Be it handlooms or handicrafts, there is one thing common to both: they have that humane touch and affection through which an artisan tries to express his feelings and experience for a living. In an era of industrialisation, when every product in the nooks and crannies of our house is almost factory-made, handicrafts and handlooms keep us adhered to that indigenous identity of ours. They provide us with a sense of connectivity with nature and creativity of generations unadulterated.
Today, the Indian handlooms and handicrafts sector is considered one of the largest unorganised sectors after agriculture and forms an integral part of rural and semi-rural livelihoods. Few entrepreneurs are trying to organise the market and bridge the gap between consumers and producers, even though it’s quite a herculean task. Along with crafting a successful business out of it, they are trying to create awareness among the masses about the ethereal impact the sector possesses. The Sunday POST spoke to a few of these entrepreneurs who are striving hard to keep the heritage alive:
‘Kavya on quest’
Before joining the hospitality and lifestyle sector quitting her highly-paid job, Kavya Saxena from Rajasthan worked in the corporate sector for eleven years after securing an MBA from the Loyola Institute of Business Administration (LIBA). But it was during the COVID-19 pandemic that she found her true calling and that was to explore rural India.
She collaborated with automotive manufacturer Mahindra & Mahindra on a one-of-a-kind eight-month-long journey that offered her an opportunity to travel across rural India, showcasing the skills of the underprivileged artisans. Odisha was her first pitstop in January 2021, when she visited Mayurbhanj and Koraput. That trip made her fall in love with the state. After the end of her quest, she settled in Odisha, where Craftpotli was born.
Talking about her venture, she says, “Craftpotli is a tribal-focused enterprise, trying to make the intangible heritage of Adivasi clusters across India and Asia accessible in terms of stories, art, product and experiences. Started in Odisha, the enterprise is expanding to other states like Arunachal Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh.”
Recalling the early days, she shares, “In Odisha, I found out that ikkat and sabai were the only products from the state being sold outside. However, there was huge potential in the turmeric from Koraput due to its ample production and inefficient utilisation. Building a partnership with Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society (ORMAS), which was already working with the Adivasi clusters to utilise it and turn it into bath bars, we strategized to scale up their turmeric bathing bars and take them to the next level. They started with small retail; we had our branding and packaging, focused on zero waste.
She goes on to add: “Parallelly, we created a line for golden grass eco-friendly packaging, where smaller brands could replace their packaging with the same, which was economical, handy and lightweight. We also dabbled a lot in Dongria-Kondh textiles and currently, we are working with other tribal clusters to make it big in 2023. All of these ideas came from Koraput.”
Sharing the limitations of endeavour, she said, “We struggled to operate in Odisha, specifically in Koraput, because we didn’t have access to consumers here, and there are a lot of logistical problems in terms of the production facility, transportation, storage and scalability. We aimed for the Adivasi or Kondh women to be financially independent and supervise the production. We have been getting requests to scale up the production from Gujarat and a lot of other states, but we don’t want to make factory-produced stuff, so networking is a big challenge, and we don’t get access to updated information.”
It was Google for Startups that came forward as a silver lining when it incubated Craftpotli and gave both knowledge and consulting. Sharing her success story, Kavya says, “Today, Koraput turmeric bar is our highest selling SKU (stock keeping unit) from February 2022 to January 2023. The product has alone generated revenue of over Rs. 6 lakhs. It’s huge because we are dealing with 20 other SKUs. Koraput bars have been selected as a case study by TISS Mumbai.”
She banks on the expansion of the enterprise and says, “2023 will be our year of expansion and backing up. We plan to revamp our website and add more products with a better shelf life.”
GalangGabaan– A venture
created out of love and passion
In the Santhali language, ‘GalangGabaan’ means ‘creating something out of love and passion’. Keeping that vision in mind, Lipsa Hembram launched GalangGabaan, a women’s clothing brand in 2014. A NIFT Hyderabad graduate, fashion designer and entrepreneur with fourteen years of experience in the industry, Lipsa is also the grooming director at Skillzage which is a life skills development company.
Narrating her journey, the Founder and Creative Head of GalangGabaan says, “I had already identified my strengths when I decided to pursue my bachelor’s in design. After that, it has been unidirectional to opening my brand, GalangGabaan, with an assortment of ideas and a range of smart wear for women who are rooted, appreciate textile and believe in simplicity. The brand is based on one ideology: sustainability and uniqueness in design without reproduction of the same. So, it has been an exciting journey, fueling that ideology every day.”
