes the amber charkha yarn exclusive—the build-up story or the process followed? But not the character of the yarn spun. 5. The pre- process of farming, spinning and weaving are very important. A focus on an output-oriented approach will never allow us to look keenly into the pre-processing of any activity. Processing-stage decentralisation creates numerous possibilities. Decentralisation will not only help to have more control over each process but also offer flexibility.

Hank sizing and weaving of Finer handspun yarn in Nawadwipdham, Bengal Example: Some activities like bobbin winding, weaving, and sizing can be done at home, which gives us more flexibility and allows us to do a good production plan with limited resources. Decentralisation of professional activities, intersection, and interaction will lead to more possibilities and interesting results. There is the possibility of involving many people who can work together as a group, which means more power leading to easy and effortless diversity. 6. Domestic production and an increase in the local economy When everything happens locally as a result of the replacement of machines, the money reaches more hands. More hands and more money will strengthen villages. That will stop people from moving to the cities as labourers for work. 7. Mass production can never compete with something made by hand. For a country like India, small-scale production is always better than mass production (large scale production). Mass-produced or mill-made products lack unique character as the same design has to be produced in large numbers, unlike hand-made products, which gain solo attention and reflect the sensibilities of the person making them. 8. Not always about ‘make- sell’ but also about ‘make-use’: setting the context right. When products and marketing overtake the production process, it becomes very difficult for the primary producer to afford what he has woven or even think of wearing it. It is a psychological barrier for the weaver to own one for himself or herself, as they see the product as money.

Yarn exproration on decentralised spinning technology exploring flexibility in counts and twists It is not just the artisans; everybody should start making something with their hands. The act is not only to do with material, skill, practice, and learning but will also help to spend time with oneself. This may eventually earn respect for the people who practice it as a profession.

Hand spun yarn using Punasa desi cotton

Hand spun yarn using hill desi cotton 9. Relationship over a transaction More people coming together to do an act, their interdependence with each other, working within the constraints of nature to build a fine-tuned collective experience, is relationship. The progress cannot be just evaluated in comparison to what each person earns through participation; it must be seen as building collective knowledge and a collective economy. Market does not mean a big, bright, difficult-to-reach place where one sells the product for a higher price; it starts with us—ourselves, our community, our local market—who are aware of how and what is being made. A weaver not only needs a livelihood but also some appreciation to feel good about what he or she is doing, which only happens when there is a relationship between user and producer. The craft product market is not to fool somebody and make money, but to make people aware of what the artefact is, how to cherish it, let people dream about it and earn it, respect it, and keep it with lots of love and care.

Handspun yarn from different clusters Relationships will help us see beyond the beauty of an artefact. Learning more about it is the way to start seeing beyond the product. The more we understand and learn about the material, process, activity, and output, the more our perception of beauty or things that we appreciate changes drastically.

Considering all indigenous cotton production, it is less than 2–3% of the total production of cotton in India. In the next 10 years, if we want it to get to 10 to 15% alone, hand spinning may not be able to absorb such quantities of cotton. So it is important to invest in research and development—to invest in indigenous cotton varieties that consume negligible energy and to develop low-cost, flexible technologies for spinning and weaving that can be set up in any village with minimal investment and more livelihood opportunities. We should at least have 5–6 models from which any community or village can decide what to adopt.

Cotton Eco-System Farmer, spinner, and weaver should also start looking at cotton not just as a commodity but as a lively fibre, having patience in building better relationships with each other.

Gwalior Cluster, Uttar Pradesh

Products: Fur furnishing, rugs, mats, sofa and seat covers About the cluster: In the cluster there are approximately 400 looms engaged in manufacturing with annual production of about 50,000 square feet and amounting to nearly Rs. 3 crore. On average, a weaver can weave 100–120 sq ft in one shift and earn wages of Rs 70–90. As these products are economical and durable, there is a huge market potential across the country for them, and due to their resemblance to fur they are popularly known as fur products

Lawar Cluster, Meerut District

Products: Low-cost blankets, mats, prayer rugs, durries and cotton khes About the cluster: There are about 1000 weavers in the cluster who work on pit looms. Most weavers have average income between Rs. 1500–2400 per month. Only 75% looms in the area are in working condition and the remaining are idle due to insufficient funds for maintenance. The raw material for this cluster is acquired from various sources, like textile mills, the carpet industry and small garment manufacturing units. One of the most important raw materials used for the products is post-consumer unstitched apparel, like saris, dupattas, stoles and shawls.This also helps in recycling of post-consumer apparel, which otherwise gets discarded and ends up in landfill. There is better acceptability by the customers of this recycled apparel for goods made from their own clothing as opposed to the ones coming from unknown sources. Without much planning of design very versatile colour combinations are achieved. No wonder if some kind of design and management skills could be incorporated the end product would be highly appreciated even more. There are about 460 women involved in the profession of weaving in a total of 1,000 in the area. The women are also involved in other preparatory tasks and are now contributing in the whole process at almost all stages. The dependency of family income on women has led to women's empowerment.

Bijnor Cluster

Products: cord, ropes, rugs, durries, small mats, prayer rugs About the cluster: They are utilising fabric left over during various processes in the textile and apparel industry. Innovative methods are used to create products depending on available raw materials.

Rampur Cluster, Uttar Pradesh

Products: Decorative tents and canopies used on religious and ceremonial occasions to items like beach and garden umbrellas, lamp shades and wall hangings About the cluster: Ther are utilising cut pieces of cloth as appliqué. Depending on the existing market, product range is wide and contemporaries. Usually, the men cut the patterns while the women do the stitching.

Clusters of Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh

About the clusters: Bhojpur, Rustampur, Tigri, Sardarnagar and Ataria clusters of Moradabad are involved in one of the most economically viable solutions to recycle used apparel. An order for a durrie can be placed for Rs 40 and 3 kg of used clothing. The apparel is shredded into pieces, twisted to develop a thick yarn and inserted as weft on a nylon warp. The weaver's family produces approximately one durrie in one hour assuring a good family monthly income.

Bhojpur Cluster, Moradabad

Products: Floor covering, dhurries Rustampur , Moradabad Products : Floor coverings, rugs, dhurries Tigri, Moradabad Products : Dhurries, carpets, floor covering, mats Sardarnagar, Moradabad Products : Dhurries, carpets, floor covering, mats Ataria, Moradabad Products: Dhurries, carpets, floor covering, mats

First Published, August 2012, Craft Revival Trust

As members of the present generation, we are both trustees of the environment with obligations to care for it for future generations, and beneficiaries entitled to use it for our own economic and social well-being. (Weiss, 1993)Introduction The economic growth in India in the last decade has led to a significant increase in the numbers that make up the middle class. The increase in disposable income, coupled with consumerism, has led to increased consumption, posing a significant challenge in the form of waste management and its consequential threat to the environment. It is the obligation of the present generation to ensure that carbon emissions are reduced and future generations suffer less from climate change. It is in this context that sustainable development in all areas of our life through the 4R's – reduce, reuse, recycle and recover – gain increased significance.This study presents the sustainability models practised across the clusters of India, where used clothing is collected and products are made to order. It further analyses the work environment of a small cluster and presents recommendations for improving the economic well-being of the community.Sustainable development Sustainable development has been articulated in an easy to comprehend form by Donella Meadows as 'Good lives for all people in harmony with nature' (Meadows, 1998).Humanity stands at a defining moment in history. We are confronted with perpetuation of disparities between and within nations, a worsening of poverty, hunger, ill health and illiteracy, and the continuing deterioration of the ecosystems on which we depend for our well-being. Given this context, integration of environment and development concerns and greater attention to them will lead to the fulfilment of basic needs, improved living standards for all, better protected and managed ecosystems and a safer, more prosperous future. No nation can achieve this alone; but together we can – in a global partnership for sustainable development (Agenda 21, United Nations).The concept of sustainable development has suggested a synthesis between economic development and environmental preservation. One of the earliest approximations of the sustainable development concept was proposed in 1915 by Canada's Commission on Conservation: 'each generation is entitled to interest on the natural capital, but the principal should be handed down unimpaired'. Our understanding of the concept has matured since then, and we now recognise that social responsibility must be accounted for alongside economic progress and environmental care (Sonntag et al., 1999).One of the key sustainability issues/challenges in the clothing industry is fashion consumption – the increasing number of fashion items that we buy and then dispose of. The high street dynamics and fast fashion turnarounds mean that clothing has become more disposable. With textiles and fashion being so intertwined, it is almost impossible to see a scenario where 'reduce' will ever work out. In the complete sustainability equation, thus, the need of impacting the other three variables of reuse, recycle and recover becomes all the more important.Recycling for energy saving Recycling conserves energy that would otherwise be expended extracting virgin raw materials from the natural environment and transforming them to produce goods that can also be manufactured from recycled waste materials (Jeffery, 1996).In a UK-based study, the energy requirements in recycle/reuse of post-consumer goods were compared to the energy required in making new products from virgin materials. The results have been astonishing. The reuse of 1 ton of polyester garments only uses 1.8% of the energy required for manufacture of the goods from virgin materials and the reuse of 1 ton of cotton clothing only uses 2.6% of the energy required to manufacture those from virgin materials (Woolridge et al., 2006).Recycling as a model of sustainability Quality recycling and the cost of quality recycling is dependent on the waste dumping, collection and segregation processes, and the challenge lies in ensuring that the whole process of collecting and recycling should be sustainable and commercially viable. Freitag of Switzerland is an apt example of recycling being used in high fashion in a commercially viable business model. Freitag, a multimillion-dollar enterprise today, started with a humble beginning in a student apartment where two brothers started recycling used tarpaulins and other used materials, such as bicycle inner tubes and car seat belts, to create bags.

Another high fashion name using recycled material is Globe Hope Ltd. It uses existing materials to create unique clothing. The clothing is designed and produced from, for example, old hospital textiles, army and industrial uniforms, excess materials, or post-consumer goods. Globe Hope redesigns, cuts, sews, dyes or prints materials that would otherwise be destined for the dump, thus giving them a new lease of life. The Globe Hope line, which is produced in Finland and Estonia, includes clothing, bags, belts and other design products. Such examples of commercially viable recycling projects in fashion are few and far between. Recycling of textiles and clothing Textile or apparel waste is generally classified as either pre-consumer or post-consumer. Pre-consumer textile waste consists of by-product materials from yarn, textile and apparel manufacturing industries and may also be termed as post-industrial waste. Post-consumer textile waste mainly originates from household sources and consists of garments or textiles that the owner no longer needs and discards. They are sometimes given to charities but more typically are disposed off into the trash and end up in municipal landfill. Pre-consumer and post-consumer textile or apparel wastes together provide a vast potential for recovery and quality recycling. Maryland-based SMART (Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles) is the trade association representing one of the oldest and most established recycling industries. More than 1,000 businesses and organisations employing many tens of thousands of workers divert some 2,000,000 tons of textile waste from the solid waste stream. Millions of individuals benefit from the products, operations and programmes created by the recycling of this textile waste. The efforts of SMART have led to approximately 75% of the pre-consumer textile waste that is generated by these businesses being diverted from landfill and recycled. However, the figures for post-consumer textile waste are not so encouraging. Only about 15–20% of the post-consumer textile waste is reused, diverted to charities or exported to third world countries. Post-consumer waste is more difficult to collect and separate, but it is very important as it keeps tons of material from going to landfill. Many local recycling programmes run into trouble, as there is no market for what they collect (Dunn, 2007). Stephan Seuring, in his discussions on challenges and possible solutions in recycling of textiles from clothes says 50% of the discarded clothes are collected and only half of this fraction can be reused due to condition or contamination. He argued that this mixed collection hinders recycling rather than promoting it. For sustainable recycling, model waste collection procedures need to be streamlined. A promising example is a Germany-based company ECOLOG Recycling Network GmbH which operates a recycling network for polyester clothing, involving manufacturers, retailers, consumers and recyclers, where the consumer returns the clothes to the retailer. The system is based on the concept of producing garments and trims made entirely out of polyester. The polyester thus collected is pure and is conveniently recycled into new buttons, fleece, fibres, threads etc. (Kotzab et al., 2005). The Indian textile industry context The concept of recycling and sustainability is not new to India and to Indian people. The origin of the traditional kantha¹ embroidery technique is a process of recycling where a few layers of used cotton fabric are held in place one over the other and embellished with exquisite embroidery using the thread which has been pulled out of the coloured borders of the same old fabric. Over a period of time, the craft has moved to more commercially viable solutions, and articles like bags, wallets, cushions, mats and many more products are created using kantha. Due to the softness of used old fabric, this craft found ready use in quilts and bedspreads and even played its significant role for the care of the newborn and the mother.

