West Bengal govt hard sells handicrafts to give Jangalmahal a facelift

KOLKATA: Jangalmahal -the name that would till some years back used to be associated with blood, deaths, landmines and explosives -may soon earn fame for its handcrafted bamboo crafts, lac bangles and stone work utility.

The state government's Biswa Bangla initiative plans to endorse the indigenous art of the land alongside efforts to develop tourism in Jangalmahal.

Under the initiative to hard sell handicrafts in Jangalmahal, which covers large parts of West Midnapore, Bankura and Purulia districts, 46 villagers are being imparted training in commercialising their products and the government hopes to have 100 trainees in the next three months.


Some of the products made by the artisans in the region include stone tableware made in Midnapore and Chhau masks and grass utility items from Purulia and Bankura. Kasi and Saboi grass is used as a raw material to make various handcrafted items.There are also grass-made accessories from Shantiniketan made from Beni grass found in the suburbs of Birbhum.

“Artisans in Jangalmahal are among the poorest in the country. Those who work with bamboo and stone had no idea of how to market their products.Local fairs were their only option. Biswa Bangla is not only giving them de sign inputs to make their products better but also procuring their produce for the Biswa Bangla stores across the country,“ said Partho Kar, chief consultant at Biswa Bangla.

“We used to get very little price for the products we sold but with Biswa Bangla we have a fixed source of income and a stable order coming in from the government. We are also getting trained to upgrade our products according to market standards,“ said Akrur Singha, a 57-year-old stoneware artist in Kashidanga area of Bengal.

The artisans have an offer to complete an order of products worth Rs 5 lakh in the coming months. These products would not just be available in all the eight Biswa Bangla stores across the country, they would also be exhibited at all major exhibition in and outside the country where Biswa Bangla participates.