Characterizing the geography of artisanal production: case of handloom industry in Varanasi, India

Abstract

Although cultural and creative industries (CCI) have been recognized as drivers of sustainable development, those based in developing countries have received scant scholarly attention. Unlike technology-intensive CCIs concentrated in post-industrial cities of developed countries, CCIs in developing countries are majorly based upon cottage-based labour-intensive manufacturing of traditional crafts and artisanal products. Such production is typically led by artisan communities practising hereditary skill transfer over generations, while living in dense geographical clusters spread over urban and/or rural areas. Such a symbiotic interrelationship between place, culture, and economy has been explored in this paper by examining the geography of handloom production units in Varanasi, one of India’s oldest textile centres. Based on census data, location quotient analysis revealed that handloom weavers stay in two dense geographical clusters. Analysis of the sampled data on key qualitative attributes of production, particularly types of weaves and weaving techniques, identified spatial patterns to be heterogenous. It has been further argued that such heterogeneity is correlated with the distinctive identity of a weaver, which is shaped by his location, socio-economic status, and religious and sectarian belief. Hence, creative economic growth policies in developing countries require a deeper understanding of the latent socio-spatial structure of its artisanal production.

Keywords:

• Artisan community
• artisanal production
• cultural and creative industries
• handloom cluster
• spatial agglomeration
• spatial heterogeneity

Subject classification code:

• Z1
• R12
• J24

Acknowledgments

The research was a part of the Science and Heritage Initiative (SandHI, 2013-19) of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur, funded by the Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (presently renamed as Ministry of Education), Govt. of India. The research is a part of the doctoral dissertation titled An assessment of the dimensions of spatiality in artisanal production: Case of handloom industry in Varanasi submitted by the first author with the Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur.

Disclosure statement

The authors declare that there is no conflict of interest.

Data availability

A part of the secondary dataset analysed during the current study are available in the official website of the Census of India 2011 (https://censusindia.gov.in/) prepared by the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India.

Another part of the secondary dataset analysed is sourced from a draft report of the Baseline Survey for Varanasi Handloom Mega-cluster prepared in 2015 by the Office of the Additional Commissioner, Department of Handloom and Textiles, Govt. of the State of Uttar Pradesh. The same is not available online.

The primary dataset generated by the author during the current study by conducting a questionnaire-based sample survey in 2017–18 is not publicly available but is available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Notes

1 India has been the third largest exporter of creative goods in 2015 (UNCTAD 2018, p. 9). Export of creative goods from India had tripled between 2005 and 2014 from $7.4 to $20.2 billion USD (UNCTAD 2018, p. 233). About 491 handloom and 2,682 handicraft clusters were identified and mapped across India based on an estimate by the Foundation of MSME Clusters in 2010 (Singh 2010).

2 Artisanal products are ‘those produced by artisans, either completely by hand or with the help of hand-tools or even mechanical means, as long as the direct manual contribution of the artisan remains the most substantial component of the finished product’ (UNESCO 1997).

3 ‘Zardozi’ is a type of heavy and elaborate embroidery on a silk, satin, or velvet fabric-base using gold and silver threads, and can incorporate pearls, beads, and precious stones.

4 Saree is a garment of southern Asian women that consists of several yards of lightweight cloth draped so that one end forms a skirt and the other a head or shoulder covering (Merriam–Webster dictionary).

5 For a detailed discussion on the impact of the entry of Hindu lower caste groups into weaving occupation and the nature of relationship between Muslim and Hindu weavers, interested readers may refer to Raman (2013, pp. 36–42).

6 About 90% of Muslims in Varanasi city belong to Sunni sect of Islam, which is further sub-divided into two groups: Barelvi and Deobandi; and the rest 10% belong to Shia sect, which include the Wahabis (R. P. B. Singh 2013). An overwhelming majority of Ansaris in Varanasi identify themselves as Barelvi, i.e., one who believes shrine worship to be central to the practice of Islam. Barelvis are typically concentrated in rural areas and are predominantly of lower castes. The minority group of Deobandis moderately adheres to the purist and scriptural form of Islam and undermines the practice of venerating saints without completely rejecting their role. Typically, most Deobandis are educated, of urban origin, and are growing in their influence (Raman 2010, pp. 117–121). A further smaller group of the well-off merchant class had turned into the purist sect of Islam known as Wahabi or Ahle-Hadith. This group emphasizes upon the relevance of religious texts, whereas desecrates the veneration of saints and the increasing practice of religion in public arena (Raman 2013, pp. 22–25).

7 The survey was conducted by the Office of the Additional Commissioner, Dept. of Handloom and Textiles, Govt. of the State of Uttar Pradesh as a baseline study for the Fourth All Handloom Census of India, 2019–20. The report was pending for approval from the competent authority during the data collection period in 2018.

8 The survey was a part of a larger exercise of surveying the features of handloom production across the district of Varanasi with a total of 424 respondents.

9 Although weavers typically start working very early, none of the respondents mentioned an age below the legal age of employment, i.e., 18 years. This may be a deliberate response out of fear.

10 The primary trading hub for Banarasi sarees across the city-region, identified as the market (mandi) at Kunj Gali or Golghar near Chowk, sits between the two clusters at the old city-core (refer Figure 1). Over years, smaller satellite markets have sprung in traditional weaving neighbourhoods, namely Madanpura, Lohta, and Peeli Kothi, which are chiefly administered by Muslim Ansari businessmen (kothidar) (Williams 2015, p. 53).

Additional information

Funding

The primary survey conducted by the author was funded by the Science and Heritage Initiative (SandHI) of the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur.