A Revival Of Craft Sector Is In Order
As per the crafts census of India, the handicraft sector accounts for roughly 7 million jobs, and the handloom sector an additional 3 million jobs in the country during the 11th plan period.
Collectively, 10 million families count employment in the handicrafts and handloom sector as the primary source of income. This is approximately 40 per cent of the population of Australia and the second-largest source of employment in India. While these statistics are staggering in themselves, they alone cannot do justice in showcasing this bulwark of the Indian economy.
The craft sector in India is perhaps the best example of an equal opportunity employer - one that employs more women in rural areas than any other sector barring agriculture. Unlike agriculture, it is not dependent on seasonal variations, large volumes of subsidies, such as those granted on fertilizers and power, and is hardly as resource-intensive. The high per square feet productivity of the Indian artisan and the low per capita carbon footprint make the sector an even more unique and invaluable contributor to the Indian economy.
The handicrafts sector until recently was among the highest foreign exchange earners in India. Over and above these factors, our crafts represent our cultural, regional, and ethnic diversity unlike any other sector of the Indian economy. Whether it is the hand-woven carpets of Kashmir or the exquisite muslins of Bengal, the hand-painted chintzes of Machilipatinam or the Ikkats of Rajkot and Mehsana, the craft map of India is replete with one glorious craft tradition after another. Many of these crafts represent traditions that have withstood the test of time over centuries, multiple invasions, and the yoke of economic subjugation that followed in their wake.
These crafts are perhaps among the finest relics of our civilization and represent the zenith of human creativity in a manner that is uniquely Indian. It is these attributes that enable them to impart a distinct artistic and intrinsic value to the products that emanate from each craft. The economic impact of such a signature goes beyond the transactional value of these products and extends to the expansion of the soft power of the nation, thus creating a far greater and lasting economic value.
While every era has accorded historic patronage to the crafts, the revival of the crafts sector post-independence marked perhaps the single most significant such intervention in our collective history. Through the efforts of public and private players and cooperative movements throughout the country, the crafts sector was revitalised after centuries of exploitation under colonial rule. This revival movement has perhaps been the single largest contributor to India retaining her position as the largest handicraft and hand-weaving player in the world - a position that perhaps puts her in a unique vantage point in the global economic sweepstakes.
While global economic titans both to the East and the West continue to outspend each other in a bid to dominate emerging sectors such as artificial intelligence, nanotechnology, and other areas – the creative industries posit a unique opportunity to harness India’s innate intellectual and cultural capabilities. The contribution of the creative industries in the sustenance of European and far eastern economies is often under appreciated.
The basis of the entire luxury goods industry and its attendant fringe ecosystem in western Europe has its roots in the crafts guilds of the medieval age, and it is here that India must look for a parallel to build a unique advantage that few other countries can acquire. This economic story, coupled with the growth of India’s consumption story, has the capability to empower a new generation of craftspeople and creative entrepreneurs in rural India and uplift the incomes of a significant percentage of the population in the years to come. For those looking for a quiet economic miracle – this is one success story that could well be hidden in plain sight.
Authored by: K.H. Radharaman, Founder, CEO and principal designer, The House of Angadi
