SHEIKH ABID
IT is often referred to as the Paradise on earth. The Valley of Kashmir, with its verdant hills and flaring Chinars, has inspired poets and artists for millennia. Besides its breathtaking natural beauty, it is also home to the most prized crafts that represent age old legacies. Let us explore the journey of Kashmir’s finest art and craft industry across Indian states and abroad.
Kashmir has a rich heritage of art and crafts. The Valley alone is a haven for culture lovers, looking forward to witness varied art & craft in the State. A glimpse of the State’s rich art & craft heritage can be seen in the common man’s lives. From their utensils to clothes to furniture to jewellery, almost everything reflects the artistic skills and dedication of the locals towards the traditional art & craft.
Among the varied art and crafts, there’s a wide variety of marvellous handmade wonders to be seen across various districts of J&K. Some of them are the prime contributors in the State’s handicraft skills that include weaving, crewel embroidery, wood-crafting, and carving, silverware work, papier-mache, phoolkaari etc.
J&K leaves one spoilt for choice. Amongst the top art & crafts items to buy in Jammu & Kashmir include Pashmina shawls and stoles, crewel embroidery curtains, bed-sheets, table runners, walnut wood items, Kashmiri rugs and carpets, papier-mache items, phoolkaari items along with a variety of similar other handicraft materials.
• Kashmiri craft in major Indian cities
Unlike earlier times, the last few years have witnessed a whopping proliferation of Kashmir based arts and crafts in major metropolitan and other big cities of India. A number of Kashmiri businessmen have extended their showrooms and shops to big cities like Kolkata, Goa, Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore etc. Since the demand for these beauties from Kashmir is always high, they make good earnings across the year. “We have been selling Kashmiri handicrafts in Goa for the last ten years and are getting a good response from local as well as foreign tourists. We have recently extended our showrooms to Bangalore, and in Kerala and they are also running quite well,” says Mohammad Altaf, a Kashmiri crafts businessman.
Similarly, if you take a walk down Delhi’s busy markets or malls, you will come across multiple Kashmiri arts and crafts shops. Same is the scenario in Kolkata. A lot of Kashmiris have set up shops across the city. Also, many Kashmiri labourers go as ‘feri wallahs’, selling Kashmiri handicrafts across various cities of the country. This is a testimony to how good they are doing across india.
However, Mushtaq Ahmad, a local ‘feri wallah’ is disappointed with the incorporation of machines and technologically-assisted artificial craft pieces. He believes these have hampered their market and trust among customers. “Since some greedy businesses have incorporated machine-made fake Pashmina shawls and other Kashmiri handmade items, this business has become tough for us. Apart from cost related problems, it has also raised an issue of trust among our customers,” he opines.
• Initiatives by the government
The government has always been proactive in promoting the art and crafts of Kashmir at both national & international levels. Besides, the Indian government, along with the UT administration, has been mulling on getting Geographical Indication (GI) tags for various crafts.
According to the World Intellectual Property Organisation, a geographical indication (GI) is a sign used on products that have a specific geographical origin and possess qualities or reputation that are due to that origin. The qualities, characteristics or reputation of a product should be essentially due to the place of origin.
The Kashmiri crafts namely Pashmina, Kashmir sozni, kani shawl, papier-mache, Kashmiri crafts, khatamband and walnut wood carving have been officially granted Geographical Indication (GI) tags, which firmly establish their origin in the Kashmir region.
Beyond this, the central government has also come up with BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) certified status to various Kashmiri crafts including Pashmina, recognized as one of rarest and the finest of fabrics, and which has fans not just in India, but all across the globe. This is done to protect the practice of adulteration of Pashmina products, and safeguard the heritage and culture of Pashmina produced in J&K. The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has formulated an Indian Standard IS 17269: 2019 – identification, labelling and marking of Pashmina products.
Meanwhile, the process of GI registration of five more crafts i.e., Kashmir namda and gabba (two types of Valley specific woolen rugs), wagguv (mat made of reed and paddy straw), shikara (pleasure boats on Dal Lake), and Kashmir willow bat, is already under process and the dossier for the same had been submitted a few months ago only.
Talking about our local Department of Handicrafts and Handloom, Kashmir, well, they have also played a significant role in promoting, processing & providing necessary help to artisans related to the industry.
The Government has ever been according priorities for its overall development. A full-fledged department for projecting the crafts on a wider scale was established in 1972-73. Prior to this establishment, however, the department used to be a part of the Directorate of Industries and Commerce.
From the last two years, the department has been continuously upgrading the testing and labelling facilities for GI certification for different crafts. “Because of the aggressive promotion of the certification, a huge number of manufacturers and exporters are approaching the department for testing and labelling,” the director of the department has been quoted to have said.
The department is also in the process of launching the quick response (QR)-based GI labelling of six crafts, which was rolled out for carpets last year.
Handicrafts have been the mainstay of the J&K’s economy since centuries. The dawn of the modern era of industries cannot take away from the viability of the crafts that always have had the capacity to hold sway in even international markets. Conscious of this colossal potential for economic activity of the sector, it needs more attention and priority from the administration in order to promote it at international levels so that Kashmir, apart from its abundant and mesmerising bounty of Nature, could maintain and establish its status in context of handicrafts.