The Waghri traders in India play a very important role in reuse and recycling of post-consumer clothing. These women workers go from door to door and collect clothing through a system of bartering where used clothing can be exchanged for household items. These women then sell the collected goods to the traders. The commonest use of this clothing, which mainly comprises salwar kameez², sarees³, dupattas⁴, shirts, trousers and jeans, is for those who are unable to purchase new garments. The importance of this form of trade in ensuring economic independence for families can be seen in the study conducted by Norris in India. She says: 'A man dealt in old shirts, buying them for Rs. 6 or 7 each, while his wife washed and repaired them. He then sold them on for Rs. 8 to 10. With a turnover of 150 to 200 shirts a week, the family could make up to Rs. 2000 a month. Profits per garment are low, less than Rs. 3, but the harder wives and daughters in the household work, the higher the turnover' (Norris, 2005). India also has a substantial industry of manufacturing wool blankets from used wool clothing. This industry not only sources material from within country but also imports used clothing to meet its needs. Due to trade law restrictions used wool clothing in the US is slashed beyond wearable condition, yet kept in one piece for shipping, and brought in to India for manufacture of wool blankets (Hawley, 2006). Contribution of handloom clusters The majority of India's population still lives in villages and depends on traditional crafts and agriculture. The craftspeople and artisans working on handlooms are normally found in clusters, where they carry out their vocation based on the traditions and skills inherited from their ancestors. These clusters not only act as production centres, attracting buyers to them, but also help the craftspeople to nurture their skills and maintain their identity. Some of them utilise post-industrial or post-consumer textiles and apparel to create useful and innovative products. Gwalior Fur Furnishing Cluster uses the cut selvedge wastage of the textile mills in the region as weft, and creates furnishing products like rugs, mats, sofa and seat covers.

In the cluster there are approximately 400 looms engaged in manufacturing with annual production of about 50,000 square feet and amounting to nearly 3 crore Rupees. On average, a weaver can weave 100–120 sq ft in one shift and earn wages of Rs 70–90. As these products are economical and durable, there is a huge market potential across the country for them, and due to their resemblance to fur, they are popularly known as fur products (Entrepreneurship Development Institute brochure). The handloom weavers in Lawar cluster in Meerut District form a small community and are involved in producing low-cost blankets, mats, prayer rugs, durries⁵ and cotton khes⁶ from raw materials comprising virgin, industrial wastage or post-consumer sources.

There are around a thousand weavers in the cluster who work on pit looms. Most weavers fall below the poverty line, with the average income between Rs. 1500–2400 per month. Around 75% looms in the area are in working condition and the remaining are idle due to insufficient funds for maintenance. The current socio-economic condition of the community is not very good, and many weavers do not even have covered work sheds and hence have to work under temporary plastic sheet covers.

The raw material for this cluster is acquired from various sources, like textile mills, the carpet industry and small garment manufacturing units. One of the most important raw materials used for the products is post-consumer unstitched apparel, like sarees, dupattas, stoles and shawls. This is collected by going door-to-door in the nearby areas and orders are booked to prepare products from collected material. This also helps in recycling of post-consumer apparel, which otherwise gets discarded and ends up in landfill. There is better acceptability by the customers of this recycled apparel for goods made from their own clothing as opposed to the ones coming from unknown sources. The process The apparel collected is washed and treated in earthenware or aluminium pots in hot soapy water and dried in the open air. The fabric is then cut into thin strips, often stitched together to get the desired length, twisted and used as weft. Generally a white or black cotton yarn is used as warp.

Other than the planning of the single coloured warps, not much time is spent in planning the designs, as the same takes place directly on the loom. The randomness of colours and thicknesses combine to form an unpredictable but unbelievably beautiful set of textures, colours and surfaces. There are no planned patterns, no effort nor any attempts to be homogenous. Every piece that emerges is magical in its uniqueness, reflecting the diversity of materials and people who make it happen.

Handlooms have traditionally been run by men. The economic conditions have also brought a lot of women into the task and today there are about 460 women involved in the profession of weaving in a total of 1,000 in the area. The women are also involved in other preparatory tasks and are now contributing in the whole process at almost all stages – from collecting recyclable clothes from the households to cleaning, cutting, washing and weaving. The dependency of family income on women has led to women's empowerment and, with the additional responsibility of all household chores, the women strive towards creating a balance between work and home. Employment and the economic independence of women has led to improved quality of life for women, and also the well-being of the family. The whole work environment is created around the dwellings, thereby facilitating the creation of a work-life balance. The standard of living of these communities may be on the fringes of sustenance; the satisfaction levels of these families are much higher than what is seen in the economically better off communities in the metropolitan cities, primarily due to a greater work-life balance.

These are proud people, but rendered helplessly disoriented with changing technology and the fact that they haven't been able to find their place in the newly emerging environment. Their looms generate a livelihood for many families who had weaving running through their blood and the looms have helped them meet their basic needs for many generations. For their development and well-being, they need to be nurtured in the same environment and supported in need-based areas and with designs and concepts for better marketability of products.

Some government and non-governmental agencies have been spearheading the entrepreneurship movement in many handloom clusters, providing the right impetus to the vocation. The involvement of the Lawar cluster community in their contribution to the recycling and recovery of textile and apparel waste has created interest and has led to the adoption of the cluster by the Office of Development Commissioner of Handlooms, Ministry of Textiles in their Integrated Handloom Cluster Development Programme. The scheme will help the weavers in providing basic necessities, wages, raw materials, looms and in creating the right kind of market through design intervention and bringing in state projects. The adoption by such organisations ensures socio-economic development and well-being of the weaver families as it brings in job security, equal opportunities, minimum wages, working hours, freedom of association and collective bargaining. There are numerous other clusters contributing towards recycling of pre- and post-consumer waste in smaller towns in India. Artisans in the Bijnor cluster in Uttar Pradesh and also certain areas of Madhya Pradesh are utilising fabric left over during various processes in the textile and apparel industry to create cord, ropes, rugs, durries, small mats, prayer rugs etc. Innovative methods are used to create products depending on available raw materials.

Clusters in Rampur in the state of Uttar Pradesh and also in parts of Bihar utilise cut pieces of cloth as appliqué. Depending on the existing market, product ranges from decorative tents and canopies used on religious and ceremonial occasions to items like beach and garden umbrellas, lamp shades and wall hangings. Usually, the men cut the patterns while the women do the stitching. Clusters of Bhojpur, Rustampur Tigri and Sardarnagar Ataria in the Moradabad District in the state of Uttar Pradesh are involved in one of the most economically viable solutions to recycling used apparel. An order for a durrie can be placed for Rs 40 and 3 kg of used clothing. The apparel is shredded into pieces, twisted to develop a thick yarn and inserted as weft on a nylon warp. The weaver's family produces approximately one durrie in one hour assuring a good family monthly income. Conclusion Governments and other unions in the world have taken out directives such as the European Landfill Directive 2001 to curb nations from disposal of biodegradable waste into landfill. There may not be directives specifically targeting textile-related material waste but given the volumes of such items being a part of the waste it will not be long before such directives are instigated and demand for their implementations are made. Policing implementation and ensuring full compliance with these directives is a huge and daunting challenge and may take years. But due to the public concern and the apparent readiness of people around the globe to meet the associated costs and inconveniences, it will only be a matter of time before it becomes an ethical measure and societies respect the environment in which we all live (Miraftab & Horrocks, 2007). There are a number of socio, cultural, economic and other factors that need addressing to create a viable model of sustainable development. The key factors and the recommendations thereof are as follows. Financing Positive direct action by the government at the grassroots level to generate employment opportunities in rural areas by nurturing handloom units in clusters and funding their technology and skill-up gradation needs by channelling the financial inputs through NGOs, cooperatives and other developmental institutions. Design development The products that result from these clusters are mainly made to order and are at the low end of the value chain, putting a cloud over the very sustainability of the model over a wider canvas. Most of the products are in the form of rugs and durries, with low value addition. There is a need for design intervention to take such products up in the value chain, thereby enhancing the economic viability and sustainability of the model. Using one such basic product, designs have been created of high fashion garments and accessories with high value addition.

Researching environment and development interactions Research should be undertaken with the explicit objective of assisting policy decisions and providing recommendations on improving management practices to understand the interactions between and within social, economic and environmental considerations in a comprehensive manner. Enhancing education and training It is imperative that significant efforts are made to improve education and technical training, particularly of the women and girls, by including interdisciplinary approaches, as appropriate, in technical, vocational, university and other curricula in order to develop human resources required to undertake the integration of environment and development at various stages of the decision-making and implementation process. While organised and unorganised sectors have made a small, yet commendable effort in the recycling and reuse of textile waste, there is a need for a concerted effort by the educational institutions and the government agencies to recognise its need and create awareness amongst the younger generation. Promoting public awareness There is a need to have an inclusive agenda for promoting public awareness of the importance of considering environment and development in an integrated manner. All possible groups need to be involved in this exercise – national institutions, NGOs, interested scientific and sociological organisations, media and the international community. 'Systems approach' to the issue of sustainable development The need of the hour is to move away from narrow sector approaches, progressively move towards full cross-sectoral coordination and look at the issue of sustainable development in a holistic manner. The systems approach takes an integrated look in order to understand the parts, rather than treating the parts in isolation and then trying to understand the whole. N.B. All visuals used in the paper, where no source has been mentioned, have been photographed by the author, with all necessary permissions taken. Endnotes

Kantha – traditional embroidery of the state of West Bengal
Salwar kameez – a two-piece dress commonly worn with a stole by many Indian women and girls
Saree – most traditional to India, this is 6 yards of rectangular fabric, draped by various communities in different styles by the majority of Indian women
Dupatta – a type of stole worn with the salwar kameez
Durri – a type of floor covering
Cotton khes – a thick cotton shawl

References

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This paper was first presented in April 2009 at the London College of Fashion, UK and published in the IFFTI Conference papers. </td.

