The Non profit world (NGO)

On my travels to various artisans, especially in the state of Gujarat, I had to interact with the non-profit or as its known in India the NGO (non-government organization) world. The non-profit and artisan world intersect in various ways which is important for people trying to find or source artisans.

Some non profits handle everything for the artisans from marketing, manufacturing to providing for families. Shrujan and Kalaraksha are such examples. Both are in Kutch, Gujarat and both specialize in embroidered finished clothing and accessories. Shrujan has been working with the artisans for over 30 years and provides all kinds of perks such as transportation, food and even education for the children. They have developed the skill sets of various artisans to match high retail standards and helped gain good footing within India. The downside is that they do not allow direct interaction with the artisans in any way and control all outputs per their designs and direction. The retail store was extremely expensive and I found it hard to believe that they could actually sell large quantities at such high prices. Kalaraksha on the other hand insisted that anyone trying to source through them had to employ not only artisans that do embroidery, but also their workshop that created finished garments and accessories. For someone trying to create western clothing, this is daunting because the skill sets in the villages to create western attire is very limited. In spite of these cons the loyalty that the artisans have towards both organizations is very strong and no amount of money or fame would motivate them to leave. I experiences this first hand when the Soof embroidery artisan that I visited informed me that she cannot take up any external work unless she has free time from Kalaraksha.

There are other organizations such as Khamir, Qasab in Kutch and Pradhan in Bhagalpur that take a different approach. They want to empower their artisans to work directly with designers or fabric merchants. They will still act as middlemen to ensure timely and quality deliveries, but their work is more to push their artisans forward and not only their work. Attached is a video taken at Khamir where some of the weavers were working. They have even collaborated with designers in Europe to create recycled plastic mats and bags which is the innovative aspect that economically boosts people in the area.