In a move to help weavers and craftsmen tap their potential and boost their sales volume by providing market space for their products, Crafts Council of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana (CCAPT) plans to hold a two-day crafts and handloom exhibition ‘Aakruthi Vastra Visakhapatnam – 2015’ from Monday.
The third edition of the fair includes more than 30 stalls where artisans and weavers from across the country will exhibit their crafts. In order to revive handloom weaves and regain its lost glory, the CCAPT plans to start off a separate wing in the port city.
With a network of women entrepreneurs showing keen interest in promoting handloom culture, the local chapter of the crafts council intends to provide appropriate platform for the craftsmen.
Promoting weavers
“The new wing mainly aims at identifying promising weavers and craftsmen and allowing them to connect to diverse clients and understand the market needs,” explains, N. Bhuvaneshwari, treasurer of CCAPT.
The local branch focuses on roping in several craftsmen across Visakhapatnam and neighbouring districts and helps them breathe a new life.
“For instance, weavers in Bobbili bring out an impressive collection of handloom saris. But not many would have access to the place. This is where we want to chip in and provide a market space for the weavers,” says G. Madhuri, a member of the crafts council.
With growing demand for ethnic weaves, a new breed of entrepreneurs have come together to do their bit to the artisans. “Slowly but surely, we are witnessing change in the shopping trends of consumers. By supporting the weavers in marketing their products, we can actually add value to their standard of living and open a window of opportunity to them,” say Silpa Kankatala and Radhika Satish, members of the Visakhapatnam chapter of the crafts council.
Charting out a number of events for the weavers, members of CCAPT hope that their local wing will help the weavers design their wares as per the clients’ requirement and improvise their creative ideas.
The two-day exhibition will be inaugurated on Monday at 10.30 a.m. at The Gateway Hotel.
We identify promising weavers and craftsmen and connect them to diverse clients
N. Bhuvaneshwari
Treasurer of CCAPT
