KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January...

22
KADAM NEWSLETTER (www.kadamindia.org|www.facebook.com/kadam.org|www.twitter.com/Kadam_India) October - December (Volume 2, Issue 2) Editorial Dear Friends Warm wishes to you and your family! May 2014 bring you health, prosperity and happiness. During this quarter, we continued to work towards deepening our engagement and relationship with our valued artisans. We also continued to introduce new products in the market through various market connectivity programmes. The relationship between our artisans and us has grown ever since. We are always willing to make their voices be heard through their handmade work which is handicrafts. We have even applied for membership to The Fair Trade Forum of India. And after having completed the assessment round of 3 days, we are confident of being recognized as a Fair Trade Organization of India. This will help clients all over the country to know us for our reliability, consistency and eco friendly way of working in our society and country as a whole. Our Craft Ashram Hastashilpi Gurkul project has also been boosted by AISEC once again through their initiative to help non- profit organizations that provides students with leadership training and internship opportunities. We will be joined with the services of Ms. Hanna Tigges from Germany who will be working on creating a report on it. We will also be joined by a volunteer from IICD (Indian Institute of Craft and Design), Rajhastan for working on the organic dyes project that started in the last quarter when we visited a village called Etikopakka which is located in Andhra Pradesh. Her name is Ms. Manya Pandit. She will be designing some products and also organic dying on the same. On completion, we shall release the experimented products into the market through exhibition stall displays in order to see the demand of such commodities. Yet another achievement was that Kadam was featured in a Cochin, (Kerela) newspaper during our exhibition in December. The exhibition was awarded this honor for having the highest participation in the month. This would not have been possible without your support, and I thank you for the same. As we grow, we continue to adhere to our core philosophy of giving back to society, we look forward to continuing to partner with you in your growth, and once again, wish you a very happy and prosperous New Year. With best wishes Payal Nath Secretary Kadam www.kadamindia.org

Transcript of KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January...

Page 1: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

KADAM NEWSLETTER

(wwwkadamindiaorg|wwwfacebookcomkadamorg|wwwtwittercomKadam_India) October - December (Volume 2 Issue 2)

Editorial Dear Friends Warm wishes to you and your family May 2014 bring you health prosperity and happiness During this quarter we continued to work towards deepening our engagement and relationship with our valued artisans We also continued to introduce new products in the market through various market connectivity programmes The relationship between our artisans and us has grown ever since We are always willing to make their voices be heard through their handmade work which is handicrafts We have even applied for membership to The Fair Trade Forum of India And after having completed the assessment round of 3 days we are confident of being recognized as a Fair Trade Organization of India This will help clients all over the country to know us for our reliability consistency and eco friendly way of working in our society and country as a whole Our Craft Ashram Hastashilpi Gurkul project has also been boosted by AISEC once again through their initiative to help non- profit organizations that provides students with leadership training and internship opportunities We will be joined with the services of Ms Hanna Tigges from Germany who will be working on creating a report on it We will also be joined by a volunteer from IICD (Indian Institute of Craft and Design) Rajhastan for working on the organic dyes project that started in the last quarter when we visited a village called Etikopakka which is located in Andhra Pradesh Her name is Ms Manya Pandit She will be designing some products and also organic dying on the same On completion we shall release the experimented products into the market through exhibition stall displays in order to see the demand of such commodities Yet another achievement was that Kadam was featured in a Cochin (Kerela) newspaper during our exhibition in December The exhibition was awarded this honor for having the highest participation in the month This would not have been possible without your support and I thank you for the same As we grow we continue to adhere to our core philosophy of giving back to society we look forward to continuing to partner with you in your growth and once again wish you a very happy and prosperous New Year With best wishes Payal Nath Secretary Kadam wwwkadamindiaorg

A Walk Down Memory Lane with Pooja

Ratnakar The word ldquoKadamrdquo in Hindi means an Initiative and Step It is to step up by taking the initiative to move

ahead

We face many challenges on a day to day base from the villages at the rural area their acceptance of new

ways to strike a mutual understanding fund raising for the projects We have been able to overcome some

problems by motivating the artisans and by initiating quality control of the products

We desire from the people to be sensitive to the hand made products to the people behind making these

products and if more people could volunteer give their expertise to emphasize our work

We have been able to manage to teach the artisans in the villages about the products by producing and

training simpler products and we gradually keep enhancing the skill levels of the artisans We understand the

market then design and merge products using the available resources and the skills of the artisans

The artisans understand the cause we are serving We initially do not tell them only train them to enhance their

knowledge and skill In the due course of time they see their lives improving They themselves acknowledge

and understand our objective on striving to improve the livelihood of the artisans We never sold dreams

only trained them on their existing skills which enhanced they productivity

At the previous quarter we had developed 9 new products from reviewing the feedbacks of customers

The Laundry Basket Table Mats Tollywood trays are examples of customer feedback driven products

composed from the resources from the village and markets The Folding tissue box is a German design

product made from our resources available Laundry Baskets Tollywood Trays and Folding Breakfast Trays

are our best sellers

The sanction for the Craft Ashram (HASTA SHILPI GURUKUL) has come in and the training program will be starting in March 2014 There are many incidents and moments that has inspired and touched us that has lead to the creation of Kadam I would like to share one of it with you Earlier before the concept of Kadam started we used to work as consultants in rural villages of India we had observed that the village people were under paid with less substantial wages to sustain they livelihood We had decided to stop this consultancy service and stepped forward by creating a small project with the initiative to allow the artisans to get a higher and stable income and to improve they condition This has lead us to the creation of this NGO With Best Wishes Pooja Ratnakar Treasurer

Fair Trade Forum

of India Fair trade is a training partnership based on dialog

transparency and respect That seeks greater

equity in international trade

It contributes to sustainable development by

offering better trading conditions to and securing

the right of marginalized producers and workers

Its overall objective is to contribute to building an

environmentally sustainable production and

consumption practices that help reduce poverty

amongst poor farmers and handicraft producers in

India It creates a consumer market for fair trade

products in India that measurably contributes to the

improvement of rural livelihood and provides

farmers and artistries with the resources necessary

to follow environmentally sustainable production

practices Its beneficiaries are poor farming and

handicraft producing families across India (an

estimated 9 lakh people and consumers who would

like to consume fairly producerrsquos products)

The fair trade forum-Indian office is a national level

collective of more than 100000 marginalized

producers including artisans and farmers working

on the bases of fair trade standards FTF-I is a

national network of 75 fair trade organization The

forum strives to generate sustainable livelihood to

the producers by promoting fair and responsive

Consumerism with the support of the Global Fair

Trade Movement lead by WFTO (World Fair Trade

Organization) the Netherlands

The Activates of the Fair Trade Forum are as

follows

1 Raising awareness of fair-trade products

among consumers with special emphasis

on young consumers through campus

programs on Fair Trade amp Sustainable

Consumption

2 Convert corporate procurement to Fair

Trade by promoting fair Trade products

among corporate houses developing

corporate partnership

3 Develop a dedicated retain channel for fair

trade creation for a commonly-branded

network for FTF-I memberrsquos shops

4 Gain access of SFC (Shop for channel) Fair

Trade Certified products in mainstream

retain channels

5 Secure commitments tap opportunities

from government ministries and other

agencies to promote fair trade

The Fair assessment round took place between

10th -12th December 2013 The Inspector was Mr

Satyabraha Roy Bardhan from the organization

The purpose of this phase was to bring to the

notice the activities and policies of Kadam It was a

successful event as we had shown a true picture of

us to Fair Trade India

The Inspector had viewed all our registered

documents and legal documents Mr Bardhan had

also conducted a two hour long face to face

meeting with our Secretary Mrs Payal Nath During

the meeting they had discussed about the

conception of Kadam - that is the reason why it

started and what its ambitions are and why do we

want to join Fair Trade India To the utmost

satisfaction of Mr Bardhan we had made him

understand that the soul purpose of Kadam is to act

as a light and a driving force for the Poor Artisans

of West Bengal The only reason we exit is for rural

development and to create sustainable livelihood

creations for them We accomplish this by starting

from the bottom of the ladder by adopting small

craft clusters (Village Kolaghat-Bamboo craft and

village Nayagram-Sabaii craft) in order to teach or

train them in the various methodologies of making

handicrafts

Once they are capable of doing the latter we use

there hand products and exhibit it through various

market connectivity programs The income

generated there from is used to pay the artisans

fair wages and improve their villages robustly

Mr Bardhan had also interacted with our with one

of our artisan from Kola Ghat Mr Kalyan Maji in

order to clarify that the production of handicrafts is

done in an eco and bio degradable manner from

starting point to the finishing of the final handicraft

product

He came to know about their background and

financial problems and how Kadam through

handicrafts is the only source of hope and

inspiration to his team or cluster in the village

To conclude the three days were memorable since

Fire Trade India and Kadam came to an

understanding of the working methods of each

other We are confident of being certified as a Fair

Trade Organization of India in early 2014

Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014 to the Craft Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda One of our volunteers Hanna Tigres had visited the site and accompanied us to the trip as well The purpose of the visit was to attend the meeting with the other members of IIT Khragpur and Sram Vidyapith Some of the members present were Mr Rajesh Nath Mrs Payal Nath Prof RN Chattopadhaya Dr Tapati Dasgupta Prof Dunendi Das and Mr JK Paik We had discussed about the financial position of the ashram and what is to be done in the first half of this year to improve it This is in regard to a few trainings which Kadam has been planning for a while now The trainings have been planned to commence by the first week of March 2014 We will train the artisans from Belda in usually Sabaii grass craft and Bamboo craft We will appoint 1 trainer and 15 trainees to start with the trainings The trainees should be semi-skilled in making handicrafts and between the age of 25 to 30 years (male and female) The duration of the training will be for 15 days Kadam has requested IIT to ensure that the training should continue for the entire duration of the program We have also decided to make 100 small envelopes letterheads and money receipts in the name of Hastashilpi Gurukul Before the training commences an inauguration will be done by inviting certain esteemed guests both from IIT and Kadam The machines that were purchased in the last quarter will be sent to the Ashram for the training to happen We are thankful to all our friends and well wishers for they support and prayers

Kadam Welcomes Two Interns from

Germany amp Lucknow

Volunteer for Craft Ashram Project - Hanna Tigges studied psychology at Germany Hagen Open University Her father Mr Albert Tigges is a doctor and mother Mrs Barbara Tigges is doctorrsquos assistant She grew up from the country side of Germany region called Sauerland in the city of Arnsberg She has a sister who is studying to become a teacher

She has interned as a nurse worked with addicted people and acquired a qualification to support family members of disabled and handicapped people Her Hobbies are painting jogging horse riding playing the piano reading books and listening to music

Hanna is interested in Indian handicrafts and with the development work done in Rural India She is interested in the work that Kadam does to improve the lively hood of the artistan and towards bringing a holistic development in villages Hanna is working on a research project on Vegetables Fruits Spices and Herbs grown in West Mednipur in West Bengal She has to determine their nutrition value and how the food can be used Kadam wants to improve the eating habits and wants the people to achieve a balance diet She is also researching new recipes with a balance diet with Nutrition Experts When she gets back she will be continuing her studies in Germany and wants to become a permanent member of AIESEC

Volunteer for Organic

Dyeing Project -

Manya Pandit parents of Mr Paromit Kumar Pandit

and Mrs Sarita Pandit has joined Kadam for an

internship program

Manya grew up in Lucknow studied in City

Montessori School and is currently pursuing her

graduation from the Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design in Jaipur She loves listening to Fusion

Music bands likes the Indian Ocean are her

favorite and she also likes travelling

Manya was interested in Indian art and craft which

has urged her to persue her studies in crafts by

joining Indian Institute of Crafts and Design which is

an Institute set up by the Government of Rajasthan

to develop human resources for the craft sector

She was recommended by her Mr Vikas Sethi and

Pragathi alumni of Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design to peruse an internship with us She is very

interested in Indian handicrafts and wants to have a

practical experience in this field She wants to

interact with the local artisans in the villages and

design handicraft

Manya will be working on the Organic Dyeing

Project which is an initiative to create organic dye

that will

replace chemical dye Mr Raju from Etikopakka will

be providing us lac sticks which are dyed

organically and Manya will be using it to design

new products

After this internship program Manya will be

persuing her studies at IICD and is interested to

start her own NGO

WE WISH OUR INTERNS SUCCESS IN LIFE AND MAY THEY GAIN VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE IN THEIR

CAREER

Interview With Mohan Dhara ndash Head Of

Bamboo Craft Cluster Of Artisans Kolaghat

1 What is your name

Mohan Dhara

2 What is your age

36 years

3 What is your place of birth

Village Kolaghat East Midnapore

4 Who are your parents

Father ndash Badal Dhara Mother ndash Shanda Dhara

5 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes I have one son called Ankan Dhara

6 Give us an impression of what your past was like

I grew up in a small home in my village As a boy I loved playing cricket and football I would also work

in the fields where I practiced agriculture with my brothers

7 What are the struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village would going through

We never had any source of income because of less jobs So there was a lot of unhappiness

8 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In order to sustain myself and my family I decided to take up handicraft as my local trade in 1995 It is

the reason why I am surviving today

9 How did you come to know of Kadam

I came to know about Kadam through the Go Initiative In 1998 I was sent to Hastashilpi Mela in

Science City Here is where I met with the members of Kadam I started working for Kadam in 2000

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

I have 6 artisans members in my factory Their names are ndash Srimanto Ghorai Baneshwar Maiti Kalyan

Maji Pranab Dhara Samal Mehra

11 Do you like working with Kadam

I enjoy my every day work with Kadam

12 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

13 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

Good I feel energetic and very enthusiastic about life through Kadam

14 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

We work from Mondays to Saturdays (1000 AM ndash 600 PM) If there is any requirement on Sundays

then we work on that day too

15 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The Government helps my village a lot through financial aids and jobs

16 What do you think should be improved about it

There needs to be more activity done in this department

17 What are your motto code and purpose in life

Work hard

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 2: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

A Walk Down Memory Lane with Pooja

Ratnakar The word ldquoKadamrdquo in Hindi means an Initiative and Step It is to step up by taking the initiative to move

ahead

We face many challenges on a day to day base from the villages at the rural area their acceptance of new

ways to strike a mutual understanding fund raising for the projects We have been able to overcome some

problems by motivating the artisans and by initiating quality control of the products

We desire from the people to be sensitive to the hand made products to the people behind making these

products and if more people could volunteer give their expertise to emphasize our work

We have been able to manage to teach the artisans in the villages about the products by producing and

training simpler products and we gradually keep enhancing the skill levels of the artisans We understand the

market then design and merge products using the available resources and the skills of the artisans

The artisans understand the cause we are serving We initially do not tell them only train them to enhance their

knowledge and skill In the due course of time they see their lives improving They themselves acknowledge

and understand our objective on striving to improve the livelihood of the artisans We never sold dreams

only trained them on their existing skills which enhanced they productivity

At the previous quarter we had developed 9 new products from reviewing the feedbacks of customers

The Laundry Basket Table Mats Tollywood trays are examples of customer feedback driven products

composed from the resources from the village and markets The Folding tissue box is a German design

product made from our resources available Laundry Baskets Tollywood Trays and Folding Breakfast Trays

are our best sellers

The sanction for the Craft Ashram (HASTA SHILPI GURUKUL) has come in and the training program will be starting in March 2014 There are many incidents and moments that has inspired and touched us that has lead to the creation of Kadam I would like to share one of it with you Earlier before the concept of Kadam started we used to work as consultants in rural villages of India we had observed that the village people were under paid with less substantial wages to sustain they livelihood We had decided to stop this consultancy service and stepped forward by creating a small project with the initiative to allow the artisans to get a higher and stable income and to improve they condition This has lead us to the creation of this NGO With Best Wishes Pooja Ratnakar Treasurer

Fair Trade Forum

of India Fair trade is a training partnership based on dialog

transparency and respect That seeks greater

equity in international trade

It contributes to sustainable development by

offering better trading conditions to and securing

the right of marginalized producers and workers

Its overall objective is to contribute to building an

environmentally sustainable production and

consumption practices that help reduce poverty

amongst poor farmers and handicraft producers in

India It creates a consumer market for fair trade

products in India that measurably contributes to the

improvement of rural livelihood and provides

farmers and artistries with the resources necessary

to follow environmentally sustainable production

practices Its beneficiaries are poor farming and

handicraft producing families across India (an

estimated 9 lakh people and consumers who would

like to consume fairly producerrsquos products)

The fair trade forum-Indian office is a national level

collective of more than 100000 marginalized

producers including artisans and farmers working

on the bases of fair trade standards FTF-I is a

national network of 75 fair trade organization The

forum strives to generate sustainable livelihood to

the producers by promoting fair and responsive

Consumerism with the support of the Global Fair

Trade Movement lead by WFTO (World Fair Trade

Organization) the Netherlands

The Activates of the Fair Trade Forum are as

follows

1 Raising awareness of fair-trade products

among consumers with special emphasis

on young consumers through campus

programs on Fair Trade amp Sustainable

Consumption

2 Convert corporate procurement to Fair

Trade by promoting fair Trade products

among corporate houses developing

corporate partnership

3 Develop a dedicated retain channel for fair

trade creation for a commonly-branded

network for FTF-I memberrsquos shops

4 Gain access of SFC (Shop for channel) Fair

Trade Certified products in mainstream

retain channels

5 Secure commitments tap opportunities

from government ministries and other

agencies to promote fair trade

The Fair assessment round took place between

10th -12th December 2013 The Inspector was Mr

Satyabraha Roy Bardhan from the organization

The purpose of this phase was to bring to the

notice the activities and policies of Kadam It was a

successful event as we had shown a true picture of

us to Fair Trade India

The Inspector had viewed all our registered

documents and legal documents Mr Bardhan had

also conducted a two hour long face to face

meeting with our Secretary Mrs Payal Nath During

the meeting they had discussed about the

conception of Kadam - that is the reason why it

started and what its ambitions are and why do we

want to join Fair Trade India To the utmost

satisfaction of Mr Bardhan we had made him

understand that the soul purpose of Kadam is to act

as a light and a driving force for the Poor Artisans

of West Bengal The only reason we exit is for rural

development and to create sustainable livelihood

creations for them We accomplish this by starting

from the bottom of the ladder by adopting small

craft clusters (Village Kolaghat-Bamboo craft and

village Nayagram-Sabaii craft) in order to teach or

train them in the various methodologies of making

handicrafts

Once they are capable of doing the latter we use

there hand products and exhibit it through various

market connectivity programs The income

generated there from is used to pay the artisans

fair wages and improve their villages robustly

Mr Bardhan had also interacted with our with one

of our artisan from Kola Ghat Mr Kalyan Maji in

order to clarify that the production of handicrafts is

done in an eco and bio degradable manner from

starting point to the finishing of the final handicraft

product

He came to know about their background and

financial problems and how Kadam through

handicrafts is the only source of hope and

inspiration to his team or cluster in the village

To conclude the three days were memorable since

Fire Trade India and Kadam came to an

understanding of the working methods of each

other We are confident of being certified as a Fair

Trade Organization of India in early 2014

Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014 to the Craft Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda One of our volunteers Hanna Tigres had visited the site and accompanied us to the trip as well The purpose of the visit was to attend the meeting with the other members of IIT Khragpur and Sram Vidyapith Some of the members present were Mr Rajesh Nath Mrs Payal Nath Prof RN Chattopadhaya Dr Tapati Dasgupta Prof Dunendi Das and Mr JK Paik We had discussed about the financial position of the ashram and what is to be done in the first half of this year to improve it This is in regard to a few trainings which Kadam has been planning for a while now The trainings have been planned to commence by the first week of March 2014 We will train the artisans from Belda in usually Sabaii grass craft and Bamboo craft We will appoint 1 trainer and 15 trainees to start with the trainings The trainees should be semi-skilled in making handicrafts and between the age of 25 to 30 years (male and female) The duration of the training will be for 15 days Kadam has requested IIT to ensure that the training should continue for the entire duration of the program We have also decided to make 100 small envelopes letterheads and money receipts in the name of Hastashilpi Gurukul Before the training commences an inauguration will be done by inviting certain esteemed guests both from IIT and Kadam The machines that were purchased in the last quarter will be sent to the Ashram for the training to happen We are thankful to all our friends and well wishers for they support and prayers

Kadam Welcomes Two Interns from

Germany amp Lucknow

Volunteer for Craft Ashram Project - Hanna Tigges studied psychology at Germany Hagen Open University Her father Mr Albert Tigges is a doctor and mother Mrs Barbara Tigges is doctorrsquos assistant She grew up from the country side of Germany region called Sauerland in the city of Arnsberg She has a sister who is studying to become a teacher

She has interned as a nurse worked with addicted people and acquired a qualification to support family members of disabled and handicapped people Her Hobbies are painting jogging horse riding playing the piano reading books and listening to music

Hanna is interested in Indian handicrafts and with the development work done in Rural India She is interested in the work that Kadam does to improve the lively hood of the artistan and towards bringing a holistic development in villages Hanna is working on a research project on Vegetables Fruits Spices and Herbs grown in West Mednipur in West Bengal She has to determine their nutrition value and how the food can be used Kadam wants to improve the eating habits and wants the people to achieve a balance diet She is also researching new recipes with a balance diet with Nutrition Experts When she gets back she will be continuing her studies in Germany and wants to become a permanent member of AIESEC

Volunteer for Organic

Dyeing Project -

Manya Pandit parents of Mr Paromit Kumar Pandit

and Mrs Sarita Pandit has joined Kadam for an

internship program

Manya grew up in Lucknow studied in City

Montessori School and is currently pursuing her

graduation from the Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design in Jaipur She loves listening to Fusion

Music bands likes the Indian Ocean are her

favorite and she also likes travelling

Manya was interested in Indian art and craft which

has urged her to persue her studies in crafts by

joining Indian Institute of Crafts and Design which is

an Institute set up by the Government of Rajasthan

to develop human resources for the craft sector

She was recommended by her Mr Vikas Sethi and

Pragathi alumni of Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design to peruse an internship with us She is very

interested in Indian handicrafts and wants to have a

practical experience in this field She wants to

interact with the local artisans in the villages and

design handicraft

Manya will be working on the Organic Dyeing

Project which is an initiative to create organic dye

that will

replace chemical dye Mr Raju from Etikopakka will

be providing us lac sticks which are dyed

organically and Manya will be using it to design

new products

After this internship program Manya will be

persuing her studies at IICD and is interested to

start her own NGO

WE WISH OUR INTERNS SUCCESS IN LIFE AND MAY THEY GAIN VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE IN THEIR

CAREER

Interview With Mohan Dhara ndash Head Of

Bamboo Craft Cluster Of Artisans Kolaghat

1 What is your name

Mohan Dhara

2 What is your age

36 years

3 What is your place of birth

Village Kolaghat East Midnapore

4 Who are your parents

Father ndash Badal Dhara Mother ndash Shanda Dhara

5 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes I have one son called Ankan Dhara

6 Give us an impression of what your past was like

I grew up in a small home in my village As a boy I loved playing cricket and football I would also work

in the fields where I practiced agriculture with my brothers

7 What are the struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village would going through

We never had any source of income because of less jobs So there was a lot of unhappiness

8 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In order to sustain myself and my family I decided to take up handicraft as my local trade in 1995 It is

the reason why I am surviving today

9 How did you come to know of Kadam

I came to know about Kadam through the Go Initiative In 1998 I was sent to Hastashilpi Mela in

Science City Here is where I met with the members of Kadam I started working for Kadam in 2000

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

I have 6 artisans members in my factory Their names are ndash Srimanto Ghorai Baneshwar Maiti Kalyan

Maji Pranab Dhara Samal Mehra

11 Do you like working with Kadam

I enjoy my every day work with Kadam

12 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

13 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

Good I feel energetic and very enthusiastic about life through Kadam

14 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

We work from Mondays to Saturdays (1000 AM ndash 600 PM) If there is any requirement on Sundays

then we work on that day too

15 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The Government helps my village a lot through financial aids and jobs

16 What do you think should be improved about it

There needs to be more activity done in this department

17 What are your motto code and purpose in life

Work hard

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 3: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Fair Trade Forum

of India Fair trade is a training partnership based on dialog

transparency and respect That seeks greater

equity in international trade

It contributes to sustainable development by

offering better trading conditions to and securing

the right of marginalized producers and workers

Its overall objective is to contribute to building an

environmentally sustainable production and

consumption practices that help reduce poverty

amongst poor farmers and handicraft producers in

India It creates a consumer market for fair trade

products in India that measurably contributes to the

improvement of rural livelihood and provides

farmers and artistries with the resources necessary

to follow environmentally sustainable production

practices Its beneficiaries are poor farming and

handicraft producing families across India (an

estimated 9 lakh people and consumers who would

like to consume fairly producerrsquos products)

The fair trade forum-Indian office is a national level

collective of more than 100000 marginalized

producers including artisans and farmers working

on the bases of fair trade standards FTF-I is a

national network of 75 fair trade organization The

forum strives to generate sustainable livelihood to

the producers by promoting fair and responsive

Consumerism with the support of the Global Fair

Trade Movement lead by WFTO (World Fair Trade

Organization) the Netherlands

The Activates of the Fair Trade Forum are as

follows

1 Raising awareness of fair-trade products

among consumers with special emphasis

on young consumers through campus

programs on Fair Trade amp Sustainable

Consumption

2 Convert corporate procurement to Fair

Trade by promoting fair Trade products

among corporate houses developing

corporate partnership

3 Develop a dedicated retain channel for fair

trade creation for a commonly-branded

network for FTF-I memberrsquos shops

4 Gain access of SFC (Shop for channel) Fair

Trade Certified products in mainstream

retain channels

5 Secure commitments tap opportunities

from government ministries and other

agencies to promote fair trade

The Fair assessment round took place between

10th -12th December 2013 The Inspector was Mr

Satyabraha Roy Bardhan from the organization

The purpose of this phase was to bring to the

notice the activities and policies of Kadam It was a

successful event as we had shown a true picture of

us to Fair Trade India

The Inspector had viewed all our registered

documents and legal documents Mr Bardhan had

also conducted a two hour long face to face

meeting with our Secretary Mrs Payal Nath During

the meeting they had discussed about the

conception of Kadam - that is the reason why it

started and what its ambitions are and why do we

want to join Fair Trade India To the utmost

satisfaction of Mr Bardhan we had made him

understand that the soul purpose of Kadam is to act

as a light and a driving force for the Poor Artisans

of West Bengal The only reason we exit is for rural

development and to create sustainable livelihood

creations for them We accomplish this by starting

from the bottom of the ladder by adopting small

craft clusters (Village Kolaghat-Bamboo craft and

village Nayagram-Sabaii craft) in order to teach or

train them in the various methodologies of making

handicrafts

Once they are capable of doing the latter we use

there hand products and exhibit it through various

market connectivity programs The income

generated there from is used to pay the artisans

fair wages and improve their villages robustly

Mr Bardhan had also interacted with our with one

of our artisan from Kola Ghat Mr Kalyan Maji in

order to clarify that the production of handicrafts is

done in an eco and bio degradable manner from

starting point to the finishing of the final handicraft

product

He came to know about their background and

financial problems and how Kadam through

handicrafts is the only source of hope and

inspiration to his team or cluster in the village

To conclude the three days were memorable since

Fire Trade India and Kadam came to an

understanding of the working methods of each

other We are confident of being certified as a Fair

Trade Organization of India in early 2014

Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014 to the Craft Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda One of our volunteers Hanna Tigres had visited the site and accompanied us to the trip as well The purpose of the visit was to attend the meeting with the other members of IIT Khragpur and Sram Vidyapith Some of the members present were Mr Rajesh Nath Mrs Payal Nath Prof RN Chattopadhaya Dr Tapati Dasgupta Prof Dunendi Das and Mr JK Paik We had discussed about the financial position of the ashram and what is to be done in the first half of this year to improve it This is in regard to a few trainings which Kadam has been planning for a while now The trainings have been planned to commence by the first week of March 2014 We will train the artisans from Belda in usually Sabaii grass craft and Bamboo craft We will appoint 1 trainer and 15 trainees to start with the trainings The trainees should be semi-skilled in making handicrafts and between the age of 25 to 30 years (male and female) The duration of the training will be for 15 days Kadam has requested IIT to ensure that the training should continue for the entire duration of the program We have also decided to make 100 small envelopes letterheads and money receipts in the name of Hastashilpi Gurukul Before the training commences an inauguration will be done by inviting certain esteemed guests both from IIT and Kadam The machines that were purchased in the last quarter will be sent to the Ashram for the training to happen We are thankful to all our friends and well wishers for they support and prayers

Kadam Welcomes Two Interns from

Germany amp Lucknow

Volunteer for Craft Ashram Project - Hanna Tigges studied psychology at Germany Hagen Open University Her father Mr Albert Tigges is a doctor and mother Mrs Barbara Tigges is doctorrsquos assistant She grew up from the country side of Germany region called Sauerland in the city of Arnsberg She has a sister who is studying to become a teacher

She has interned as a nurse worked with addicted people and acquired a qualification to support family members of disabled and handicapped people Her Hobbies are painting jogging horse riding playing the piano reading books and listening to music

Hanna is interested in Indian handicrafts and with the development work done in Rural India She is interested in the work that Kadam does to improve the lively hood of the artistan and towards bringing a holistic development in villages Hanna is working on a research project on Vegetables Fruits Spices and Herbs grown in West Mednipur in West Bengal She has to determine their nutrition value and how the food can be used Kadam wants to improve the eating habits and wants the people to achieve a balance diet She is also researching new recipes with a balance diet with Nutrition Experts When she gets back she will be continuing her studies in Germany and wants to become a permanent member of AIESEC

Volunteer for Organic

Dyeing Project -

Manya Pandit parents of Mr Paromit Kumar Pandit

and Mrs Sarita Pandit has joined Kadam for an

internship program

Manya grew up in Lucknow studied in City

Montessori School and is currently pursuing her

graduation from the Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design in Jaipur She loves listening to Fusion

Music bands likes the Indian Ocean are her

favorite and she also likes travelling

Manya was interested in Indian art and craft which

has urged her to persue her studies in crafts by

joining Indian Institute of Crafts and Design which is

an Institute set up by the Government of Rajasthan

to develop human resources for the craft sector

She was recommended by her Mr Vikas Sethi and

Pragathi alumni of Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design to peruse an internship with us She is very

interested in Indian handicrafts and wants to have a

practical experience in this field She wants to

interact with the local artisans in the villages and

design handicraft

Manya will be working on the Organic Dyeing

Project which is an initiative to create organic dye

that will

replace chemical dye Mr Raju from Etikopakka will

be providing us lac sticks which are dyed

organically and Manya will be using it to design

new products

After this internship program Manya will be

persuing her studies at IICD and is interested to

start her own NGO

WE WISH OUR INTERNS SUCCESS IN LIFE AND MAY THEY GAIN VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE IN THEIR

CAREER

Interview With Mohan Dhara ndash Head Of

Bamboo Craft Cluster Of Artisans Kolaghat

1 What is your name

Mohan Dhara

2 What is your age

36 years

3 What is your place of birth

Village Kolaghat East Midnapore

4 Who are your parents

Father ndash Badal Dhara Mother ndash Shanda Dhara

5 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes I have one son called Ankan Dhara

6 Give us an impression of what your past was like

I grew up in a small home in my village As a boy I loved playing cricket and football I would also work

in the fields where I practiced agriculture with my brothers

7 What are the struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village would going through

We never had any source of income because of less jobs So there was a lot of unhappiness

8 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In order to sustain myself and my family I decided to take up handicraft as my local trade in 1995 It is

the reason why I am surviving today

9 How did you come to know of Kadam

I came to know about Kadam through the Go Initiative In 1998 I was sent to Hastashilpi Mela in

Science City Here is where I met with the members of Kadam I started working for Kadam in 2000

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

I have 6 artisans members in my factory Their names are ndash Srimanto Ghorai Baneshwar Maiti Kalyan

Maji Pranab Dhara Samal Mehra

11 Do you like working with Kadam

I enjoy my every day work with Kadam

12 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

13 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

Good I feel energetic and very enthusiastic about life through Kadam

14 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

We work from Mondays to Saturdays (1000 AM ndash 600 PM) If there is any requirement on Sundays

then we work on that day too

15 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The Government helps my village a lot through financial aids and jobs

16 What do you think should be improved about it

There needs to be more activity done in this department

17 What are your motto code and purpose in life

Work hard

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 4: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

The purpose of this phase was to bring to the

notice the activities and policies of Kadam It was a

successful event as we had shown a true picture of

us to Fair Trade India

The Inspector had viewed all our registered

documents and legal documents Mr Bardhan had

also conducted a two hour long face to face

meeting with our Secretary Mrs Payal Nath During

the meeting they had discussed about the

conception of Kadam - that is the reason why it

started and what its ambitions are and why do we

want to join Fair Trade India To the utmost

satisfaction of Mr Bardhan we had made him

understand that the soul purpose of Kadam is to act

as a light and a driving force for the Poor Artisans

of West Bengal The only reason we exit is for rural

development and to create sustainable livelihood

creations for them We accomplish this by starting

from the bottom of the ladder by adopting small

craft clusters (Village Kolaghat-Bamboo craft and

village Nayagram-Sabaii craft) in order to teach or

train them in the various methodologies of making

handicrafts

Once they are capable of doing the latter we use

there hand products and exhibit it through various

market connectivity programs The income

generated there from is used to pay the artisans

fair wages and improve their villages robustly

Mr Bardhan had also interacted with our with one

of our artisan from Kola Ghat Mr Kalyan Maji in

order to clarify that the production of handicrafts is

done in an eco and bio degradable manner from

starting point to the finishing of the final handicraft

product

He came to know about their background and

financial problems and how Kadam through

handicrafts is the only source of hope and

inspiration to his team or cluster in the village

To conclude the three days were memorable since

Fire Trade India and Kadam came to an

understanding of the working methods of each

other We are confident of being certified as a Fair

Trade Organization of India in early 2014

Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014 to the Craft Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda One of our volunteers Hanna Tigres had visited the site and accompanied us to the trip as well The purpose of the visit was to attend the meeting with the other members of IIT Khragpur and Sram Vidyapith Some of the members present were Mr Rajesh Nath Mrs Payal Nath Prof RN Chattopadhaya Dr Tapati Dasgupta Prof Dunendi Das and Mr JK Paik We had discussed about the financial position of the ashram and what is to be done in the first half of this year to improve it This is in regard to a few trainings which Kadam has been planning for a while now The trainings have been planned to commence by the first week of March 2014 We will train the artisans from Belda in usually Sabaii grass craft and Bamboo craft We will appoint 1 trainer and 15 trainees to start with the trainings The trainees should be semi-skilled in making handicrafts and between the age of 25 to 30 years (male and female) The duration of the training will be for 15 days Kadam has requested IIT to ensure that the training should continue for the entire duration of the program We have also decided to make 100 small envelopes letterheads and money receipts in the name of Hastashilpi Gurukul Before the training commences an inauguration will be done by inviting certain esteemed guests both from IIT and Kadam The machines that were purchased in the last quarter will be sent to the Ashram for the training to happen We are thankful to all our friends and well wishers for they support and prayers

Kadam Welcomes Two Interns from

Germany amp Lucknow

Volunteer for Craft Ashram Project - Hanna Tigges studied psychology at Germany Hagen Open University Her father Mr Albert Tigges is a doctor and mother Mrs Barbara Tigges is doctorrsquos assistant She grew up from the country side of Germany region called Sauerland in the city of Arnsberg She has a sister who is studying to become a teacher

She has interned as a nurse worked with addicted people and acquired a qualification to support family members of disabled and handicapped people Her Hobbies are painting jogging horse riding playing the piano reading books and listening to music

Hanna is interested in Indian handicrafts and with the development work done in Rural India She is interested in the work that Kadam does to improve the lively hood of the artistan and towards bringing a holistic development in villages Hanna is working on a research project on Vegetables Fruits Spices and Herbs grown in West Mednipur in West Bengal She has to determine their nutrition value and how the food can be used Kadam wants to improve the eating habits and wants the people to achieve a balance diet She is also researching new recipes with a balance diet with Nutrition Experts When she gets back she will be continuing her studies in Germany and wants to become a permanent member of AIESEC

Volunteer for Organic

Dyeing Project -

Manya Pandit parents of Mr Paromit Kumar Pandit

and Mrs Sarita Pandit has joined Kadam for an

internship program

Manya grew up in Lucknow studied in City

Montessori School and is currently pursuing her

graduation from the Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design in Jaipur She loves listening to Fusion

Music bands likes the Indian Ocean are her

favorite and she also likes travelling

Manya was interested in Indian art and craft which

has urged her to persue her studies in crafts by

joining Indian Institute of Crafts and Design which is

an Institute set up by the Government of Rajasthan

to develop human resources for the craft sector

She was recommended by her Mr Vikas Sethi and

Pragathi alumni of Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design to peruse an internship with us She is very

interested in Indian handicrafts and wants to have a

practical experience in this field She wants to

interact with the local artisans in the villages and

design handicraft

Manya will be working on the Organic Dyeing

Project which is an initiative to create organic dye

that will

replace chemical dye Mr Raju from Etikopakka will

be providing us lac sticks which are dyed

organically and Manya will be using it to design

new products

After this internship program Manya will be

persuing her studies at IICD and is interested to

start her own NGO

WE WISH OUR INTERNS SUCCESS IN LIFE AND MAY THEY GAIN VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE IN THEIR

CAREER

Interview With Mohan Dhara ndash Head Of

Bamboo Craft Cluster Of Artisans Kolaghat

1 What is your name

Mohan Dhara

2 What is your age

36 years

3 What is your place of birth

Village Kolaghat East Midnapore

4 Who are your parents

Father ndash Badal Dhara Mother ndash Shanda Dhara

5 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes I have one son called Ankan Dhara

6 Give us an impression of what your past was like

I grew up in a small home in my village As a boy I loved playing cricket and football I would also work

in the fields where I practiced agriculture with my brothers

7 What are the struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village would going through

We never had any source of income because of less jobs So there was a lot of unhappiness

8 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In order to sustain myself and my family I decided to take up handicraft as my local trade in 1995 It is

the reason why I am surviving today

9 How did you come to know of Kadam

I came to know about Kadam through the Go Initiative In 1998 I was sent to Hastashilpi Mela in

Science City Here is where I met with the members of Kadam I started working for Kadam in 2000

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

I have 6 artisans members in my factory Their names are ndash Srimanto Ghorai Baneshwar Maiti Kalyan

Maji Pranab Dhara Samal Mehra

11 Do you like working with Kadam

I enjoy my every day work with Kadam

12 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

13 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

Good I feel energetic and very enthusiastic about life through Kadam

14 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

We work from Mondays to Saturdays (1000 AM ndash 600 PM) If there is any requirement on Sundays

then we work on that day too

15 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The Government helps my village a lot through financial aids and jobs

16 What do you think should be improved about it

There needs to be more activity done in this department

17 What are your motto code and purpose in life

Work hard

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 5: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014 to the Craft Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda One of our volunteers Hanna Tigres had visited the site and accompanied us to the trip as well The purpose of the visit was to attend the meeting with the other members of IIT Khragpur and Sram Vidyapith Some of the members present were Mr Rajesh Nath Mrs Payal Nath Prof RN Chattopadhaya Dr Tapati Dasgupta Prof Dunendi Das and Mr JK Paik We had discussed about the financial position of the ashram and what is to be done in the first half of this year to improve it This is in regard to a few trainings which Kadam has been planning for a while now The trainings have been planned to commence by the first week of March 2014 We will train the artisans from Belda in usually Sabaii grass craft and Bamboo craft We will appoint 1 trainer and 15 trainees to start with the trainings The trainees should be semi-skilled in making handicrafts and between the age of 25 to 30 years (male and female) The duration of the training will be for 15 days Kadam has requested IIT to ensure that the training should continue for the entire duration of the program We have also decided to make 100 small envelopes letterheads and money receipts in the name of Hastashilpi Gurukul Before the training commences an inauguration will be done by inviting certain esteemed guests both from IIT and Kadam The machines that were purchased in the last quarter will be sent to the Ashram for the training to happen We are thankful to all our friends and well wishers for they support and prayers

Kadam Welcomes Two Interns from

Germany amp Lucknow

Volunteer for Craft Ashram Project - Hanna Tigges studied psychology at Germany Hagen Open University Her father Mr Albert Tigges is a doctor and mother Mrs Barbara Tigges is doctorrsquos assistant She grew up from the country side of Germany region called Sauerland in the city of Arnsberg She has a sister who is studying to become a teacher

She has interned as a nurse worked with addicted people and acquired a qualification to support family members of disabled and handicapped people Her Hobbies are painting jogging horse riding playing the piano reading books and listening to music

Hanna is interested in Indian handicrafts and with the development work done in Rural India She is interested in the work that Kadam does to improve the lively hood of the artistan and towards bringing a holistic development in villages Hanna is working on a research project on Vegetables Fruits Spices and Herbs grown in West Mednipur in West Bengal She has to determine their nutrition value and how the food can be used Kadam wants to improve the eating habits and wants the people to achieve a balance diet She is also researching new recipes with a balance diet with Nutrition Experts When she gets back she will be continuing her studies in Germany and wants to become a permanent member of AIESEC

Volunteer for Organic

Dyeing Project -

Manya Pandit parents of Mr Paromit Kumar Pandit

and Mrs Sarita Pandit has joined Kadam for an

internship program

Manya grew up in Lucknow studied in City

Montessori School and is currently pursuing her

graduation from the Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design in Jaipur She loves listening to Fusion

Music bands likes the Indian Ocean are her

favorite and she also likes travelling

Manya was interested in Indian art and craft which

has urged her to persue her studies in crafts by

joining Indian Institute of Crafts and Design which is

an Institute set up by the Government of Rajasthan

to develop human resources for the craft sector

She was recommended by her Mr Vikas Sethi and

Pragathi alumni of Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design to peruse an internship with us She is very

interested in Indian handicrafts and wants to have a

practical experience in this field She wants to

interact with the local artisans in the villages and

design handicraft

Manya will be working on the Organic Dyeing

Project which is an initiative to create organic dye

that will

replace chemical dye Mr Raju from Etikopakka will

be providing us lac sticks which are dyed

organically and Manya will be using it to design

new products

After this internship program Manya will be

persuing her studies at IICD and is interested to

start her own NGO

WE WISH OUR INTERNS SUCCESS IN LIFE AND MAY THEY GAIN VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE IN THEIR

CAREER

Interview With Mohan Dhara ndash Head Of

Bamboo Craft Cluster Of Artisans Kolaghat

1 What is your name

Mohan Dhara

2 What is your age

36 years

3 What is your place of birth

Village Kolaghat East Midnapore

4 Who are your parents

Father ndash Badal Dhara Mother ndash Shanda Dhara

5 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes I have one son called Ankan Dhara

6 Give us an impression of what your past was like

I grew up in a small home in my village As a boy I loved playing cricket and football I would also work

in the fields where I practiced agriculture with my brothers

7 What are the struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village would going through

We never had any source of income because of less jobs So there was a lot of unhappiness

8 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In order to sustain myself and my family I decided to take up handicraft as my local trade in 1995 It is

the reason why I am surviving today

9 How did you come to know of Kadam

I came to know about Kadam through the Go Initiative In 1998 I was sent to Hastashilpi Mela in

Science City Here is where I met with the members of Kadam I started working for Kadam in 2000

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

I have 6 artisans members in my factory Their names are ndash Srimanto Ghorai Baneshwar Maiti Kalyan

Maji Pranab Dhara Samal Mehra

11 Do you like working with Kadam

I enjoy my every day work with Kadam

12 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

13 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

Good I feel energetic and very enthusiastic about life through Kadam

14 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

We work from Mondays to Saturdays (1000 AM ndash 600 PM) If there is any requirement on Sundays

then we work on that day too

15 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The Government helps my village a lot through financial aids and jobs

16 What do you think should be improved about it

There needs to be more activity done in this department

17 What are your motto code and purpose in life

Work hard

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 6: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Kadam Welcomes Two Interns from

Germany amp Lucknow

Volunteer for Craft Ashram Project - Hanna Tigges studied psychology at Germany Hagen Open University Her father Mr Albert Tigges is a doctor and mother Mrs Barbara Tigges is doctorrsquos assistant She grew up from the country side of Germany region called Sauerland in the city of Arnsberg She has a sister who is studying to become a teacher

She has interned as a nurse worked with addicted people and acquired a qualification to support family members of disabled and handicapped people Her Hobbies are painting jogging horse riding playing the piano reading books and listening to music

Hanna is interested in Indian handicrafts and with the development work done in Rural India She is interested in the work that Kadam does to improve the lively hood of the artistan and towards bringing a holistic development in villages Hanna is working on a research project on Vegetables Fruits Spices and Herbs grown in West Mednipur in West Bengal She has to determine their nutrition value and how the food can be used Kadam wants to improve the eating habits and wants the people to achieve a balance diet She is also researching new recipes with a balance diet with Nutrition Experts When she gets back she will be continuing her studies in Germany and wants to become a permanent member of AIESEC

Volunteer for Organic

Dyeing Project -

Manya Pandit parents of Mr Paromit Kumar Pandit

and Mrs Sarita Pandit has joined Kadam for an

internship program

Manya grew up in Lucknow studied in City

Montessori School and is currently pursuing her

graduation from the Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design in Jaipur She loves listening to Fusion

Music bands likes the Indian Ocean are her

favorite and she also likes travelling

Manya was interested in Indian art and craft which

has urged her to persue her studies in crafts by

joining Indian Institute of Crafts and Design which is

an Institute set up by the Government of Rajasthan

to develop human resources for the craft sector

She was recommended by her Mr Vikas Sethi and

Pragathi alumni of Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design to peruse an internship with us She is very

interested in Indian handicrafts and wants to have a

practical experience in this field She wants to

interact with the local artisans in the villages and

design handicraft

Manya will be working on the Organic Dyeing

Project which is an initiative to create organic dye

that will

replace chemical dye Mr Raju from Etikopakka will

be providing us lac sticks which are dyed

organically and Manya will be using it to design

new products

After this internship program Manya will be

persuing her studies at IICD and is interested to

start her own NGO

WE WISH OUR INTERNS SUCCESS IN LIFE AND MAY THEY GAIN VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE IN THEIR

CAREER

Interview With Mohan Dhara ndash Head Of

Bamboo Craft Cluster Of Artisans Kolaghat

1 What is your name

Mohan Dhara

2 What is your age

36 years

3 What is your place of birth

Village Kolaghat East Midnapore

4 Who are your parents

Father ndash Badal Dhara Mother ndash Shanda Dhara

5 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes I have one son called Ankan Dhara

6 Give us an impression of what your past was like

I grew up in a small home in my village As a boy I loved playing cricket and football I would also work

in the fields where I practiced agriculture with my brothers

7 What are the struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village would going through

We never had any source of income because of less jobs So there was a lot of unhappiness

8 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In order to sustain myself and my family I decided to take up handicraft as my local trade in 1995 It is

the reason why I am surviving today

9 How did you come to know of Kadam

I came to know about Kadam through the Go Initiative In 1998 I was sent to Hastashilpi Mela in