First Published, August 2012, Craft Revival Trust

In terms of a future vision of the good life, we will have to draw upon the great heritage of world knowledge and experience to create a discipline of modernization which dissolves the divisions between rich and poor, the contrasts between waste and want, and the repetitive patterns of ugliness and beauty which constitutes the violated environment of our planet. The only weapons we have are our sensitivity and creativity. Let us recognize them, sharpen them and mobilize them for engineering the societies of tomorrow.” Reading the mission statement of the Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development, the Ministry draft on Institute objectives, and the sensitive response to the Ministry draft by Director Peter deSouza, I was taken back over 30 years to an address by the late Romesh Thapar to a global conference¹ at the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad. Thapar’s call (quoted above) was for the emerging profession of designer in the ‘Third World’ to help advocate what the mission statement describes as way of living in harmony with nature, avoiding over-consumption and waste. The need was to “texture a society which is self-reliant and comparable to the best. Obviously, it cannot be done in imitation…..The computers throw up forbidding calculations of the kind of productivity which will be required to buttress standards of living comparable to those prevailing in developed lands. Does this mean that (our) people are forever condemned to an inferior level of living? If we live by computer calculations, yes. If we base ourselves on redesigning our life and living, no.” Twenty years earlier in their classic India Report to the Government of India which led to the founding of NID, the celebrated designers Charles and Ray Eames had singled out “service, dignity and love” as the qualities that must help generate Indian solutions to the problems of a new time. “In the face of the inevitable destruction of many cultural values ---- in the face of the immediate need of the nation to feed and shelter itself ---- a drive for quality takes on a real meaning. It is not a self-conscious effort to develop an aesthetic ---- it is a relentless search for quality that must be maintained if this new Republic is to survive…”² The challenges to education articulated many years ago by these two thinkers are with us still. They have been made even more critical by rapid growth in the economy and by even greater divisions within society. Stability and peace are threatened by accelerating environmental degradation and by rising anger among those excluded from shopping-mall fantasies. The threat of mimicry is all around us as a consumer culture takes over our ability to “redesign our life and living”. A nation that should be demonstrating alternatives to the world now turns to the fashion industry for enlightenment on issues of modernity. For many, Gandhiji’s ability not “to be blown off my feet” seems to have been swept away by the winds of so-called globalization. Old words, new meanings As the mission statement indicates, education in Asia and the Pacific is the first means toward a society founded on values of peace and sustainability. If a new institute bearing the name of Mahatma Gandhi is not to “become just another institute” but foster the educational resources a future world may need, perhaps its first task may be to redefine the terms it will use: education, peace and sustainable development. These words buzz around the globe, their use seldom questioned. Yet there is little consensus on what they should actually mean, even in India. Current debates surrounding national education policies reflect this confusion. Peace means very different things to mainstream politicians or populations described as ‘separatist’ (or even in Narendra Modi’s Gujarat). Yet the absence of overt conflict is not the same as “equitable, inclusive and justice-oriented” growth described in the Working Paper. ‘Sustainable development’ is like a mountain wrapped in mist: we all want to get there but none of us has seen it, try as hard as many have. What definitions did Gandhi use for ‘education’ and ‘peace’? Can we re-examine his explorations and apply his search to these concepts in our time? Gandhi never spoke of ‘sustainable development’, yet he said it all with his observation that “The earth has enough for every man’s needs but not for his greed.” Well before any of us, Gandhi understood that the planet was both our opportunity and our constraint, and that respect for its systems would have to be the foundation for a just society. His nation today is hurtling on another path promoted by “peddlers of the glossy life based on the twin evils of waste and want” with “tawdry efforts to keep up with the styles and fashions of the industrial and advanced world”1 (Romesh Thapar again). This reality might suggest two scenarios. One, that a new institute is a useless task, doomed from Day One. Another, that this opportunity is more urgent today than ever. A Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development must certainly choose the scenario of hope and determination. The task is to help develop alternative definitions and demonstrations of a good life for millions in this region and around the world. In this new millennium, can this not be the core of a “new education harnessed to the imperatives of peace and sustainability” to which the Working Paper refers? A challenge of measurement Perhaps as a starting point one could return to the effort within the United Nations some years ago to redefine progress, and to move away from mere fiscal measurements and GDP as its sole indicators. Important leadership for this move came from Asia: the late Mahbub ul Haq of Pakistan and Amartya Sen of India. Their vision echoed Robert Kennedy, who had once observed that GDP measures everything except what makes us human. Since 1990, the UN Human Development Reports and the HD indicators they contain have focused on an understanding of progress well beyond statistics of income and production. ‘Globalisation with a human face’ now has a foundation of economic and intellectual rigour which offers a useful space within which the proposed Institute’s contribution could be understood and shared. Asia’s contribution to HDI issues suggests a chance to think out of the box and move ‘sustainable development’ from rhetoric to practice within the region. With UN members accepting (at least formally) this new discipline of measurement, the challenge is to apply it to everyday decision-making, just as Bhutan is trying through its policy on Gross National Happiness. ‘Assessing progress toward sustainability’ The Workshop papers have reminded me of an effort in the early 1990s in which I participated. That experience resonates with Stream 3 (Natural Resources and Global Change) set out in the Working Paper. It brought together a team of volunteers from several parts of the world to understand what sustainability actually means. This effort emanated from the IUCN (World Conservation Union) in Geneva. There, scientists had been deeply frustrated that the wealth of knowledge on both the planet’s delicate ecological systems and the threats of unregulated economic growth appeared to have little impact on decisions taken each day by national and local authorities. Conditions were moving from bad to worse. Why had knowledge and data not led to better attitudes, behaviours and decisions, the IUCN scientists asked? Our small team set about talking to some of the most affected communities and decision-makers in Asia, Africa and Latin America. What emerged powerfully from the field was that people’s understanding of progress had little in common with notions prevailing at policy and planning levels. People were demanding plans and evaluations on their own terms. Administrators and planners demanded measurements and reporting systems that could hold up to national and international systems of accounting and governance, including donor pressures for ‘scale’ and ‘replication’. How then could the gap be bridged between people and those entrusted with making decisions on their behalf? Could a shared understanding of sustainability emerge that could also be translated into an approach, methods and tools for new directions? From this attempt to listen and learn, a hypothesis emerged. It went something like this: The world is in a crisis of unsustainability. The wellbeing of all people is not being achieved. The eco-system is under grave threat. It cannot solve our problems for us. Human behavior is the main cause of this crisis. It is also the only source of its solution. We need to understand which human behaviors are problematic, and the motivations behind such behaviours. The health, wealth and quality of life of people are inextricably tied to the diversity, productivity and quality of the eco-systems of which they are a part. Consequently, sustainability depends on improving and maintaining the wellbeing of both people and their eco-systems together, simultaneously. Tensions that exist between the needs of people and the environment, as well as between different groups of people, must be addressed. No one knows what these combinations of wellbeing are or how to achieve them. Progress depends on recognizing our ignorance and uncertainty, and founding our actions on questions and learnings ---- through groups of people reflecting and acting within their own communities. In other words, through education. This hypothesis struck our small team, drawn from several continents, as an echo of Gandhi’s reminder of need and greed. Now, more years later, it seems to suggest what a Mahatma Gandhi Institute can and should do through education: foster among people such processes of reflection and action that understand progress as the wellbeing of humans and nature together. The IUCN effort led to a system of diagnosis, monitoring and evaluation³ that could be applied at village, region, country and international levels. The system began with a few apparently simple questions of survival (leading to a rich and often baffling range of responses), and culminated in analytical tools that included a ‘Barometer of Sustainability’. The Barometer could be used as a scale for measuring the wellbeing of human and ecological systems, providing an immediate demonstration that progress demanded that both systems travel together, on the same trajectory, toward that misty goal of sustainability. No longer a trade-off between ‘development’ and ‘environment’, wellbeing could now be demonstrated as a non-negotiable need for both to travel hand in hand. Later, using data from national and UN accounting systems, this approach was used to develop a country-by-country index of quality of life and environment⁴. It offered scientific evidence that the quest for a good life was possible through ways of living that are desirable, equitable and respectful of Nature’s systems that hold us all. This IUCN experiment coincided with much of the UN’s early work on the human development approach. Perhaps because of that, the experiment was subsumed in larger ones. Yet I am constantly reminded that our efforts deserved much greater exposure. This is evident in daily reports of ‘progress’ and ‘development’ still regarded as some kind of trade-off between human prosperity and environmental conservation. Perhaps this is so because national and international spaces for reflection and learning are still so limited, our education systems still so closed, and peace still understood as the absence of law-and-order conflict rather than harmony between peoples and the ecologies which sustain them --- just as the Mahatma had described peace so many decades ago. Peace: a precondition Peace itself is an essential precondition for progress, however progress is defined and understood. The Mahatma is a universal symbol for it, although his battle for peace is so often ignored and reduced to ritual. These dilemmas and contradiction, as well as the opportunities for hope, come together in his own state of Gujarat, where I live. A massive ‘Mahatma Mandir’ in Gandhinagar (observe the use of terms) has been erected to symbolize what many industrialists and planners now regard as the ‘vibrant’ investment model the rest of India should follow. Gujarat has for decades been respected for its administrative and entrepreneurial advantages, with an enviable record of attracting investments and infrastructure. Yet several of its human development indicators are poor, the environment severely degraded, and human rights have been violated without apology on a scale unknown since Partition. Conflict resolution efforts have come from communities, often led by women, reacting to the carnage of 2002 and the pressures of thoughtless industrialization with carefully conceived agendas for transformation. They believe that peace must be sought and sustained as a precondition of sustainable growth, not as a future by-product, and their demonstrations⁵ have a direct link to activity Streams 1 and 4 described in the Working Paper (‘Women in Peace & Development’ and ‘Civil Society, Social Movements & Community Participation’). Globalisation without a human face is a challenge in a state that, like so much of India, prefers ‘MG’ rituals to Gandhian practice. This reality is perhaps another indicator of why a Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development may be critical to rescuing Gandhi’s legacy for future generations. Impacting policy: an example of crafts All this brings me back to the suggestion that the new Institute commence its efforts with a fresh understanding of the terms it will use, and to guide their usage in everyday actions for progress. Perhaps this could be linked to Stream 2 (Informed Policy Making) proposed in the Working Paper. One finds many examples of the urgency of this need to redefine ‘progress’ and its twin, ‘development’. One of them concerns Indian handicrafts, acknowledged as the largest source of Indian livelihood after agriculture. Hand skill was a social, economic and political force which Gandhi used to win India’s freedom, yet today the sector is in a crisis of neglect and competition. Over six decades after Gandhi, handicraft is a virtual black-hole of knowledge and understanding in Ministries and at Yojana Bhavan. Anywhere up to 200 million or more artisans are under threat as planners dismiss the sector as a ‘sunset’ activity irrelevant to an emerging superpower with Singapore and Silicon Valley aspirations. A look at the map of India quickly communicates that areas most affected by separatism also represent India’s enormous wealth of artisanal knowledge, skill and potential ---- Gandhi’s truth rejected at the cost of such colossal national suffering. The struggle at this moment is to find a means of reflecting this huge economic force in national accounting systems that continue to disregard it, and to do this within the ambit of a new Five-Year Plan⁶. Establishing the economic power of hand production seems a precondition to establishing the worth of Indian craft as an unmatched source of sustainable livelihoods and of ecological sustainability, as a social insurance system of alternative employment where people are located and at seasons when most needed, as sustaining huge populations still at the margins of society (minorities, dalits, tribals, women), as a resource of innovation and creativity essential to all Indian industries, and as a value system entwined with the Indian identity. All these factors for harmony in human and natural ecologies, for understanding who we are and why, for putting millions in some control of their lives and futures, for peace --- for ‘sustainable development’ ---- were understood and demonstrated by Gandhi and his generation. They have been left to wilt behind a haze of ritual obeisance and lip service, while elsewhere in the world Gandhi’s truth is re-emerging as humankind’s safest passage into the future. Enhancing the knowledge and status of India’s magnificent artisans would perhaps have been core national policy if we had more often questioned ‘development’, just as Gandhi did. The prime task of a new Institute is surely to help future generations to stand on the shoulders of his legacy, rather than be forced again and again to re-discover it. Presentation at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study, Shimla ‘Education for Peace and Sustainable Development’ 13-14 August 2011 End Notes

“Identity in Modernization” was Romesh Thapar’s keynote address at UNIDO-ICSID-India 1979, the first United Nations conference on design, hosted by NID (Ahmedabad) in January 1979. Romesh Thapar was editor of Seminar.
The India Report 1958 (NID, Ahmedabad) by Charles and Ray Eames led to the founding three years later of NID, the first design education institution in the developing world.
“An Approach to Assessing Progress Toward Sustainability”, IUCN (The World Conservation Union, Geneva) 1997.
“The Wellbeing of Nations”, Robert Prescott-Allen, Island Press 2001.
See “Rising” (Ashoke Chatterjee, Business Standard Books, 2011) the story of Utthan, a Gujarat-based NGO working in its most difficult environments. Following the 2002 carnage, Utthan has innovated and integrated a strategy for peace in all its efforts toward equity, women’s empowerment and sustainable natural resource practices.
“Craft Economics and Impact Study” Volume:1, April 2011. Crafts Council of India, Chennai

For centuries, India has kept an elevated place for the well-versed scribe. The man or the woman who was considered enlightened through the process of initiation by scholars, gurus and teachers who wrote treatises and spoke with wisdom and clarity among important audiences, was given pride of place in the social hierarchy. The gyani, the preacher or the knowledgeable one and priests, who could recite and write sacred verses and scriptures, held higher positions than even the king. In many regimes, kings preferred to govern with the might of a sword than of the mind, and left enlightened thoughts and writings to these elites. Their advice was sought, and their fine penmanship was put to use to write important proclamations, documents and histories. In Islam, writing and calligraphy assumed importance not because painting images was proscribed, but because Muslims believed that Koranic teachings revealed by Prophet Mohammed were recorded through the medium of Arabic writing. The sanctity thus accorded to writing enabled the flourishing of scripts and calligraphy, which subsequently found place in various forms of arts, crafts, and architecture, and spread through many continents through both rulers and artisans of the Islamic world. Mughal rule in India encouraged Persian and Devanagari scripts and calligraphy in art. Many erudite scholars across the world have studied the scripts and languages of India and have contributed erudite material in the form of books, monographs and papers for historians, linguists and members of the lay public. UNESCO has been actively concerned about the preservation of languages as a very important part of the preservation of the cultural heritage of people. That the extraordinary wealth of human creativity as represented in the world of languages is an acknowledged fact. According to UNESCO the world’s languages contain and express the total “pool of ideas” nurtured over time through heritage, local traditions and customs. Each of the world’s 6000 languages reflects a unique world view and cultural complex representing a vast and integral part of a living human heritage. A tribe who lived in a forests area near Coimbatore in South India came to perform during the cultural event at the annual National History Congress. They sang a song that seemed typical. It was rhythmic, repetitive and not unlike styles that are usually presented as ‘tribal entertainment’. Most fascinating and significant, however, was the discovery that this song, performed with accompanying dancing, by women and children of all ages was a documentation of the 25 varieties of leafy spinach-like edible plants that could be found in their forest. The preservation of their language and important cultural knowledge of their eating habits and flora growing in their environment would disappear if their language disappeared. The young girls in the group held up the written names of the spinach varieties on small placards to inform the audience as they sang. Occasions like this sharply bring home the value of linking script, language and culture. The loss of cultural practices and expressions, including languages are for a variety of reasons from history to technology and economics. This makes over 50% of these in danger of extinction, leading to UNESCO instituting an Endangered Languages Mission within their Universal Declaration of Cultural Diversity. According to its figures, in 37 nation-states, more than 50 languages are spoken but only a little over 100 languages are official tongues that are written down. Compared to the evolution of humans on our planet when sounds and words are common to humans and animals from earliest times, writing is only 6000 years old. And the development of technology has played a great part. Before technology like the printing press and the typewriter, each literate person had their own distinct form of handwriting based on their education and other inputs, such as practicing in school notebooks, to develop a ‘good hand’. Forensic science to study handwriting and thus the true identity of the writer, was a highly developed technique that law enforcement investigators, art curators and others used. Now people traces hackers of computers for ‘web footprints’, and today we can just press a finger on a keyboard to change the design, size and nature of the letter or word and print out a love letter in cold black and white. Not many letters arrive with stamps nowadays from a faraway land on an envelope addressed by a loved one, with perhaps even a special aroma to the paper. We have almost lost the art of preserving old letters. Who would preserve a bunch of technologically impersonalized emails in a special box when today there are even messages that instantly disappear or that be deleted? Richard Solomon of the University of Washington surmises that the heartland of India was preliterate until the 3rd Century BC. His studies lead him to believe that it is not possible for prosperous empires before the Mauryan dynasty to have legendary riches and prosperity without having been literate. The Sharda script is a developed system from the Brahmi line of scripts around the 8th century. Interestingly Sharda is also the name of the Goddess Saraswati, the goddess of learning who is worshipped on Guru Purnima when learning itself is celebrated by students honouring their teachers. Sacred scripts like Prakrit travelled with the spread of Buddhism, The Guru Granth Sahib worships the book in which the 500 holy hymns of Guru Nanak are written in Gurmukhi, which means “From the mouth of God”. Jain manuscripts were illustrated. The texts of horoscopes of important persons were also illustrated. Tagore, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913, often created art works or whimsical illustrations around his poems. Vedic texts have been burnished to a high level of excellence by being depicted through artisanal skills on a variety of materials. The artist- craftsperson and calligrapher are therefore two-sides of the same coin, communicating, expressing and ornamenting their world and their words with their own special skills. Illustrating and illuminating manuscripts brought out the art of calligraphy. Abul Fazl says in the Ain-i- Akbari, on the art of writing and painting:

The letter, a magical power, is spiritual geometry emanating from the pen of invention; a heavenly writ from the hand of fate; it contains the secret word, and is the tongue of the hand. The spoken word goes to the hearts of those who are present to hear it; the letter gives wisdom to those that are far and near. If it were not for the letter, the spoken word would soon die, and no keepsake would be left with us of those that are gone by.

The vicissitudes of history, and particularly colonialism and Macaulay’s imposition of a highly westernized educational system, compounded by the now rigid caste hierarchies that had developed over time, rendered the Indian craftsman isolated from the written word and education. Mahatma Gandhi felt the need for demanding nai talim in 1913 for a new Indian form of education and constantly emphasized the importance of one’s own mother tongues saying, ‘Belittling one’s mother tongue is like disparaging one’s own mother’. But India at Independence found more than half its population with no literacy – no words to express the culture of art and images or vice versa. I am largely an activist, lover of art and the Indian aesthetic and a student of the work and skills of India’s artisans and craftspeople, who are largely among the non-literate, semi-literate and in the present generation, neo-literate sections of society. So, I will speak of the value of the written word for them in a world where new knowledge systems and technologies dominate. And share with you some of the treasures of Indian culture that came out of it. From one of the three earliest civilizations to develop a formal script, historical events reduced India to a land where almost 50 % lost touch with traditional educational systems and literacy associated with their own cultures. In the present environment of computers and the widespread use of the English language, they began to feel disempowered and poorly educated. Artisans from across India with whom I work in our association of crafts persons, would often come to me and say, “We are poor, we are illiterate”, because they did not know English or the computer eve while being national awardees for their weaving, embroidery, carving or painting. They could barely sign their name and it was a struggle for them to make a bill of sale for their work. Yet they were adults, immensely proud of their traditional skills, not knowing what to do with them in a growing technological world. The Akshara Project, conceived and executed by the Dastkari Haat Samiti sought to bring the appreciation of literacy back to adult artisans through discovering the art of calligraphy, and learning it. When adults embark upon the path of literacy it is easier for them to understand it through their own art forms by transferring calligraphy art onto artefacts and textiles in their known craft skills. They were enabled to reconnected with their own scripts and texts in a series of exercises that began with seeing how alphabets, and words transformed into an artistic portrayal that communicated through textual depictions as a crafted work. The project involved more than seventy persons, using 14 of the 22 official Indian scripts, covering 21 of the 29 states of India and using 21 different craft skills. This created a sizeable body of work of art, craft and textiles of museum quality. Today, crafts persons and calligraphers collaborate. Calligraphy comes into wood carving, stone carving, hand block printing, embroidery, hand loom weaving to form patterns, designs, even giving professional graphic designers new ideas born out of craft skills. Empowerment of many kinds grew out of the exercise. A non-literate but highly skilled embroiderer from Kashmir took to studying his young daughter’s school book to learn who to write and then embroider the local names of the one hundred and twenty-five flower designs he could embroider on a shawl. He worked these words with needle and thread in the Urdu script around the flower motif, arranging the alphabets around the motif as part of the design. A group of women from rural Bihar who had earlier felt literacy was of no use to them, went about embroidering the words of a song in their local dialect Mythili, in the Devanagari script below applique depictions of scenes from the song. The song they chose to share conveyed issues of gender and class inequities as per an unknown local folk version touching upon the epic Ramayana. The song expresses the words of a lowly potter, boatman and farmer who lament that if only Sita had been born in one of their households she would not have befallen the sorry fate the did by marrying the son of a king. Extraordinary art and craft works brought out shlokas, dohas, verses, profound thoughts and simple ideas of ethics and morals, that were never part of their wordless, script-less previous works. That is how the Akshara project was born - to give literacy a better value for those who were part of the lower rungs in economic and social status, to bring art and aesthetics to the Word, to honour and preserve our mother tongues and cultures, to find a new beauty in our own scripts, and to give design and craftsmanship a fresh path to follow. Some of the participants and art works are at the India Heritage Centre’s seven-month exhibition for all to see.

Issue #007, Winter, 2021 ISSN: 2581- 9410

On Chaitra dwitiya (auspicious day as per Hindu religion), a Talvar gair (folk dance) was organised in 21 villages of Mewar. The villagers’ gathering treated themselves overnight with locally made savories like Khar Bajnu, Papdiya, Sowaliya along with bhang, a cannabis sweet drink. A similar event happened at the Ekling ji Mandir (temple) where the village mukhiya (headman) hoists the temple flag. Amidst the celebrations, the villagers inculcated values of fraternity and brotherhood while differences were sorted out at the panchayat (collective decision making) sessions. Such was the design of healthy physical spaces that facilitated social cohesion through recurrent human interaction. The people of Rajasthan inherited in the form of a large textile one such robust social space called Jajam. Embedded in the local culture, these elaborate hand block printed floor spreads signified a space of gathering for people in villages at weddings, festivals, religious ceremonies, panchayat sessions.

The weekly village gathering in a local temple sing to their Gods while seated on a communally-owned jajam.

Jajam literally translates to 'go and gather'. Each jajam was customised to suit the purpose of the space and host large groups if needed. Traditional community panchayat members gathered together on a communally-owned jajam while making undisputed social or judicial decisions. Exquisitely crafted with a complex process, jajam were expensive and generally commissioned by a village, while families who could afford it bought their own. Some communities required them for marital gifts or they were given as temple offerings. In rural households, jajam was a symbol of honour when spread for visiting guests as well as, a convenient seating at fairs and festivals. Local architecture, flora and fauna inspired many of the designs and the patterns were usually quite dense. Layers of complicated borders ran all around the cloth, sometimes filled with one or more rows of figures such as marching soldiers, warriors on horseback, elephants, tigers and sometimes not so local seahorses. Bold trellis like patterns filled the interior. Adding to the fun, a chaupad game board might be printed in the centre so people could play while seated on it.

The Chaupad board game printed on a jajam owned by a Muslim family in Rajasthan.

Diverse interpretations of the chaupad game exist on a jajam. Many opine that a jajam spread out for a panchayat moved away only when the issue at hand was resolved. During this time, gatherers played chaupad in breaks amidst the intense discussion. Another legend has it that person sitting on a chaupad listened to arguments from all sides but was duty bound to act neutrally. Mythological reference to chaupad/chauras exists in Mahabharata as Kauravas and Pandavas engaged in a game and bet their kingdom. While these unusual recreational textiles are no longer central to village life, today, some elderly people might still be spotted chatting on an old jajam tossing cowrie shells into the air. Tales of chaupad still linger in the lyrics of local folk songs and wedding rituals. The folk songs in Rajasthan have frequent reference to jajam. One such song records a man spreading out a jajam on the beach as he calls upon his beloved to come and play a game of chaupad with him. Folk songs are the life breath of community living. Jajam being used as a central object in folk songs is a testimony to it being embedded in the social fabric of people from various backgrounds. Jajam demonstrates the best of a block printer’s skills. For centuries jajam printing flourished in many regions of Rajasthan. These large decorative floor spreads had a significant role within each community. Made from thick reza, jajam were naturally dyed and block printed for a multitude of social and cultural activities. Reza formed the flesh and blood of a jajam. Unlike the mill cloth of today, reza was a thick cotton fabric woven on a small wooden hand loom. The width of the reza was measured in hands, one hand being equal to 18 inches. Fabric was usually woven to a length of 20 hands (30 feet). A chippa (person from a printing caste) printed onto reza while seated on the floor at a low wooden pathiya (table) which was the same width as reza. The printed cloth was then sewn together in strips to the required size. The cotton quality and weaving technique gave reza its distinctive quality to get pristine natural dye colors. This durable cloth was also stitched into clothing, keeping the wearer cool in summer and giving warmth in winter. Narrow reza lengths temporarily stitched together were washed on in nearby river beds. The river bed had deposition of white alkaline cleanser known as ‘khar' in local parlance. Khar proved to be the quintessential washing agent way before modern chemical, bleach, soda or soap solutions. The cloth acquired a bright white color on mild rinsing with khar. Dipping the cloth then in a tank with myrobalan mix gave the printers a background to print on. This was later spread out in the sun for the cloth to be dry and crisp readying it for printing. Chippas opine that on the scale of obtaining richness of printed colors, rinsing in river with khar (alkaline deposits) trumps the bleach wash used today.

Dyeing jajam in the traditional combination of red and black colors.

Always starting the day with remembering the Gods and offering a little prayer, the dyer would start to boil the printed cloth in a colour bath for an hour to obtain the brilliant hues of red and black. From this thoroughly organic process emerged out a resplendent jajam with bright colours. However, modernisation has slowly altered the customs of local communities. Without commissions, only a handful of chippas retain the craftsmanship or resolve to continue. Many artisans began using inexpensive chemical dyes instead of the laborious natural method of syahi-begar that created the rich traditional red and black colours of jajam. Fewer rely on traditional motifs. In an attempt to modernize, craftsmen started travelling to larger towns in search of orders, but without much success and a diminished clientele, many began working outside the printing community. Wabisabi Project In an effort to bring this remarkable textile out of obscurity, in 2017 a project was initiated called – Rediscovering Jajam, by Kriti Gupta and Avinash Maurya, founders of the Wabisabi Project. The project also has enthusiastic support from the Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing. Kriti is a Fine Art graduate from Maharaja Sayajirao University Baroda and Avinash is a self-taught Graphic Designer . The duo place heavy emphasis on process, research and context in their design practice. This project began with an objective of documenting the craft, stories and culture around jajam. In due course, the research blossomed into an exhibition tracing the aesthetic variations in jajam textiles, the exhibition highlights a wide-ranging collection of new and old jajam across several regions of Rajasthan. This exhibition focuses on the craftspeople, highlighting their stories while simultaneously studying their work and the cultural significance of these traditional textiles. A contemporary interpretation by Wabisabi Project of traditional jajam motifs looks at ways to adapt these classic motifs and patterns in current times.

Rediscovering Jajam, documentary by Wabisabi Project.

A part of this project is a documentary, produced by Anokhi Museum of Hand Printing and Rachel Bracken-Singh, and researched and directed by Kriti and Avinash. A significant boost to the project came in 2018 when the documentary won the 66^th National Film Awards for the Best Promotional Film. The documentary titled “Rediscovering Jajam” tells tales of the journey of the jajam changing contexts over centuries, about the people, their experiences, beliefs and way of life. Wabisabi Project is involved in research, documentation, experimentation, design, production of traditional practices in block printing and natural dyes. At their studio in Bagru, Rajasthan; they are re-making jajam in its traditional aesthetics and also adapting the classic motifs and patterns into contemporary collections of garments and home furnishings.

One of the jajam designs by Wabisabi Project.

The making of a jajam involves twenty-five days, six communities and fifteen different processes. Each of the fabric goes through a seventeen-day process involving various steps of indigenous way of pre-treatment to ensure a good color absorption capacity and longevity of the fabric. The focus is on harnessing the traditional wisdom of preparing the cloth with oil mordants and cow dung to achieve the brilliant reds and using sun's energy to naturally bleach the ground of the printed cloth and avoid the use of caustic alkalis and bleaching agents at any stage of the process. It takes a gifted craftsman, a detailed eye and skilled hands to produce this prolific body of work filled with intricacies. It is them who give everybody an opportunity to momentarily retract from a rushed modern life and appreciate the nuances. Jajam is a celebration of craftsmanship and community coherence. This printed textile transforms a structured space into a safe space to strengthen a social framework, which is ultimately tied to the growth of a society through deepening of social engagement. The existence of jajam is a hope to retain the culture of purposeful or aimless congregations with our loved ones in our everyday lives.

