With an aim to provide artisans a platform to showcase their handloom and handicrafts talent, the first-ever art and craft exhibition is organized by National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD).
Gramya 2022, an all India Crafts-Art exhibition is being held from September 26 to October 2 , 2022 at Kala Kendra, Jammu. The exhibition is going to be an unique opportunity with artisans and craftsmen from across the country, displaying their products and artforms.
Addressing a press conference in Jammu, DGM, NABARD, J&K Regional office, Anamika said,” The exhibition will provide a suitable opportunity to Self Help Groups, Artisans, FPOs, OFPOs to showcase their products.”
Through this exhibition artisans and craftsmen will understand customer preferences, learn new marketing skills as well as develop a customer base, she added.
Authentic and unique products from various parts of the country will be showcased from 18 states across the country i.e. Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu etc.
The exhibition will also feature some of the exclusive and unique forms of products, like Tussar silk sarees from Jharkhand, Jaipuri quilts and Charma juttis from Rajasthan, Chikankari from Uttar Pradesh, world famous Mithila and Madhubani paintings from Bihar, etc. Local products from the valley such as Basohli pashmina, Kashmiri carpet will also be available.
Great opportunity for artisans
The exhibition will not consist of middlemen or traders between the customers and artisans. The commission based model followed by the traders and middlemen is responsible for increasing the price of the products. Eliminating them would lead to the products available at reasonable and at comparatively lesser price from the market.
In the present commission-based model, a major portion of the profits are kept by the traders and middlemen. Sandeep Sharma, General Manager, NABARD, J&K Regional office, says that one of the primary aims of this exhibition is to make the artisans and craftsmen capable of direct selling.
Direct selling will not only improve their share in the profits, but will be an additional motivating factor among the artisans to carry forward their art and crafts.
NABARD Bank also plans to host this exhibition next year, and even to turn it into an annual exhibition in the state. This year, approximately 150 artisans are expected to participate in the exhibition and NABARD is planning to take this number to 300 for the upcoming year.
Further, NABARD will provide accommodation, transportation and food facilities to the artisans so that more and more people can participate without any hindrances.
There is a major declining trend in the purchase of handmade crafts and products in our country. However, Gramya 2022, can be a platform as well as an attempt to influence Indian masses to promote traditional art and crafts.