Hand-woven and eco-friendly crafts of tribal artists catch eyeballs at ‘Chhattisgarh Tribal Craft Fair’

The
hand-woven and eco-friendly crafts of tribal artisans and craftsmen draw the
attention of Raipurians at the three-day long “Chhattisgarh Tribal Craft Fair”
concluded recently here at Chhattisgarh Haat.

The
craft fair witnessed a huge footfall of visitors from the city and nearby
areas. As many as 61 artists and craftsmen from tribal dominated areas of the state
including Kondagoan, Narayanpur, Surguja, Bastar, Raigarh and Rajnandgaon
displayed their indigenous artefacts in this fair.  Chhattisgarh Tribal Research and Training
Institute director Shammi Abidi informed that the tribal art displayed in this
fair was highly appreciated by the visitors. Estimated items worth Rs 3 lakh
were sold in the three days. 36 out of 61 tribal artists were women, which
showed the strong participation of women in the field of crafts.

Beautiful
handmade carpets, Godana or tattoo art sarees, stoles and dupattas, eye
catching earrings and jewelry pieces made of bamboo crafts, paintings of Bastar
region, bamboo baskets, tumba lamps, Kosa silk sarees and garments were a major
attraction among visitors here.

Chhattisgarh
is home to a large number of indigenous tribes with all the tribal communities
having their distinct art, crafts and traditions. However, their potential and
talent often remains hidden from the city folks due to lack of awareness and
availability of a suitable market. Sensing potential patronage for their art,
the fair was organized by the Chhattisgarh Tribal Research and Training
Institute in collaboration with the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs. The aim
was to preserve and provide a platform for display and sale of unique
handcrafted products made by the artisans and craftsmen from tribal dominated
areas of the state.

Raipurians
encouraged these tribal artists by praising their handcrafted works saying that
they only see these unique beautiful items in events like these. This filled
the artists with new energy and confidence to continue their work which is
being done by them from generations.

Meanwhile,
the artisans also praised the efforts made by the department to help showcasing
their work on a bigger platform to reach potential buyers.  Amrika, a godana artist from Jamgala village
of Surguja district said that the small artisans of the divisions have faced a
hard time during Covid-19 pandemic. This fair has given a good platform for
artists like us to revive our business.  

Anjana
Bhagat, a Chind shilp artist from Jashpur said that her products got good
response from the visitors here. “People not only purchased the products
but were even keen to know about the process of making these colourful Cheend
baskets. Few people also appreciated my art which was a great confidence
booster for me”, she said.