Ela Bhatt has been part of my life almost since Dastkar’s beginning in the ’80s. I had the fortune to see her in multiple roles — not just as the founder and head of SEWA, but as homemaker, wife, mother, mother-in-law and grandmother. A teacher and mentor, but also a perennial seeker of truth; nurturing and exemplary always. Her grandsons, both creative, were encouraged to scribble on the walls of her home! Ever welcoming, she loved meeting new people and learning new things. Much of our conversation and correspondence were about Indian social history, and how it shaped our lives and thinking. She was delighted to discover the Gandhian links between our families. “I remembered you while visiting Dandi and particularly Dharasana, where your granduncle Abbas Tyabji was leading the salt satyagraha as Gandhiji got arrested in Dandi,” she wrote, “My grandfather also was at Dharasana, beaten and arrested. He was leading the first team of the satyagraha. I wanted to share this with you.” Something else she shared, which is so eloquent of her as a person, was concerning the day she left the SEWA office after giving up her post as general secretary in 1996, a role she’d had since its inception decades before. After the emotional goodbyes, she was feeling rather flat, wondering what the future held, what she would do. Suddenly inspired, she directed the driver to go to the home of a music teacher she knew, and signed up for singing lessons! Thereafter, Indian classical singing became an important part of her life (as yoga was). Needless to say, she remained as busy as ever, on the national and international stage. Elaben was an activist and a feminist, well ahead of her time and milieu. She was a lone voice in the trade-union movement in Ahmedabad in the 1960s, when her engagement with unorganised women workers in the Ahmedabad textile industry began. She saw the importance of their contribution to family incomes, and the appalling conditions in which they worked. Be they rag pickers or casual labour, they were unorganised, unrepresented and had no voice. Her legal training (she was an LLB) and her experience as an educator (she had taught English at SNDT University) equipped her to be their advocate. The unions’ opposition to the inclusion of unorganised women led to the founding of SEWA in 1972 and its growth into the movement of 2.1 million women workers in 18 states, that it is today. Elaben’s advocacy was never strident or loud, nor was she an impassioned orator. She remained a gentle revolutionary, though never passive. All the more effective because what she said was never about herself, but as the spokeswoman for thousands of women who had no voice of their own. As she said herself, “Jay beeja nay aagad karay te aagewan (those who put others forward are leaders)”. As the simplicity of her habitual khadi saris showed, she was a Gandhian, a word often misused and often slightly dismissive. There was nothing naive or woolly about her Gandhi-ism. It was, like the Mahatma’s, practical and focussed. The vision was always partnered by an action plan. When something didn’t work, she rethought it. The post-Godhra killings and increasing communalism in Gujarat wounded her spirit, but, inspiringly, she remained an optimist till the end. Gandhi used the handspun and handwoven as a metaphor for independence and swadeshi; Elaben used a clay pot. Buy locally, use local resources, become sustainable, empower local communities. “Poverty is a form of violence,” she said often, “Poverty is a society’s disrespect for human labour.” As Dastkar worked with SEWA over the years, first with block printers in Ahmedabad and then the rural-mirror work, patchwork and aari-embroidery women in Banaskantha, she was quick to agree that poor women need not make cheap things. Whatever we created should reflect the full potential of their skills, and they should be paid accordingly. She had great empathy with the women and, also, with their rich cultural heritage and skill sets, something they themselves often didn’t value. “Her work is part of a woman’s identity — her life, her family, her community, her religion, her faith, her person and identity,” she said. We shared our belief that “Traditional crafts are not our past; they are our future.” My enduring memory of Elaben is one I saw many times — a small neat erect figure, clad in her trademark khadi sari, elegant but understated, backpack on her back, walking firmly through the airport doors, on to yet another international conclave, yet another coming together of disparate people, yet another destination, sharing the message of equality and the power of women, sharing her gentle strength and inspirational spirit. Her journey is not yet done. You want some people to live forever. In fact, you need them to.

https://youtu.be/IGubOJDOVxY

Issue #008, 2021 ISSN: 2581- 9410

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The land of Kachchh district in Gujarat, India, is a mosaic of diverse landscapes, people, and ethnic communities, mainly nomadic pastoralists who have settled here within the last century. These “living histories” have contributed a tremendous amount of knowledge through their cultures and traditions that are practiced even today- making Kachchh, a hub of handicrafts. Crafts originated to fulfil the societal and cultural needs of the communities living together. For example, the Kumbhar (potter) community fashioned their pots using locally found clay in different shapes, sizes and painted motifs depending on which subset of the Maldhari (pastoral) community it was meant for. This was based on the subset’s belief systems, their requirements during their herding journeys and the products (such as milk or its by-products like butter, curd, etc) that they needed to store.

Doiya, a pot used by camel herders to collect milk. Since milking a camel is a difficult task, a doiya was tied around a camel’s belly, closer to the teats, making it easy to collect milk. This is the reason why this pot has a longer neck so that it can be tied easily. The rim has an inward slope (down) for the flow of milk back into the pot while milking.[1](Khamir, Ghadai). The early craft systems were strengthened by undergoing a rigorous process of trial and error which was subjected to changing environmental, cultural, physical and economic stressors of the community and its geography. To adapt, artisans developed techniques using local and replenishable materials. This fostered a unique relationship of the community with their surrounding ecology, making these practices inherently sustainable. Crafts supported the communities to become resilient as they combatted the uncertainties of arid Kachchh. For example, Kala Cotton, an indigenous rainfed variety is resilient and resurgent in the face of the difficult water scarce conditions. Its fibres were spun into yarns which were dyed in different colors and then woven into fabrics, supporting the livelihoods of spinners, dyers and weavers in the region.

The journey of Kala cotton from a fully bloomed bud; the fibres are gathered and spun on a Charkha to make yarns; yarns are dyed and then woven into a textile.

Passing of Knowledge in Craft Communities [embed]https://youtu.be/jJNHZAGPlk8[/embed]

Vankar Shamji Vishram spinning Kala Cotton with a young family member Image Credits: Vankar Shamji Vishram

The skills mastered over time became an essential component of the livelihood of artisans. However, for them, crafts were not only a means of sustenance but also defined their lifestyle. This lifestyle held values which were imbibed from the knowledge and wisdom gathered and nurtured through their life, their materials, ecology and natural and cultural events. These aspects were associated with spirituality, brotherhood and a devotion to nature and its abundances and formed the core of their knowledge system. This was passed on to further generations in the form of traditions and life-skills. One of the main mediums of dissemination was through oral literature built through conversations, folklore, songs and poems.

ચરખો પાંચ સાત કા સાઝ બનાયા, ખેલ ખરો ઉન ઘર કો... પવન ફુદરડી રમે પ્રેમ સે... જ્ઞાની થઈને નીરખો જ્ઞાની હોકર પરખો... ભાઈ કોણ બનાવ્યો ચરખો... કોણે બનાવ્યો ચરખો...

Charkha Made with a blend of five and seven This is the game of truth of His abode… The wind twirls with love...Become wise and inspect Become wise and percept...O Brother, who made this Charkha... Who made this Charkha...

This is an excerpt from a Bhajan (devotional song) written by poet Ravi Ram. This Bhajan is dedicated to “Charkha”, a spinning wheel, used as a metaphor for the make of the human body. It describes the make through the five senses and seven metals, imploring the listener to make ones breathing as medium to know who has made your body. Learning of crafts was a journey that initiated from the emulation of the crafts being practiced in the household and crescendoed to practical application of the knowledge in different parts of life. Given its focus on the discovery of the self and imbibing the essence of nature through this discovery, every learning journey becomes personalised. [caption id="attachment_191801" align="alignright" width="300"]

Khatri Abdul Rauf Abdul Rajak, an Ajrakh Block printer, Ajrakhpur village, Kachchh[/caption]

“In our village, the child is surrounded with people within our community who practice this craft. So, the child grows up playing with the blocks, fabrics and colors, exploring them tactically, following the elders of the household, watching them closely use blocks to print and the dyers dip in colorful liquids day in and day out. I too received my ‘taleem’ (education) in this craft from my grandfather. He taught me to never let laziness seep into my craft, lest my skills slip away. The freedom I had to learn by simply doing, exploring, breaking, spoiling, making and remaking, helped me craft my own journey. Today, I'm an avid believer and promoter of sustainability and health benefits that are a result of using products of natural origins”

Shifts in the Dissemination of Knowledge The last few decades have brought about a change in the transfer of knowledge within craft communities in Kachchh. One of the reasons is the impact faced by the craft sector of Kachchh because of the changing markets, industrialization and the frequent natural calamities experienced by the region. With the uncertainties of the industry, the younger generations now prefer switching to alternative livelihoods, distancing themselves from their once-revered life skill.

This distance is furthered by modern educational systems. The current pedagogical processes and curriculums remain influenced by colonial patterns of education even in the post-independence era. Despite the diversity in India, the teaching-learning practices adopted in many educational institutes remain exclusive of the learner’s context and life and are instead focused on rote learning and diagnostic prescriptive teaching. With little to no skill-based approaches in many public schools, student’s learning is limited to their textbooks and remains aloof to its application outside the classroom. Take, for example, Bhujodi, a village in Kachchh, is well known for its large number of families where weaving is a household practice. Children in that village are brought up playing with yarns and looms. However, the schools in it have little to no mention of the craft or its practices in its pedagogy despite its curriculum having directly relevant concepts such as Fibre to Fabric which are associated with their life outside the classroom. The children there grow up leading two disjointed lives, one inside the school and the one outside. This situation persists across the majority of public schools in Kachchh.

A group of children weaving together in the courtyard of their home in Bhujodi village, Kachchh. Image Credits: Vankar Shamji Vishram

Modern educational systems have made little to no efforts to include craft knowledge systems as part of their pedagogies. In them, crafts are positioned as an extracurricular activity - a hobby to be cultivated. Thus, they fail to explore the scientific, cultural, ecological and livelihood inter-connectedness existing in crafts through a systemic approach. The learning journeys undertaken by craft-based families have an experiential and sensorial component that is by default focused on learning from the context and practically applying the learnings across various stages of life. Exploring the integration of this component in modern pedagogies provides an excellent opportunity to make education meaningful as the learner learns about life through life. This is also seconded by Gandhi, through his Nai Taleem which says, “By education I mean an all-round drawing of the best in a child and man- body, mind and spirit...Literacy in itself is no education. I would therefore begin the child’s education by teaching a useful handicraft and enabling it to produce from the moment it begins its training. I hold the highest development of the mind and the soul is possible under such a system of education... Only every handicraft has to be taught not merely mechanically as is done today but scientifically, i.e. the child should know the why and the wherefore of every process.”[2](Harijan) Crafts are all making the hands a tool that manifests thoughts and, in the process, builds a soulful connection to material and nature. Engaging in the process of creation frees the human mind, builds its cognitive and non-cognitive skills, rationale and a sensitivity towards ecology and humankind, making "experience" an integral part of learning in all educational mediums. While there exist many ways to integrate crafts in educational systems, one of the ways is to develop a craft-based pedagogy which can be utilised to build craft-based curriculums. This pedagogy/ curriculum can be adopted by educational institutes not only in urban contexts, but mainly at the grassroots level, where the crafts are born, making their learning more relevant to their environment. [caption id="attachment_191803" align="alignright" width="300"]

Vankar Devji Valji, Master Weaver, Bhujodi village, Kachchh.[/caption]

“I am a weaver and I have expertise in weaving shawls but I have never been formally educated in a school. To weave a shawl, I know the exact weight of wool that will be required to convert into a yarn. Based on the length of the shawl desired, I can determine the weight of the yarn that I must procure. Since I know the weight, I can estimate its length, hence I don't need to measure out the actual length of the yarn. This knowledge that I developed through my experience is simple mathematics. If one can gain this fundamental understanding of maths through weaving, they can apply that in so many instances in life. Using this knowledge, I was capable of knowing the quantity of construction materials that I must purchase to construct a wall in my house. Now, I’m confident that no contractor can fool me!”

How to integrate craft knowledge systems in mainstream education? The vast knowledge of traditional handicraft ecosystems can be explored by educators to convert into comprehensible content and deliver to knowledge-seekers. These knowledge seekers can be children, youth or even adults. Khamir, an established craft organization in Kachchh that has been working to strengthen and promote the rich artisanal traditions of Kachchh district in the past two decades has been developing a craft pedagogy for the region. Khamir makes this pedagogy accessible to students, schools and universities within as well as outside the region. Khamir disseminates them by curating it in various formats such as curriculums, courses and even short-duration workshops. These formats enable learners to explore and experience the system through its vast social, political, cultural, ecological and anthropological lens. The knowledge and wisdom derived through these mediums help find applications for the seekers to build perspectives to find solutions to modern challenges such as adding value to their existing curriculums and pedagogies or simply adding value to their perspectives of life and the people in it. To talk specifically about integrating craft pedagogies in a curricular format, Khamir practices a philosophy that consciously ensures a participatory approach in integrating the two knowledge systems. In the craft-pedagogy, artisans play a significant role as they not only are parents themselves but are also looked upon as teachers/gurus in the process. Some of the other primary stakeholders include School Management Committees (SMC)/Parent Teacher Associations (PTA) and Gram Panchayats (in case of rural context) who play key roles as enablers of development. In building the pedagogy, perspectives of all stakeholders including artisans, teachers, SMCs/PTAs, Panchayats, educational institutes, designers, educators, the government education departments including District Institute of Education and Training (DIET), is considered. This ensures inclusivity, and the pedagogy receives a dynamic and holistic outlook. This pedagogy is used to create craft-curriculums. The core idea behind a craft curriculum is for the seeker to be able to learn basic subjects like Maths, Science, History, Geography, Environmental Science or even advanced subjects in the fields such as design and commerce through the lens of crafts such as spinning, weaving, block printing and pottery, that are practiced in the context of the student. Through its experience and expertise, Khamir has identified some essential points arising in the pathway of building craft-curriculums. They are explained as follows:

Documenting Craft Ecosystem It is important to first study the chosen craft and its ecosystem. The various components that make up a craft knowledge system can be seen from a social, anthropological, environmental, technical and design perspective of the craft, its processes, its communities and the changes that have occurred in the ecosystem over the years. At this stage, it’s important to build conversations with various stakeholders, primarily artisans. Furthermore, designers, researchers and historians will provide a deeper and diverse perspective on the craft ecosystem. This documentation becomes the knowledge foundation and acts as a premise to explore and define sustainability which is intrinsically prevalent in handicraft communities of Kachchh.
Making an Integrated Learning Map of Crafts It's important for curriculum makers to have an understanding of the modern knowledge systems and their curriculums. It helps to include different subject teachers that teach the targeted age group within the team. It is required for the curriculum makers to get oriented to the ecosystem of the craft chosen, experience it through craft-workshops and interactions with artisans. After which, using the documentation, identify and map the overlaps, blends and relationships existing in the craft systems with the basic concepts given in the various textbooks across different ages. These can include points on artisanal communities and their crafts aspects such as materials, tools, techniques, members of the ecosystem, natural resources and values. This helps analyse the patterns, methods and shifts in knowledge-transfer in indigenous communities, relevance of handicrafts in today’s world, its application in modern education pedagogies and how learning can be made experiential.