She adds, “Taking inspiration from daily lifestyles and high fashion trends, we create a collection that ensembles textiles and handcrafts from Odisha to bring the culture to the forefront in a contemporary essence.”
She believes in the active participation of the local community in the process. “I advocate the idea of engaging local artisans and talents. I source my fabrics from Kotpad and my tailoring unit has staff from in and around Bhubaneswar,” says Lipsa.
‘Being the catalysts for Change’
KalaKart is yet another one-of-a-kind e-commerce platform in the making that facilitates authentic and traditional handicrafts and handlooms directly from the artisans, along with their craft stories. Sweta Mishra, hailing from Bihar and currently based in Bhubaneswar, along with two others with a similar vision of creating grassroot impacts through business, built the platform under Paz Farming and Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
Sweta has a background in travel and writing, and she currently handles marketing and the front end of the venture. Surya Mishra, the other founder of KalaKart and an IIT and IIM alumnus, handles the finances. Mishra, who had years of corporate experience, came back to Bhubaneswar and worked as a professor at a B-school until recently. Sourabh Choudhury from Koraput handles the operations and has an entrepreneurial background in organic farming. Three of them, with dynamic personalities and decent academic backgrounds, have chosen to build something for the communities, taking the road less taken.
“In October 2022, we decided that handicrafts and handlooms needed a brand because of their diversity and depth. Hence, KalaKart was born. We realised that there is little to no means for authentic traditional artisans to tell their stories or sell their products without middlemen. They do not get the amount they deserve. So we got in touch with national award-winning traditional Pattachitra artist Bibhu Maharana from Dandasahi village and a young Pattachitra artist from Raghurajpur, Sachikant Sahoo. We then explored Dhokra art and started working with Sanatana Pradhan from Nuagaon, Dhenkanal. We also explored handlooms, and now we work with Ajay Mahapatra and his wife Ranjulata Mahapatra,” says Sweta, sharing the enterprise’s journey.
Describing the vision of the company, she says, “Our major driving forces are empathy and the spark of being catalysts for change. We are further going to bring onboard more artisans from different traditional handicrafts and handlooms from all corners of the country. We work with artisans on a partnership basis. Whatever they quote, we pay them without any bargains or cost reductions. One of the most important factors of empowerment is money, especially for local communities. Once the trust is built, it is going to stay only if we deliver our promises. Local artisans have stayed with us for so long primarily because of our unflinching support towards them, their craft, and their cause.”
‘Bringing Odisha handloom to the fore’
Orissa by Tania (OBT) is a handloom and lifestyle product venture started in 2019 by Tania Khosla Taneja. Tania, who returned to Odisha after nine years, was working as a corporate lawyer at Khaitan and Co, Delhi post her LL.M in 2010 from Duke University School of Law of the United States.
Sharing her inspiration behind the venture, she says, “As someone who loves nature, I like to explore new places and travel. I am a certified open-water diver and golfer. All these experiences have provided me with a better understanding of art and beauty. OBT is a homegrown brand, with sustainable solutions being an integral part of its ethos. We are on a mission to revive age-old techniques of fabric production. The endeavour produces modern and comfortable silhouettes and products while increasing awareness.”
She further elaborates on the consumer behaviour of current times and says, “Today’s consumer is conscious of their carbon footprint and wants information about the origin of the product. We are very transparent about our processes and often use our Instagram page for this purpose (@OrissabyTania).”
“OBT has a unique presentation style. We are constantly reinventing our work and thinking outside the box. Odisha handloom has so much potential. We started small and now have customers in many countries all over the globe. During the Indian Chamber of Commerce (ICC) Women’s Entrepreneurship Council (INWEC) Fashion and Lifestyle event in January 2023, we presented our first runway show,” claims an elated Tania, sharing her breakthrough.
Asked about the challenges, she responds “Visiting tribal areas can be challenging as there is a language barrier, but it has all been part of the learning curve. Being a lawyer, I was learning on the job and educating myself by visiting many clusters about weaving and dyeing techniques, thread counts and designs. It’s all an extremely technical process.”
On the issue of motivation, Tania says, “The biggest stimulus is seeing the response from our clients. Their encouragement keeps us going. OBT has clients from all over the globe that are handloom connoisseurs. The fabric speaks for itself, so we have a lot of happy regular customers. For me, success would be helping bring Odisha handloom to the fore and getting the artisans their due.”
Expressing disappointment on the lack of backing for the artisans, she concludes, “Artisans that have the skill to do such beautiful work are not being promoted or supported to their true potential. This art may be lost forever as the younger generation is moving away from traditional professions.”