Category Archives: India

India, including travels, the crafts and the culture

Christmas is Coming…

By Nisha | Published: 23 November 2011
Zardozi Christmas Bird

Doing a Christmas mela in Delhi proved an interesting experience. For security reasons we had to be in by 6:20am so there we were a bit cold and not quite awake and then had to wait till the dew dried up on our roof covering before setting up! The AWA team were great though and produced just about everything one had forgotten or not anticipated. The day went well although not as fantastic for us as the guy next door: his papier-mâché Christmas baubles were flying off the shelves, with his exaggeration on age/workmanship increasing as the day progressed.

Our own Indian Christmas decorations have arrived and we’ve been busy photographing and tagging them. Here is a sneak preview!

Each one is hand-embroidered, all done by an NGO that has managed to keep producing consistently high quality – a win-win for everyone. I love the …

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And They Call it “Speed”post…?

By Mike | Published: 2 September 2011

There has been lots happening recently behind the scenes at Arastan, despite the lack of blog activity. Unfortunately some things in India can take a lot longer than they ought to. We had a small package to send to a supplier in Srikalahasti, a temple town in Andhra Pradesh, less than 300km from Bangalore. Nothing too complicated, a simple next day delivery, so we used the Indian Post Office’s Speedpost service. Turned out our package was off on a week long grand tour of the state…

Date & TimeFrom OfficeTo OfficeEventRemarks 02/06/2011 15:50:01 BANGALORE Article Received 02/06/2011 20:02:35 BANGALORE TIRUPATI Article Bagged 02/06/2011 21:24:44 BANGALORE M-34-IN Bag Sent through PVT VAN Scheduled Dep.02/06/2011 21:30:00 hrs. 03/06/2011 18:21:32 ____ TIRUPATI Bag IS Opened 04/06/2011 00:37:50 TIRUPATI SRIKALAHASTI HO Article Bagged 04/06/2011 08:10:19 ____ SRIKALAHASTI Bag IS Opened 04/06/2011 16:46:56 SRIKALAHASTI TIRUPATI Article Bagged 04/06/2011 21:52:04 ____ TIRUPATI Bag IS Opened 05/06/2011…

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Visiting Master Craftsmen In Moradabad

By Nisha | Published: 13 February 2011
nickel-plated brass box

Reshma and I drove from Delhi to Moradabad early in the morning. Moradabad is famous for its brassware and we were told by the Head of the Brassmakers Association (we named him Mr White as he had on a pristine white kurta-pyjama, white sandals and yes a white phone!) that over 400,000 artisans work in the industry. We got to meet a national award winner and see the product he got his award for.

It was fantastic but very sad as well. The sons have focused on making products for the mass market and do not have the skills their father has, so his craft will die with him. He learnt it from his father who learnt it from his father – a skill that dates back to the Mughals, and now on the verge of extinction. He knows it and you could see the profound sadness in him.

Saw…

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