An Integrated Learning Map of the Weaving Ecosystem

III. Mapping Learning Outcomes To streamline the learning targets for various learning groups, map the learning outcomes prescribed by The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) & Gujarat Council of Educational Research and Training (GCERT) for Grade 5-9 with those that directly correlate with the selected handicraft. Through conversations with many master artisans and teachers, it was found that initiating a craft based curriculum is highly applicable to children of ages between 9-16 years, which mainly belong to Grade 5-9. [caption id="attachment_191805" align="alignright" width="300"]

Vankar Shamji Vishram, Master Weaver, Bhujodi village, Kachchh.[/caption]

“In the ages of 5-10 years, children are most attracted to diverse kinds of work. They are playful and have good imagination and observational skills. When I was at this age, our grandparents would narrate community stories with us, describing the weaver community’s relationship with the pastoral Rabari community. As children slowly imbibe the learning from these stories, they initiate their engagement with the loom and the environment of weaving.”

[caption id="attachment_191806" align="alignleft" width="300"]

Dr. Ismail Khatri, Master Ajrakh Block Printer, Ajrakhpur village, Kachchh[/caption] “From the ages of 12-13, as children enter puberty, they often develop restless energies. This must be channelised in constructive ways and engaging with craft tools and materials is an appropriate way of doing so. Even though children at this age may not perceive the value-based systems of their tradition, they begin creating and engaging their motor skills.” These opinions were seconded by teachers who believed that students from grade 5 were an appropriate age group to initiate this curriculum as they are sufficiently curious and open to learning and exploring. Furthermore, they also have basic critical and analytical thinking skills to build a sense of the new elements they are introduced to. IV The Curriculum Framework Using the Integrated Learning Map and a Learning Outcomes Map, a curriculum framework can be designed. This helps define the scope of content to be learned through defined standards in the form of learning targets. These targets can include the skills that the child can learn and the values that they can imbibe. The curriculum should support learning not only of information/facts, but also encourage value-based learning which can be imbibed from the ecosystem. Given below is a sample curriculum framework of Weaving that can be applied for Grade 5-9; developed by Khamir in the context of Kachchh. Table 1 Sample of Weaving Curriculum for Grade 5-9

Subjects	Concept	Craftsmanship	Real Life Experiences	Skills	Values
Maths	Two/Three digit arithmetic operations applied through unitary method	Calculating amount of yarn required to weave a fabric	Accompanying weavers to collect yarn from hand spinners/ yarn suppliers	Analytical Thinking, quantitative reasoning, Problem solving, Measurement and estimation	-
	Measurement and units of weight and length, change of shape	Calculating amount of yarn required to weave a fabric			-
	Understanding Circumference, Ratio Proportion, relationship of Rotations and Distance covered	Yarn winding and filling of bobbin of yarn using a Charkha		hand-eye coordination, tactile recognition, muscle memory, mindfulness	Patience
Science	Motion and movement	Yarn winding and filling of bobbin of yarn using a Charkha			Patience
	Process of Yarn to Fabric, properties of yarn such as strength and stretchability	Weaving a handkerchief size fabric with the help of Artisan Teacher		Weaving, hand-eye coordination, concentration, tactile recognition, muscle memory, mindfulness	Appreciation for handiwork, dedication and perseverance
	Understanding the different types of Mixture and Solutions and their properties	Experimenting with creating different dyes for fabric	Conversing with Dyers and understanding their techniques in dyeing	Analytical thinking, classifying, measuring
	Exchange of Heat, change in state of matter	Experimenting with creating different dyes for fabric		Analytical thinking, classifying, measuring
Environmental Science	Understanding the properties of local trees and its usage.	Converse with weavers and Kulori Brush makers to understand the make, design and properties of Kulori Brush	Visiting Banni region to accompany Brush makers in collecting roots of Khajoor tree	Observation skills,, Innovative thinking, product designing, mindfulness	Nurturing, connecting with nature
Environmental Science	Identifying species of different animals and their ecosystems in Kachchh, symbiotic relationship with each other, adaptation of animals to the climate of Kachchh	Reading graphically represented story books such as Shero and Khari on the local ecology of Kachchh and conducting a socratic dialogue on them.	Identifying the various species of animals found in their own surrounding and noting the climate conditions in which they are found	Reading and comprehension skills, imagination skills	Living in harmony with nature -synergy, nurturing
Language	Introduction to Local Poetry and Music in Kachchhi and Gujarati	Listen to songs, poems and bhajans from local artistes in the local language, Writing poems in their own language/dialect,	Conversing with Weaver’s Bhajan Mandli	Deep Listening, Comprehension, Imagination and Creative Writing skills	Connect with Art forms and appreciating diverse forms of expressions
Social Science	Understanding the factors affecting the settlement patterns of the weaver community and their interdependence with the pastoral community	Develop relevant questions that will lead to understand the various historic-socio-economic-ecological factors that affected the decisions of the community, gathering and analysing the data	Conducting interviews with elder weavers and pastoral communities in the closest villages	Conversational skills, how to form questions and gather data, critical and analytical thinking	Interdependence, endurance

How to use the Craft Curriculum? Activity Design The default nature of crafts is experiential. Through making and creating, it involves a physical and sensorial engagement with tools and materials. On a socio-emotional level, it involves the engagement of the heart and soul with the extended ecology and community. Therefore, this curriculum must be executed by designing activities in an experiential format. So, to explore geometry through Ajrakh Block Printing, chemistry through natural dyeing, or to understand the journey of a textile, it is important for students to be immersed in the context. This can be done by curating expeditions and experiments, conducting explorations on materials and design, recording oral histories and engaging in story-telling with members of the craft ecosystem such as Farmers, Artisans and Pastoralists. These enable learners to understand the scientific, cultural, ecological and livelihood inter-connectedness of crafts practices and communities and their inter-relationships. Participatory methodologies such as design thinking and systems thinking can also be explored in the context to solve challenges (contextual &/or other).

Students performing various activities based on the weaving curriculum made by Khamir. They include a herding expedition, exploring wool as a fibre, conducting scientific experiments on wool, cutting plastic into strips to make a yarn for weaving and reading a graphic childrens story book on the local ecology of Kachchh

While designing activities for different age groups, a continuity should be maintained not only in the learning journeys as prescribed by the modern knowledge systems, but also those which are followed for a learner within the craft system. In Kachchh, a large number of crafts are practiced, many of which are interdependent on each other. Hence, peer learning amongst children provides a large scope of cross-learning that can be encouraged in different craft contexts. As many beneficiaries of the curriculum may belong from craft practicing families, they can also facilitate learning for those who do not. Role of Stakeholders To bring out a progressive systemic change, stakeholders on a rural as well as urban level play a strong role in the successful implementation of the curriculum. To achieve this, it is important to create a space to support the teachers through training modules. These modules can aim to build their capacity through workshops, building experiential and contextual teaching-learning materials and resources and facilitation. With a change in the teaching-learning methodologies, it also becomes important for institutions to relook at assessment formats. On a child’s level, teachers can be trained to ascertain their growth by conducting a self-, peer-, teacher- and parental-based assessment. This assessment should focus on socio-emotional growth and application of the child’s learnings in their own lives. In craft systems, given that artisans are teachers and holders of the system's wisdom and knowledge, it becomes important to acknowledge their roles as such, and incorporate their participation as teachers in the implementation of the activities. For this, artisans should also be provided with adequate training to facilitate children from varied backgrounds. Through this circle of the teacher, the artisan teacher and its community, children become recipients of a holistic perspective of the context. This also opens an opportunity of fostering a mutual give and take amongst all stakeholders. Additionally, mobilising and orienting parents, school management committees, parent teacher Associations and Panchayats through a multistakeholder participative approach should also be considered. Sustainability Improving the quality of education is a long-term engagement. Thus, the implementation of this model should not solely be dependent on the leadership of the organisation. The making of the curriculum offers many collaborative opportunities for schools, educators, teachers, designers and enthusiasts of alternative teaching-learning spaces who can come together to support in the building and execution of the curriculum. With the vast potential and application of this curriculum, in compliance with the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020), it can provide ample opportunities for government education bodies to support in implementation, scaling and teacher-training aspects of the model. Although the current geography undertaken by Khamir is in the micro context of Kachchh, a model like this can be replicated by educators/ organisations across the country where similar craft ecosystems are present. India is a land of diverse communities, geographies and climate, nurturing several indigenous knowledge systems that hold centuries-old knowledge and wisdom. Craft and its communities have gifted the country with a wealth of material knowledge, techniques, colours, textures and smell. Whether it's in the context of Himalayan region or the Lacquer-craft work practiced in Orissa, each region's uniqueness can be considered to contextualise the curriculum. Integrating indigenous knowledge in curriculums, makes it transparent, openly accessible and shared for communal benefit. While it has its many advantages, it is important to keep in mind the sanctity associated with this knowledge and its origins; giving due respect to the artisans, their communities and their beliefs associated with the craft. Applications on a mass scale often tend to dilute the spiritual essence of the whole system. Therefore, making it a part of the experience helps sustain it. Outcomes of the Craft Curriculum The curriculum empowers children to explore how they can learn about life from life as they understand how to propagate a give and take culture of learning and sharing amongst students, artisans, teachers and society at large. In the curriculum, most concepts undertaken promote associative learning, supporting students to relook at the interdisciplinary relationship across different subjects. This is also urged by the NEP-2020 which says, “The Middle Stage (ages 11-14) will comprise three years of education, building on the pedagogical and curricular style of the Preparatory Stage (ages 8-11), but with the introduction of subject teachers for learning and discussion of the more abstract concepts in each subject that students will be ready for at this stage across the sciences, mathematics, arts, social sciences, and humanities. Experiential learning within each subject, and explorations of relations among different subjects, will be encouraged and emphasized despite the introduction of more specialized subjects and subject teachers. The Secondary Stage (ages 14-18) will comprise of four years of multidisciplinary study, building on the subject-oriented pedagogical and curricular style of the Middle Stage, but with greater depth, greater critical thinking, greater attention to life aspirations, and greater flexibility and student choice of subjects”[3](National Education Policy) As learners explore crafts and interact with crafts-persons, they build a path to realize the value of time, labour and efforts that is invested in making hand products in this rapidly transforming world of mechanization, digital technology and industrialization. Thereby, they develop a new-found respect and appreciation for craft culture, practices, skills and knowledge available in the immediate environment or as a part of their familial tradition. [embed]https://youtu.be/yEUeD26_tyU[/embed]

A young girl in Nana Nandra village in Kachchh, demonstrating her hand spinning skills to the older spinners. She practices handspinning everyday in the mornings before going to school.

By contextualising the handicraft ecosystem, children are encouraged to respect the skills of working with hand, mind and soul, instilling seeds of self-dependence and self-reliance. Their learning would equip them with the essential skills to handle the practical affairs of life and also develop sensitivity for our environment with a moral responsibility towards it. This is seconded by the National Education Policy which says, “The pursuit of knowledge (Jnan), wisdom (Pragyaa), and truth (Satya) was always considered in Indian thought and philosophy as the highest human goal. The aim of education in ancient India was not just the acquisition of knowledge as preparation for life in this world, or life beyond schooling, but for the complete realization and liberation of the self”[4](National Education Policy) Integrating crafts through a gender non-conforming curriculum, the gender stereotypes attached to certain crafts are broken. For example, Tie-Dye which is known to be practiced mainly by women often has many male master artisans performing both tying and dyeing processes. In Embroidery, a craft tradition performed mainly among the young girls and women of the house, can be relooked from a new perspective upon integration in schools where boys also participate equally. Artisanship has a complex role in the Indian society. It is often looked upon as a laborious work, taking a backseat in the social strata. As craft work is not highly encouraged, people become less receptive to learning from craft ecosystems. By integrating craft systems within mainstream education, a new dialogue opens up to rebuild perspectives, enhance relationships and find relevance of living histories. Moreover, with the help of the National Education Policy (NEP 2020), indigenous craft knowledge-systems can reclaim their relevance and find new meanings in sustaining them. With artisans extending their role from craft producers to cultural practitioners and teachers, it holds the potential to re-establish the age-old debate between a literate individual versus an educated individual and witness a shift in the conversation between teachers & students from prescriptive rules to permissive guidance. At Khamir, we believe that integrating crafts through structured curriculums can find applicability in institutes and organisations across the country. One can explore endless possibilities of adapting them for different age-groups and educational levels across various learning spaces. The power of bringing a qualitative change lies with the teacher and organisations that foster them. This pedagogy holds the potential to bridge the divide in the rural and urban learners, skilled and unskilled or the illiterate and the educated. Its application is only limited by the extent of our creativity and imagination. References [1] "Ghadai." Ghadai by the potters of Kutch. Bhuj: Khamir, 17 January 2015. Exhibition. "Khamir." Bhuj, 2005. <https://www.khamir.org/>. [2] Gandhi, M.K. "Harijan." Harijan. M.K. Gandhi, 31 July 1937. News Paper, weekly journal. [3] Ministry of Human Resource Development, Govt. of India. National Education Policy. Informational Formal. Ministry of Human Resource Development. New Delhi: Govt. of India, 2020. Online Publication. <https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf >. [4] National Education Policy. Informational Formal. Ministry of Human Resource Development. New Delhi: Govt. of India, 2020. Online Publication. <https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf >. Sites

Khamir, khamir.org
The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), https://ncert.nic.in/
Gujarat Council of Educational Research and Training (GCERT), https://gcert.gujarat.gov.in/gcert/
National Educational Policy 2020, https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf

Note

All quotes have been taken from the Khamir’s field research unless mentioned otherwise
All images used in this case study are credited to Khamir unless stated otherwise.

