Gift Of Life

India has been the land of art and craft since time immemorial. Sadly, however, some of the art forms are on the verge of extinction. TIHG presents four talents who are doing all they can to review the dying art

Neha Gandhi runs Matsya, an umbrella for authentic, fair Indian crafts. She says, “Indian crafts hold a significant heritage, culture, traditions, which are practiced over more than 100 years, a block printing ajrakh is dated 100 years old and found from the Indus valley civilisation and practiced only by the khatri communities of Kutch. Similarly, we have the Maru Meghwal community from Kutch who have been practicing the leather crafts and have a historic significance to this craft and so is the Luhar community who make the unique copper bells, which is used by pastoral communities to identify cattle even today.” Crafts signify the identify of communities and have played an instrumental tool in women empowerment in rural India. Traditional women artisans from many parts of rural India have been their own designers, entrepreneurs who run their own craft business thus bringing a powerful change in their own communities and surroundings. Neha further states, “At Matsya we connect and curate these authentic crafts directly, which have significant history, quality in terms of design, fair trade to markets, buyers, craft stores, designers and researchers, design students or any craft enthusiasts who are in pursuit of Indian textile and non-textile crafts. I have been extremely fortunate and passionate to discover and identify, connect with a wide range of Indian crafts. We are striving now to work with like-minded craftsmen, NGOS, design brand or anyone who fits within our umbrella and together we can make an impact.”