Science City Here is where I met with the members of Kadam I started working for Kadam in 2000

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

I have 6 artisans members in my factory Their names are ndash Srimanto Ghorai Baneshwar Maiti Kalyan

Maji Pranab Dhara Samal Mehra

11 Do you like working with Kadam

I enjoy my every day work with Kadam

12 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

13 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

Good I feel energetic and very enthusiastic about life through Kadam

14 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

We work from Mondays to Saturdays (1000 AM ndash 600 PM) If there is any requirement on Sundays

then we work on that day too

15 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The Government helps my village a lot through financial aids and jobs

16 What do you think should be improved about it

There needs to be more activity done in this department

17 What are your motto code and purpose in life

Work hard

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 7: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Volunteer for Organic

Dyeing Project -

Manya Pandit parents of Mr Paromit Kumar Pandit

and Mrs Sarita Pandit has joined Kadam for an

internship program

Manya grew up in Lucknow studied in City

Montessori School and is currently pursuing her

graduation from the Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design in Jaipur She loves listening to Fusion

Music bands likes the Indian Ocean are her

favorite and she also likes travelling

Manya was interested in Indian art and craft which

has urged her to persue her studies in crafts by

joining Indian Institute of Crafts and Design which is

an Institute set up by the Government of Rajasthan

to develop human resources for the craft sector

She was recommended by her Mr Vikas Sethi and

Pragathi alumni of Indian Institute of Crafts and

Design to peruse an internship with us She is very

interested in Indian handicrafts and wants to have a

practical experience in this field She wants to

interact with the local artisans in the villages and

design handicraft

Manya will be working on the Organic Dyeing

Project which is an initiative to create organic dye

that will

replace chemical dye Mr Raju from Etikopakka will

be providing us lac sticks which are dyed

organically and Manya will be using it to design

new products

After this internship program Manya will be

persuing her studies at IICD and is interested to

start her own NGO

WE WISH OUR INTERNS SUCCESS IN LIFE AND MAY THEY GAIN VALUABLE KNOWLEDGE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE IN THEIR

CAREER

Interview With Mohan Dhara ndash Head Of

Bamboo Craft Cluster Of Artisans Kolaghat

1 What is your name

Mohan Dhara

2 What is your age

36 years

3 What is your place of birth

Village Kolaghat East Midnapore

4 Who are your parents

Father ndash Badal Dhara Mother ndash Shanda Dhara

5 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes I have one son called Ankan Dhara

6 Give us an impression of what your past was like

I grew up in a small home in my village As a boy I loved playing cricket and football I would also work

in the fields where I practiced agriculture with my brothers

7 What are the struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village would going through

We never had any source of income because of less jobs So there was a lot of unhappiness

8 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In order to sustain myself and my family I decided to take up handicraft as my local trade in 1995 It is

the reason why I am surviving today

9 How did you come to know of Kadam

I came to know about Kadam through the Go Initiative In 1998 I was sent to Hastashilpi Mela in

Science City Here is where I met with the members of Kadam I started working for Kadam in 2000

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

I have 6 artisans members in my factory Their names are ndash Srimanto Ghorai Baneshwar Maiti Kalyan

Maji Pranab Dhara Samal Mehra

11 Do you like working with Kadam

I enjoy my every day work with Kadam

12 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

13 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

Good I feel energetic and very enthusiastic about life through Kadam

14 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

We work from Mondays to Saturdays (1000 AM ndash 600 PM) If there is any requirement on Sundays

then we work on that day too

15 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The Government helps my village a lot through financial aids and jobs

16 What do you think should be improved about it

There needs to be more activity done in this department

17 What are your motto code and purpose in life

Work hard

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 8: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Interview With Mohan Dhara ndash Head Of

Bamboo Craft Cluster Of Artisans Kolaghat

1 What is your name

Mohan Dhara

2 What is your age

36 years

3 What is your place of birth

Village Kolaghat East Midnapore

4 Who are your parents

Father ndash Badal Dhara Mother ndash Shanda Dhara

5 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes I have one son called Ankan Dhara

6 Give us an impression of what your past was like

I grew up in a small home in my village As a boy I loved playing cricket and football I would also work

in the fields where I practiced agriculture with my brothers

7 What are the struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village would going through

We never had any source of income because of less jobs So there was a lot of unhappiness

8 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In order to sustain myself and my family I decided to take up handicraft as my local trade in 1995 It is

the reason why I am surviving today

9 How did you come to know of Kadam

I came to know about Kadam through the Go Initiative In 1998 I was sent to Hastashilpi Mela in

Science City Here is where I met with the members of Kadam I started working for Kadam in 2000

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

I have 6 artisans members in my factory Their names are ndash Srimanto Ghorai Baneshwar Maiti Kalyan

Maji Pranab Dhara Samal Mehra

11 Do you like working with Kadam

I enjoy my every day work with Kadam

12 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

13 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

Good I feel energetic and very enthusiastic about life through Kadam

14 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

We work from Mondays to Saturdays (1000 AM ndash 600 PM) If there is any requirement on Sundays

then we work on that day too

15 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The Government helps my village a lot through financial aids and jobs

16 What do you think should be improved about it

There needs to be more activity done in this department

17 What are your motto code and purpose in life

Work hard

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 9: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Interview with Surya Kanta Dolai - Head of

Sabaii Craft Cluster of Artisans Nayagram

01 What is your name

Surya Kanta Doai

02 What is your age

38 years

03 What is your place of birth

Balrampur Kharagour

04 Who are your parents

Father ndash Late Gosto Dolai Mother ndash Chhobi Dolai

05 Are you married Do you have any children

Yes No children

06 Give us an impression of what your past was like

When I was young I went to a school called Balrampur Netaji Vidyapith This was during the period

1980-90rsquos I used to enjoy playing football as a kid

07 What were the current struggles that you and your fellow artisans in the village were going through

during that period

My artisans and I had gone through immense struggles in past Due to less rain our crops would not

produce much crop Thus there would be poverty in my village at that time because of this We did not

have any jobs and were at the mercy of nature

08 What made you take up handicrafts as your trade

In 1994 Professor RN Chattopadhya from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Kharagpur had

introduced the PFM(Participatory Forest Management Project) project The purpose of the project was

to provide jobs to the poor people in my village He trained the artisans and taught the newcomers

about food processing handicrafts and medicine planning This is when I took up handicrafts as my

trade and source of income for myself and my family

09 How did you come to know of Kadam

In 2007-08 IIT Kharagpur had sent me to Kolkata West Bengal for an exhibition in Science City called

ldquoHastashilpi Melardquo By this time I was familiar with hanidicrafts and was willing to seek fresh

opportunities to better my trade and income Thus I along with a few of my team members had set up a

stall in the venue This is where I was introduced to Kadam by Mrs Payal Nath She had offered me a

chance to work for Kadam where I and my artisans would be guided and nurtured for a sustainable

future

10 How many artisans work in your factory or unit What are their names

My factory and unit is based in Village Nayagram

11 What is work schedule

Monday to Saturday (8 am ndash 5 pm) Sunday off

12 Do you like working with Kadam

Yes

13 Do you feel that your cause is being well represented through Kadam

Yes

14 What do you think about the nature of work here at Kadam

It is very robust and well organized We get to coordinate with the Sabaii artisans in Village Nayagram

So we are taught about the power of unity

15 Tell us about your day to day activities with the NGO

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 10: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Kadam places orders with us on a weekly basis They describe the exact product they want and the

quantity too We give them a deadline as to when we can send the products to them When we deliver

the products to Kadam we produce a bill and they clear it for us

16 What is your opinion of the Governmentrsquos and other NGOrsquos all around West Bengalrsquos work towards

your and other villages in the state

The government has also done good work for us They have offered the young students with

scholarships cycles and later on with better jobs They have even us a stadium where there are

frequent events held for the entertainment of the village people During the floods in our village in

October 2013 they offered aid to the victims in the form of foods water and shelter