Design and Craft are considered to be two separate aspects of artistic expression when viewed from the current perspective. But traditionally in India, design was a function of craft and vice versa. They were interdependent and worked in unison to enhance each other. The current debate of designers' vs. crafts persons' seems entirely unnecessary - a result of too much mind being applied to make an activity conducted for 'swantsukhai' - personal happiness, into a hardcore income generating profession. This is maybe the need of the hour, but to my mind it kills the spontaneity of expression and essence of craft - a humble offering made by deft fingers for a simple cause - to create more beauty, to see more beauty and to inspire more beauty in all who view it. It is the outcome of constant meditation and awareness of the craftsperson nurtured in an environment conducive for manifesting ancient traditions. Whether it is saleable or not is not the objective. A true craftsperson is also the designer, with his or her unique individuality. The point that needs to be remembered is that crafts persons when used as mere labour - mazdoors, do not fit into this category. It is true that only a few out of a group have the desire for excellence and are so smitten by their craft to be willing to risk all to express what they want. It is akin to madness that is all encompassing and inspires the individual to offer his/her being solely to the act of creation. The remaining merely use it as a tool to earn a living. Their lives are bereft of the thrill of creativity, of being mediums of expressing and manifesting something that was non-existent in this realm. These are the ones that perhaps can be used as labour to feed the export/ retail markets where design is controlled many a times by parameters like cost, season etc.

True crafts persons cannot be created. They are, and cannot be framed or limited. And considering the laws of Nature, it is always the survival of the fittest. Those who face hardships are the ones who evolve into superior beings, unlike those who are spoon-fed and nurtured on a diet of mere mental manipulation. Where is the need to teach pure design with respect to western parameters to our Indian craftsmen? Hardcore techniques expressing a mechanical thought process are generally alien and detrimental to craft. But perhaps at a different level, as my faith in my countrymen elucidates, we have the capacity to convert and adapt any technique to suit our purpose. We did it to the Mughals, the British and now it is the turn of all technical western influences. As always, there might be some individuals who may get swept away with the methodology and change course but then there will be others who will absorb and assimilate it to evolve their own design vocabulary laced with their unique cultural ethos. Design institutes have already created designers, who at present are aspiring to 'make it' in the western markets. They swear by Indian aesthetics and craftsmanship but fail to contribute substantially to its cause. Let us not commit the same mistake with craft. The craftsmen with their seemingly limited worldviews but deep faith in our culture and connection with the 'Supreme Designer' residing within have been the ones who have sustained our beautiful traditions. What is perhaps needed is not only to teach them western perspective of design, but also to inculcate in them self-respect and reverence for their tradition which is being rapidly eroded in the younger generation. That is why children of craftsmen do not want to continue their family traditions. Our crafts men are the real designers; they are the ones who produce such works of art that no machine can replicate. In fact, traditionally, left to our brilliant weavers, no two saris woven were identical. The creative hands of our craftsmen induced seemingly minor yet visually significant variations like interesting colour combinations or weaves. It was almost impossible to imagine two or more Indian women clad in identical saris in the same family function! It would be pure murder! But guided by the mass-market mentality and the concept of buying something 'new and latest' every time, the situation has rapidly hanged, perhaps for the worse. We have seen this affecting a variety of weaving and craft areas. As the name suggests, Kala Raksha Vidhyalay needs to be a centre of vidya and not only knowledge or technique. Vidya is not mere information but a deep wisdom that arises out of experience. It permeates our being and is a source of growth and evolution. Let us teach our craftsmen the spirituality of craft - expertise that is inspired by a profound understanding of nature and its Laws. It is only when the craftsmen attain new insights into familiar objects and themes, or a new perspective of seemingly mundane tasks that creativity surfaces. Let us not digress from our core task of 'kala raksha.' For this, there is the need to broaden the minds of our crafts persons, enhance and strengthen their physical abilities by providing them with a suitable environment and circumstances conducive for growth, rather than tampering with their natural design and creative instincts, which are supported by an inherent tradition. Craft has and will always be a parameter of social change. Unless we can reinstate the glory of handi-crafts and hand woven products in the minds of the immediate consumers and local buyers, our crafts will not survive. The monster of technique and industrialisation is sure to devour all that is natural, spontaneous and culturally relevant. The dividing line is fine. Let us have faith in Nature's cycle of creation, perfection and destruction. What is detrimental to growth and progress of humanity is sure to wither away, whereas that which is progressive will survive to carry forth our Sanatan (eternal) traditions. Craft is a source of eternal bliss and bliss is priceless.

The Patua artists and storytellers were the precursors of cinema and television in Bengal. Wandering from place to place with their painted linear Pattachitra scrolls they regaled their audiences with stories, slowly un-scrolling theirpats. Stories of gods and goddesses, myths, folklore and legends provided entertainment, the Patuas communicating and interpreting the stories while in addition carrying tales of faraway events and momentous occurrences to their audiences. In the early years of the 19^th century looking for new opportunities some members of the Patua community settled in the vicinity of the Kalighat temple in southern Calcutta. Then as now this most renowned of all Hindu religious sites in Bengal was a great marketplace for traders, artists and craftsperson’s selling votive objects and mementos for the pilgrims to take home as souvenirs. The paintings of the Patuas at Kalighat were different from their scrolls as they now served a very different audience - that of pilgrims to the temple, eager for keepsakes at a low price. The Patuas broke from their tradition by selling their paintings, changing the format to that of a chaukash rectangular pat which depicted individual scenes and figures. These were executed on mill-made paper usually in a size of 45 cms. Given the crush of the large numbers of transient temple visitors themade-to-order painting were executed with great speed at prices that suited the buyer’s pocket. Painted in water-colors the background was usually blank with the figures more often than not just one or two large, curvaceously-shaped ones that filled the page with no superfluous decorative elements for the eye to focus on. in 1888 an eye-witness account stated “The Patuas now paint rude "daubs'' which are sold by thousands in stalls near the shrine of Kalighat…, as also in other places of pilgrimage and public fairs. The subjects as usual are mythological, but of late they have taken to making pictures representing a few comical features of Indian life…. generally sold at a price ranging from a farthing to a penny.” In this urbanized milieu of Calcutta the Patuas had branched out from the confines of mythological and religious pats to reflect on the increasingly Anglicized Bengali society. Depicting contemporary social themes, events, and lampoons that reflected the mores of a rapidly growing metropolis their subject matter now include the strains and fissures of changing times the artists presenting their view point caricaturing the modern Bengali gentlemen and their ladies with wry and sardonic humor. Current events, topical goings-on were also portrayed; none more famously than the sensational 1873 legal case that was branded the Tarakeshwar Affair. With all the ingredients of a potboiler the Patuas’ skills of caricature, imagination and newsworthiness were put to test as through their art they vividly imagined the extra-marital affair and subsequent murderous beheading that was the highlight of the case. The Patuas illustrations fed an avid audience who were agog to gather all the news on the case. This newsworthiness combined with their ability to capture the moment with a satirical twist expanded their audience beyond the traditional demands of the pilgrims to that of a larger public that included collectors and European visitors. This art style came to be termed as Kalighat painting, based on the eponymous temple in whose precincts the Patuas worked. Like many art and craft forms the coming of mechanization and in this case the technology of woodcuts and metal-engraved prints with its mass reproduction onprint sounded the death knell for the Patuas. The Kalighat painting style that had emerged in the early 19^th century ended in the first quarter of the 20^th century. By 1932 an account by MukulDey, the first Indian to be Principal of the Government School of Art, noted, “But these Patuas are not found in their old places now….I searched in vain for all the old spots …where those Patuas in their “shop-studios” would draw paintings and sell them before standing crowds of buyers. The buyers are gone and so are the artists….”Stating further, “These pictures have now entirely vanished. The artist craftsmen are nearly all dead, and their children have taken up other business.…selling at two or four pice each… The old art is gone forever—the pictures are now finding their last asylum in museums and art collections as things of beauty which we cannot let die.” Pats in the Kalighat style of painting were the first works to be applauded, written about and recognized as the truly urban art of Calcutta by scholars with collections in private hands and in museums across the world bearingtestimony to the fame and appreciation of this art form. While the narrative arts of the Pattachitra and its poetic rendering of stories continued in Bengal the Kalighat style was to remain dormant for over half a century till the late 1990s when KalamPatuawho belonged to a traditional Patua family experimented with the form having seen his first Kalighat painting at Gurusaday Museum on one of his rare visits to Kolkatta.Working for years to perfect his form he hasn’t looked back since with his work in collections in prestigious museum in India and overseas, solo exhibitions and participation in international art workshops. His efforts have seen a revival of the genre in Bengal with new Kalighat style artists emerging from traditional Patua families. However his work and that of 30 year old BhaskerChitrakar stand out as their sardonic humorand witty paintings of contemporary India best represent the satirical approach of the Kalighat’s of the past. [gallery ids="165347,165348,165349,165350,165351"] First published in Sunday Herald.

'If you give me sawdust, I could even sell that! You have to create demand for your products and then should be able to fulfil that demand.' - Businessman in Bombay, when asked about his stone export business.
'I opened my shop on 23 August 2003 and three days later my shop was empty.' - Aradhana Nagpal, who runs Dhoop, a contemporary Asian crafts shop in Bombay.

These were some of the responses that I got from people who sell craft products. Having been involved with non-government organisations that support craft groups, I have been concerned with the situation of their market. It is important to understand the present state of craft retailing, the experiences of current players in the chain that produce and sell crafts. What are the gaps that exist in the chain and how can they be filled. Are crafts a viable selling proposition today?

There are different kinds of set-ups that sell crafts - retail outlets, exporters, designers-cum-entrepreneurs, government emporia, chain stores and producers themselves. Most of the producers supply to small retail outlets, which store products from various groups, giving customers a wide range of hand-made products from various states of India. The quantity of each product at the outlets is generally small. Supplying to these outlets involves less risk for the producer groups - quantities are small and delivery dates not very rigid. If supplies are late by a week or a month, the outlets tend to be soft about it, unless of course winter stock is arriving in summer! A major problem in supplying to retail outlets is that they order very small quantities. Due to the small scale of their business, they might keep products on consignment and pay groups as and when there are sales, and return what does not sell. Exporters often cater to the domestic as well as the international market. For domestic sales, they might source from craft groups but rarely do they source from them for the export market. The reason being that they require large quantities for export, have to adhere to very high quality standards and strictly abide by delivery date commitments. They usually have their own production units that are close enough for regular supervision; they produce for their retail and export orders. Designers develop their own range of designs and products and then have these executed by craft groups. They could be selling in the domestic and export markets. They too prefer to have their own production units so that they can do quality checks, follow-up production and see that others do not copy their designs. They do source some products from craft groups, but get the bulk of their production from their own production units. Producers also sell their products directly to the consumer either through exhibitions or through orders that they procure. The number of craft exhibitions and fairs in metro cities have increased in the past decade. Government-run state emporia also sell crafts. Each state has an emporium in Delhi and in the state capital. The new trend of chain stores and malls is becoming popular in urban centres. One can buy everything under one roof from household goods, children's toys, home furnishings to garments. These stores require large quantities every few months and demand moderate/low priced goods that can be delivered in substantially large volumes every few months (depending on their turnover). They stock products from craft groups to complete the picture of 'one stop shop' and also because craft products are in demand, as I was told by Shoppers' Stop, Bombay. Let me look at the other end of the chain, in particular at the craft groups that are associated with non-government organisations. These groups get assistance in design, production, product development and marketing from organisations. Most of the craft programs fall under the income-generating activity in an organisation, overseen by a staff team. The team members may not be experts in production planning, design or marketing but can motivate the groups and get them together to produce. The objective is to supplement the family income of artisans and to keep the skill alive. At times, groups do access external help to assist them with design and marketing. Two major concerns in the non-government organisation-run craft programs are personnel and production streamlining. One person tries to do too many activities. By the time the staff members understand the work, they may have to leave the organisation or be asked to look at other programs within the same organisation. Skills that they learn are rarely passed on to those who replace them. The groups tend to emphasize marketing rather than matching the production with the market demand, both in quantity and quality. They want more orders, want to participate in more exhibitions, supply to more outlets and export. None of them admit that they could not meet the market demand, or fulfill existing orders, or that they need to streamline production before tackling the market. Inputs that go into the program (design, entrepreneurial skill development, exposure trips, marketing trips) do not match the output i.e. production. The constraints that craft groups face are many. Due to the unorganised and geographically dispersed nature of the groups, these constraints get even more magnified. From the lack of capital to invest in raw materials to a scarcity of raw materials and their availability at reasonable rates; from the absence of direct marketing outlets to the difficulty in accessing urban areas that are now the main markets for craft products; from production problems to a lack of guidance in product design and development based on an understanding of the craft, the producer and the market, the constraints are many and varied. Even though the government has a number of schemes for the handloom and handicraft sector, most artisans do not even get to hear about the schemes made for them. If they have heard of a particular scheme, they cannot cope with the complex procedure to avail its benefits, and if they do manage to follow the procedure, bureaucratic bottlenecks and delays more often than not discourage the intending beneficiary. Organisations do assist their craft groups in accessing government support, but even with this it is difficult. Craft groups are rapidly losing ground due to such reasons. They are unable to compete in larger urban markets, both domestic and international. The difficulty and costs of developing design and marketing systems prevents them from catering to rapidly changing consumer preferences and dealing with the different components of the established supply chains. The market wants consistent supply of good quality products. It demands quantity and deliveries of these on time. Products and designs need to change often so there is something new and different for the consumer. These products also have to fit the consumer's budget. However, it was evident from talking to buyers (exporters, wholesalers and retailers) that there is a demand for craft products. The producers need to fulfill that demand in a certain way. At the buyers' end there is a need to understand the producers' context and be clear in their communications. This will facilitate the production process. At the producers' end, financial constraints, lack of raw material, change in market trends are all problems that can be dealt with if tackled on time and in a planned way. The cycle of lack of capital and raw material leading to less production and, therefore, lower sales can be broken. Producer groups and the sellers need to tackle the constraints so as to make the relationship beneficial to both. Rahul Duggal from Aravali Exports said, "The NGO sector is too idealistic, and they confuse too many things when running a business." During my interactions with various groups in different states, I found that there is a realisation amongst the groups that they need to get focused and not confuse too many objectives. Groups recognise that they need to run income-generating activities like a business to gain long-term sustainable benefits. The biggest advantage in their favour is that the demand is there and they need to make the most of it. Groups have to meet the demand that has been created for their products. This article was first published in Humanscape, July 2004

