Extraordinary in the Ordinary

Even in the most urbanised corridor of India, if you were to break on the roadway as the world goes on, you could get a hairstyle, your shoes repaired, maybe your mattress opened out and knives and scissors sharpened . Clothes can be changed for new implements, a flower garland made to your specification, and you can indeed be fed a luxurious mess while being entertained by an acrobatic performance.  Much of India’s services and products continue to be custom- made and available in villages, as well as luxurious couture stores. Before all these practices lie the millions of makers whose skill, and use of the simplest tools, spans a cultural landscape that has for glories been bound by history, tradition and legend. 

While we all know of the finest spun pashminas, the shimmering silks of Banaras and Kundan jewellery, what remains obscure are the extraordinary crafts that sprawl our urban streets.

Every part of the wild perennial Sarkanda grass that grows in dried river beds has a use. The long thick stems made into cabinet work, its external cocoon used to thatch roofs, its thin top- half curled into baskets while its featherlight splint — the Munj, twisted into sturdy ropes. The casting of the low-priced light- weight cabinet work is grounded on the principle of double-layering, with the stems ingeniously twisted in contrary directions to both construct and strengthen the concave base. The range of cabinetwork and sizes include the moda or round coprolite, armchairs with twisted backrests, chairs, tables, all vended on road corners by merchandisers, their cycles piled with precariously balanced products. 

The ubiquitous hand-forged scissors of Meerut for especially- aimed use are the favored choice for haircutters, paper- knives, leather crafters and knitters — with heavy- weight scissors slicing through16-folds of fabric at one go. These scissors are forged with specific blades, with defined weights and lengths that can either be phased or blunt sloped to match its operation pattern, their sizes varying from 6 to 16 elevation. The handles cast in brass are fused onto the blades, their grip ergonomically designed to ply power and perfection.  What makes the Meerut scissor indeed more special is that unlike other scissors, it isn't a throwaway object — being fixable,re-adjustable, suitable to be resharpened as numerous times as needed. 

Artwork by Vasudhaa Narayanan

The presence of the hand- beaten micro-thin metal leaf gold and silver Varaq found most famously on Indian desserts, and biryani, is a must on special- occasion foods. Used also in gilding icons, divinities, rituals and ornamental objects of essence, Varaq is also applied onto wall showpieces . The operations on oils extend from the atomic trades on paper to the ritual cloth trades used to illuminate calligraphies, and religious book covers. It's also considerably used in fabrics — from apparel, to ritual flags, and in the history on palanquin covers and roof hangings. Still all that glitters isn't gold as these gossamer leaf- beaters of precious essence, whose craft we see around us continue to remain unknown across their numerous centres in India. 

Overlooked, yet eternal are crafts gauging our periodic carnivals displayed and celebrated across India. The effigy of Ravana — the demon king built with paper, bamboo and filled with firecrackers; to Uttarayana celebrated in Ahmedabad with the flight of paper harpies. Elaborately and painstakingly made on the occasion of Durga puja is the sculpting of Ganpathi Bapa, worshipped and also ritually relinquished into the waters. The Sanjhi floor decorations, created with intricately cut paper stencils filled in with colours, celebrating events in the life of Lord Krishna, hours in the making to be effaced after the unveiling and offerings.

From playful and inventive toys to the floral arts, painstakingly made for celebrations and presentations, these crafts encircle and surround our everyday. The accessible and frequented nature of these crafts are what make them invisible, undervalued and easily forgettable. The craftsmanship and skill required is usually overlooked due to the physical space they occupy in society, not seen on gallery walls, or hotel lobbies; instead on the roads, in our alleyways and in our cooking. These ‘everyday’ crafts are bespoke and personalized by the craftsperson, the knowledge of their making passed on between and across generations through oral instruction and apprenticeship, outside of brick-and-mortar schools, with no textbooks and no exams, but a lifetime of learning and innovating on the job.

The time is now, to break, to look again and see the extraordinary in the ordinary.