#buydirectlyfromartisans: A trendsetter hashtag in craft development
Traditionally handloom weaving was patronised by royals and local communities. Artisans were respected in society for their artistry. Trade of handloom textiles flourished with Europe and Asia for centuries, before the advent of machines in Europe for mass production of textiles destroying the value of weaves. With the abolition of princely states, royal patronage stopped. Industrial production of textiles reduced the demand for weaves. The lure of cheap, colorful, and durable polyesters made it tougher for weavers to survive. They struggled to regain the lost glory of their craft with little hope for the future.
The government made efforts to revive handlooms post-independence — the second largest rural employment provider after agriculture. Measures to uplift crafts led to the establishment of various institutions. Voluntary organizations also played an important role, keeping hopes alive for handloom artisans. Commercialization distanced customers and artisans from each other with a layer of intermediaries coming in between as markets shifted. In India, almost 89 % of weavers are rural and 72 % female (Handloom Census: 2019–20). A weaver is happy focusing on designing, dyeing, warping, and weaving than participating in exhibitions at alien locations. To make their skill remunerative and sustain their occupation, artisans have to grow as entrepreneurs or lose a major portion of earnings to middlemen. According to the fourth Handloom Census (2019–20), the majority of weavers (66.3%) earn below Rs.5000 a month.
Recently, Covid-19 brought all businesses to a standstill, with no exhibitions and shows due to distancing norms. Lockdown and shutting of markets worsened the situation. Artisans were at a loss to find buyers and textile lovers not knowing where to shop. Antaran — a direct craft initiative of Tata Trusts pitched in to fill this gap by bringing handlooms of six lesser-known clusters on a common platform. An online site “Antaran Artisan Connect” was launched bringing together rich weaves of Venkatagiri (Andhra), Gopalpur, and Maniabandha (Odisha), Kamrup, and Nalbari (Assam), Dimapur-Phek (Nagaland).
Virtual markets emerged as a solution as physical market spaces were closed. Customers choose textiles through touch and feel, so the challenge was to manage the transition from tactile to virtual. The Antaran team equipped the artisan with the proper knowledge to deal with online market space, interact with customers through phone, video calls, WhatsApp, postings on Instagram and Facebook, product photography, and conduct business. Unlike a physical platform, where customer-artisan interaction is formal and transactional; the relationship here turns to a personal connection with each other. The engagement allows both to make informed decisions.
Artisans learn the preferences of customers, contemporary markets, and customers learn intricacies of the art. The customer does not remain a mere buyer but understands the whole process of weaving, socio-cultural aspects and becomes a patron of the craft. This is a win-win situation not only for the customer and the artisan but also for the craft itself. An Antaran post in social media echoes the importance of this sentiment “a fabric is what it is because it has undergone many processes, touched by various hands of weavers’ family, it carries the warmth and nurturing of everyone. It makes a journey from one family to another, which is why we need to understand every minute detail about what goes behind making a textile we so dearly wear or possess” Read post.
“Antaran Artisan Connect” opened up the scope for artisans to rediscover themselves. The Voice of Fashion ( with young artisans like Rajesh Kumar Guin, Chaturbhuja, and Jagajeeban Chand of Gopalpur, Odisha)shared how a customer became an influential votary of their products leading to connecting with more customers. Read article by The Voice Of Fashion.
In a webinar, Itishree Sur, (Gopalpur, Odisha) explained how she now gets frequent calls from customers courtesy of the Antaran online site. She emotionally recounted customers addressing her with respect and admiration, interacting with keen interest to understand her craft intimately. She says she had never experienced such dignity, grace, and adoration with which customers came out to her with inquiries and orders. This made her feel so special for the first time in her weaving career. An initiative like Antaran has been playing a vital role to take forward the treasure of our traditional wisdom and cultural heritage from local to global resonating with the call for Atmanirbhar Bharat.
A handloom enthusiast Bilita Satpathy (Delhi) expressed in social media “A huge thanks to the entire Antaran family for such a great initiative during the lockdown. They were able to connect me to the artisan directly at a point when sustenance and livelihood of the artisans was a major point of concern.”
The introduction of the hashtag #buydirectlyfromartisans in social media has made customers embark on a new journey in purchasing. As artisans and enthusiasts use this hashtag, customers are getting drawn to know more about crafts, making it simpler to engage with artisans across remote villages. They are keen to know about the processes of the textile they wear from the makers themselves. Scrolling through the WhatsApp catalog or viewing the product and process videos sent by artisans, customers now dwell on the craft more closely. At the other end of the market, for small artisan led businesses, it has provided business connections without extra costs.
The momentum gained from social media through such tags in the pandemic has helped the makers and users across the globe connect personally with each other. Many buyers have turned empathizers from bargainers or negotiators — seeing the craft with a new perspective. This promises a bright future for our heritage craft and craftsmanship.
Customer-craftsperson bonding goes a long way in giving a new meaning to customer relationship management. Naomi Raphael, a valued customer of artisan entrepreneur Vekuvolu (Nagaland), beautifully writes in a post, ‘I was pleasantly surprised to see such fine finishing and robust quality of work. Vekuvoludozo — was particularly helpful, very warm, and welcoming throughout the process. She updated me about my order at each step and now I cannot resist going back to the website to see if there is any new addition to the collection” Read post.
The craftspeople today are redefining crafts and artisanship for future generations through sustainable practices. When we buy directly from an artisan, we become a part of the community that crafts, creates, and matters. At the same time, with a defining responsibility as customers, we can keep the tradition alive, and contribute by using the hashtag #buydirectlyfromartisans, sharing our very own craft experiences — this will encourage artisans to be proactive on social media platforms and network better with more customers and designers for collaborations.
Antaran Artisan Connect becomes a bridge in the form of a concise platform that directly links the customer with the artisans. Visit www.antaranartisanconnect.in for a varied range of handcrafted textiles.
To know more about artisan entrepreneurs and their stories of transformation kindly visit Artisan Profiles.
Written by Dr. Devdas Mohanty (Cluster Program Lead, Gopalpur, Odisha — Team Antaran)