Over 300 weavers gathered in Chirala(AP) in November for a 7-day global meet on “Rethinking Indian Industrialization of Crafts”. Organized by REEDS (a Hyderabad-based NGO working with rural communities),Dastakar Andhra and other partners. The conference drew participants from Kutch, J&K, Chhattisgarh, Tripura, Manipur, Nagaland and Sikkim, from every southern state, as well as from Thailand, Taiwan, China and Laos. For some, the journey meant travelling four days and nights -- carrying looms and spinning wheels. A weavers’ camp, with exhibition and work spaces, was set up under trees and shelters at a local school, drawing the local community into what was perhaps a first:so many weavers coming together in India to share knowledge and hope. Indigo vats were installed by Indian and Thai dyers. An exhibition of khadi products by Registry of Sarees displayed 200 years of experience. Curator Mayank and his team from Delhi brought 24 pieces of exquisite fabric gathered from across the country. Translators and scholars were on hand as workshops and discussion reflected the enormous capacity of artisans to communicate and absorb from one another across barriers. An Andhra weaver was seen learning intricate weaving techniques from Laos. Another from Chhattisgarh overcame problems in dyeing nettle yarn from Uttarakhand through his exchanges with Jagada Rajappa (Hyderabad) and weaver Tang Wen Chun (Taiwan), while a contingent from Kutch demonstrated the importance of wool within the handloom scenario. ‘Old’ as the ‘new-new’ and other findings As a year of meticulous planning unfolded effortlessly,Chirala’s magnificent seashore was always in sight to remind one of the timeless scale of human ingenuity. Weaver-to-weaver interactions offered a ‘reality show’context to two days of discussions that followed, bringing scholars and weavers from around the globe together on issues of craft and pedagogy, law, labour, livelihoods and future directions.The invitation signalled formidable scholarship– the conference would include “explorations of 4-E cognition (embodied, embedded, extended, enacted) in the case of sciences, crafts and technologies”.Academics compared Greece and Rome with India’s handloom situation and explored how such ‘anchoring of innovation’ is happening in other societies.Prof Ineke Sluiter (University of Leiden) recalled how Socrates used craft to demonstrate knowledge, “making craft always morally good”. She underlined the need to understand the past as our new future. “Old is the new-new”, Prof Sluiter revealed, demonstrating how concepts of progress in the West are today returning to the wisdom of antiquity.(A lesson for us, as we struggle with the ‘sunset syndrome’ that devastates our sector?)Her reference reminded one of the slogan we have so often used as our handle for advocacy – “The future is handmade” -- which originated in the European Union fifteen years ago! An important lesson underlined by Prof Wieber Bijker(Maastricht University and Norwegian University of Science & Technology) was in the contrasting experiences of China and India. Handcrafts were attacked as decadent and artisans disappeared during the Cultural Revolution. What was lost is now proving difficult to recover – a warning to India in it neglects of incomparable resource of hand wisdom.A disarmingly optimistic view from Dr Anique Hamelink (University of Amsterdam) went unchallenged: “The textile crafts of India are a valued historic tradition and a thriving modern industry at the same time, offering an encouraging example of modern entrepreneurship and design innovation anchored in tradition and sustainable production methods”.Historian MikoFlohr (University of Leiden)offered an insight into what can make academe a critical partner: “The humanities offer innovative thinking that can contribute to sustainable economic development through the importance of understanding the social and economic roles of crafts like handloom weaving in their ecological context, and how crucial it is that the delicate balance between such crafts and the environment is not disturbed. This, in fact, should give these traditional crafts quite a special place in our thinking about sustainable economic development”. Prof Dorothy Ko (Columbia University) appealed to India to learn from China’s bitter experience rather than to blindly mimic growth models that entail huge human and environmental costs. She said the world is looking at India for another path of caring, and for a new value system based on sustainability and humanity rather than on greed. Chinese artisans today have a new sense of mission and are eager to learn from India and to partner with it to build market opportunities in both countries which would drastically reduce dependence on western markets. Her appeal for collaboration was a startling contrast to the image of China in our sector: unbridled competition, based on copies and rip-offs. Dr Valentina Fava (Academy of Sciences, Czech Republic) underlined the need for fresh business models that support sustainability rather than mass production, pointing to the need for marketing strategies that are based on value propositions that transcend short-term calculations of profit, a point supported by Prof James Leach (CNRS France) in a call for understanding livelihoods as much more than income and for bottom-lines that reflect this truth. Significantly, Prof Leach also called for a reciprocal relationship between scholars and practitioners(my emphasis) “so that we can be partners inan ecology of process, and not just about production”. The need of such a relationship and for a strategy to achieve it was perhaps Chirala’s most significant signal to us. Markets: red herrings or sunrise opportunities? Despite references to the marketplace, there was comparatively little space at Chirala for understanding Indian’s experience in craft development and marketing or the crisis of neglect that continues as our most difficult experience. The centrality of the buyer and user in the handloom discourse was most often left as an assumption rather than as the responsibility of creating demand and a willingness to pay for handmade quality by responding to new needs and new aspirations,. This, despite discussions around such critical experiences as Malkha cotton in Andhra and Kala cotton in Kutch. Chirala also highlighted a disturbing reality that for some scholars the way markets work (and therefore the way some of us work) can reduce artisans to passive subjects, exploited as skilled labour rather than respected as keepers of wisdom and knowledge. The announced theme of the gathering was “Rethinking Industrialization of Crafts”, with the term ‘industrialization’ understood primarily as machine-driven challenges. Yet we activists claim that handcraft is India’s second largest industry after agriculture, and the re-thinking that has engaged many of us is the need to recognize handcraft as a gigantic Indian industry – one deserving of attention, respect and investment in its own right and on its own terms. The syndrome of artisan exploitation is a familiar reality that still marks so much of our sector, nowhere more so than in the income-levels that prevail and in appalling conditions of work. To change this situation market demand must deliver a quality of life to artisans that can only come from a willingness to pay for handmade quality, away from the ‘bargain’ mentality so attached to Indian hand production. This is what we have fought to achieve: a fair value for craftsmanship. Empowerment through lifting the capacity of artisans to negotiate and to flourish within the contemporary situation may need stronger understanding not just within Ministries but also within academe. Chirala’s focus was on scholar/artisan relationships. Fair enough. Yet without market activists as key players, how can change be achieved in any new arrangement?Artisans shared the same concerns and hopes that surround us each day at CCI: the collapse of official support systems, the recent horrors inflicted by demonetization and GST, the need for new capacities to match new markets and to cope with competition and change, for all that is required to not just survive but to flourish in today’s environment. And above all, a demand for respect and the hope for a future may exist that can encourage other generations. While respect and hope are values we share with scholars can be founded, let me also add that scholars at Chirala offered extraordinary insights into marketing. In the words of Prof Leach“People choose things for many reasons, and price is one factor. Another is quality and also perceived quality …. Something that we might call aura, or the intangible aspect of quality that includes reputation, knowledge, and the desire of the purchaser to identify with or be included in an image of themselves…”Uzramma used the example of Malkha cotton (high quality at affordable prices) to interpret the marketplace can be an arena where alternatives and options can demonstrate “markets that come after ideas in the head” and emerge as enabling rather than as domineering, spaces. Scholars and scholarship Collaboration between academics and artisans was suggested to make these multiple values apparent and to encourage people and authorities to invest in craft development, leaving a question for those like us -- neither scholars nor artisans -- who work in and through markets. Are we suffering an identity crisis in addition to everything else we complain about? Have we failed to emerge as ‘scholars’ of another kind, in our own right, by experience if not by academic qualification? Why is what we do not top-of-mind although founded on action research and constant testing and responding to real needs of both makers and users? Could it be that we have not marshaled needed evidence, with the rigour that scholarship demands? Is our documentation invisible or inadequate? Can we overcome a fear of discussions that might fly way above our heads and make us feel insignificant? Is there a mirror here to that earlier absence of economists and managers as craft partners? Scholars should surely be the first to understand what we do and why we do it. Like us, they hardly matter at the highest tables of decision-making -- both scholars and activists are uninvited, one for residing in ivory towers and the other as purveyors of myths rather than of solid arguments. Chirala made clear both the need as well as the opportunity for change through new arguments and fresh evidence. Scholars are essential to both. Consider just three recent examples that have featured in this Newsletter: the debate on what constitutes intellectual property and geographic indicators in our sector, or that infamous jacket displayed at the V&A that raised so many issues of ethics, technology and cultural sensitivity. Opportunities emerged in a summary of Chirala achievements by Prof WiebeBijker: the centrality of India-China exchange, the technological sophistication of weavers and other artisans, their need for self-worth, the importance of a new politics that replace a welfare approach with a fresh understanding of crafts as an engine of livelihood as well as a unique and powerful response to the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Prof Ulinka Rublack (Cambridge University) described Chirala as “one of the most inspiring conferences I have ever attended. It demonstrated that we can unite academic knowledge and the knowledge of artisanal practitioners to recollect sustainable economies and products of great beauty … adapted to modern lifestyles”. (The CCI mission, wonderfully endorsed!) For us at CCI, other questions arise: What might all this mean in terms of building the capacity of craft teams, the resources we have for research and published documentation, the opportunities we may now need to bring minds together to reflect on experience and to partner in future work? How might we assist craft scholars in their efforts at creating knowledge resources?Without partnership with those working in markets, how could scholarship possibly move beyond conferences into the field? Or how can those in the market provide the evidence and direction they need without the rigour of scholarship? How best can we draw scholars and scholarship into our teams as peers and partners who can help test our assumptions and findings and enrich the quality of outputs and outcomes? It is not that such partnership with scholars is new to the sector or to us. Consider the seminal “Bamboo &Cane Crafts” of the northeast by the NID team led by M P Ranjan, our own path-breaking projects and exhibitions (examples include Stone Crafts of India Chamba rumals, and the Hyderabad exploration of natural dyes) and those of others (Martand Singh’s Viswakarma, pastoral cultures demonstrated by Sahjeevan, Rajeev Sethi’s showcasing of Indian creativity at Mumbai’s new airport,CCWB’s efforts at the British Museum and elsewhere, Dakshina Chitra and Judy Frater’s path-breaking experiments in Kutch). Scholarship has been the foundation for every one of these. CCI partners have included scholars of distinction: Lotika Varadarajan, JasleenDhamija and Jyotindra Jain are among them. Through the Craft Revival Trust, Ritu Sethi has regularly brought activists and scholars together around concerns and priorities we share.Sahapedia and IGNCA have offered other opportunities,while Uzramma (Malkha) and Annapurna Mamidipudi (Max Planch Institute for the History of Science) have helped transform through lectures and writing our understanding of Chirala’s inspiration: the place of the weaver and her loomin a new millennium. What this suggests is the need to more consciously nurture linkages, integrate them into work and advocacy, and create opportunities that ensure that knowledge from the ground and from the top is brought together to strengthen efforts in a common cause. Past forward Chirala did more than offer a wealth of clues for partnerships in the “ecology of process”. It also recalled our Santiniketan gathering in 2016, and the fact that the beginnings of our movement a century ago were anchored in Rabindranath Tagore’s decision to position the future of Indian handcraft within academe – within auniversity, re-defined as a space embracing universal wisdom and knowledge, demonstrating the contemporary relevance of humankind’s heritage. The past as the future – that is Chirala’s message to us, just as Gurudev predicted in 1919.