17 What do you think should be improved about it

The scholarship is only provided to the students that are in school The jobs are provided to those who

have completed schooling Thus the government should try and improve the lives of the people who

cannot afford to go to school as well

18 What are your motto code and purpose in life

To achieve happiness in life one must always work hard and honestly

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 11: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Market Connectivity Programs from October to

December 2013

Sr No Month Date Exhibition Name City

1 October 9-13 Isha Hands of Grace Craft Exposition

Coimbatore

2 October 18-27 Nature Bazaar Delhi

3 October 28-31 India Today Delhi

4 October 31-1 Blind School Delhi

5 November 2-3 TSMS Faridabad Delhi

6 November 9-13 Sasha Fair Trade Fair Kolkata

7 November 27 - 30 Handmade Collective Bangalore

8 December 14 -17 West Bengal Craft Council Kolkata

9 December 19 - 21 Queens Park School Kolkata

10 December 20 - 22 Cochin Bazaar Kochi

11 December 20 - 29 Nature Bazaar Delhi

This quarter we had eleven marketing

connecting programs expanding over five

cites We had successfully reached out to the

people through these connecting programs

Handicraft articles were on display which

highlighted the skills of our rural artisans

Handmade art and crafts were displayed The

exhibition provided excellent venue for initiating

contacts with the people Face to face

interaction with the people spread the word of

awareness for the development of the

livelihood of the people of rural India

The ldquoHand made wondersrdquo at the Cochin

Bazaar exhibition held at David Hall Fort

Kochi was accredited by the New Indian

express as the ldquoparadigms of diversityrdquo

The hand crafted articles alluring aesthetics

made from simple bio-degradable material all

hand cut carved bended painted dyed and

other techniques The artisans were able to

produce one of a kind art pieces that are just

as unique and beautiful

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 12: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

NOTE OF THANKS

KADAM EXPRESSES ITS GRATITUDE TO MR MAHINDER SINGH GOONDH FOR HELPING US IN ALL OUR MARKET CONNECTIVITY PROGRAMS THAT WERE HELD IN COIMBATORE BANGALORE AND

DELHI FROM OCTOBER TO DECEMBER 2013

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 13: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

Exhibitions amp Shows being supported by Kadam

Dilli Haat 1st ndash 15th January 2014 Delhi

(Dilli Haat is located in the commercial centers of South Delhi opposite INA market The 6 acres of land on

which this complex is situated was salvaged as part of a reclamation project and transformed into a plaza

Extensive foundation work small thatched roof cottages and kiosks give the plaza a village atmosphere Some

shops are permanent but other sellers are rotated usually for fifteen days Products offered may include

rosewood and sandalwood carvings embellished camel hide footwear sophisticated fabric and drapery gems

beads brassware metal crafts and silk and wool fabrics A number of shows promoting handicrafts and

handlooms are held at the exhibition hall in the complex)

Aakruthi Vastra 8th ndash 9th January 2014 Hyderabad

(An exhibition held every year which focuses on bringing quality textiles to Hyderabad as well tier II cities in

Andhra Pradesh Our exhibitions in the smaller towns of Andhra Pradesh have met with a great response)

Going Organic Festival 11th ndash 12th January 2014 Kolkata

(An Earth Day Network exhibition [httpwwwearthdayorg] EDNrsquos activities are greening schools or

promoting green economic policies at home and abroad inform and energize populations They act to secure a

healthy future for themselves and their children With its partner organizations EDN provides civic engagement

opportunities at the local state national and global levels At every turn EDN works to broaden the definition

of environment to include all issues that affect our health our communities and our environment such as

greening deteriorated schools creating green jobs and investment and promoting activism to stop air and

water pollution)

Kuteera 11th ndash 18th January 2014 Bangalore

(An event creted by the Crafts Council of Karnataka Kuteera is the annual exhibition-cum-sale of handcrafted

artistic items at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath in Bangalore A total of 38 craftspersons from across the

country are showcasing their art)

Dastkari Haat 24th January ndash 2nd February 2014 Chennai

(Same as Dilli Haat)

Kalagodha Fair 1st ndash 5th February 2014 Mumbai

(The Kala Ghoda Arts Festivalnow in its 16th year is a community celebration of the arts within one of the

most beautiful and historic precincts of Mumbai The Kala Ghoda Art District It has been held for the last 15

years last years and is open to all free of charge It has traditionally offered various programmes in Visual

Art Music Theatre Dance Street Acts Heritage Walks Literature and Workshops for children as well as

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 14: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

adults The Festival has grown exponentially and is hugely successful drawing over 150000 people from all

over the city to 350 events over 9 days Tourists from all over the world plan their trip to Mumbai to witness the

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival Funds raised from the festival go towards the restoration and upkeep of the area

Several heritage buildings and institutions in the area have benefited from this)

Sanatkada Fair 6th ndash 10th February 2014 Lucknow

(The Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival draws its name and inspiration from the bygone culture of the

Nawabs of Awadh who ruled their domain from Lucknow in the 18th and 19th centuries Today the term

ldquoLucknowi tehzeebrdquo refers to the old-world charm of their culture and lifestyle In contrast to the fast pace of

modern life their culture possessed a certain poise and gentleness valuing tradition and emphasizing the arts

With the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival we bring this culture back into the mainstream Partnering

with Sanatkad a nonprofit crafts collective we organize a crafts mela (exhibition) and performing arts

extravaganza at the historic and beautiful Kaiserbagh Baradari Palace Our first festival in February 2010 drew

100 craftsmen and over 1000 attendees The festival brings together four days of art music dance literature

and cuisine Artisans and master craftsmen from all over India display their work and folk musicians and

dancers perform traditional pieces You can also go on historic walks attend literature and poetry sessions

and sample a mouth-watering array of gourmet dishes From crafts to cooking the Mahindra Sanatkada

Lucknow Festival is a celebration of art culture and history)

Isha lsquoHands of Gracersquo Crafts Exposition 19th ndash 27th February 2014 Coimbatore

(Hands of Grace a handicrafts fair is being organized by Isha Foundation at the Isha Yoga Center 50 stalls

will showcase thousands of exquisite items including furniture interior deacutecor garments organic bodycare

products stone and metal crafts accessories and gift items offering the gamut of Indiarsquos arts and crafts

tradition Hands of Grace is an endeavor of Isha Foundation that seeks to rejuvenate Indiarsquos traditional arts and

crafts industry and establish a lasting legacy for future generations It is a part of Isharsquos larger initiative to revive

Indiarsquos cultural ethos Through this 4-week series on the Isha Blog we hope to showcase a few of the varied

handicraft forms and craftspersons who will be a part of Hands of Grace Today we focus on the art of

Manipuri Black Stone Pottery)

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861

Page 15: KADAM NEWSLETTER · Crafts Ashram Hastashilpi Gurukul A visit was conducted on Thursday 16 January 2014, to the Craft Ashram, Hastashilpi Gurukul site in Belda. One of our volunteers

ABOUT US

(From Left to Right - Rajesh Nath Payal Nath Pooja Ratnakar and Anindita Dass)

We are an organization dedicated to holistic

development of Indian craft villages This is an

NGO for the people of the villages of Rural India

which comprise 69 approximately of our country

We at Kadam aim at tackling the problems of

uneducated youth migration to urban cities which

lead to the problems of Urban Slums

unemployment rampant violence and street

children being a direct fall-out of this migration To

create employment opportunities our volunteers

and professionals work towards creating

smallmedium enterprises leading to greater

utilization of local resources and to teach skilled

artisanrsquos basic professionalism ndash concept of quality

and commitment ndash an essential requirement to

sustain them economically well

CONTACTS

Mr Rajesh Nath

badesronhotmailcom

9830022719

Mrs Payal Nath

payalnatgmailcom

9331215060

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

poobookgmailcom

9910000861

OFFICES

KADAM KOLKATA OFFICE

Mrs Payal Nath

44B Syed Amir Ali Avenue

Kolkata 700017

T +91 033 400 40283

M +91 933 121 5060

KADAM DELHI OFFICE

Ms Pooja Ratnakar

A ndash 30

Sector 23

Noida 201301

M +91 991 000 0861