'Dilli Haat Artisans Eager to Keep Art Alive, But Wonder at What Cost'

'At Dilli Haat, artisans have stories to tell – stories of hope and passion, but also of their struggles.'

At Dilli Haat, right in the heart of south Delhi, artisans have stories to tell – stories of hope and passion, but also of their struggles.

(Image altered by The Quint/Vibhushita Singh)

At Dilli Haat, right in the heart of south Delhi, artisans have stories to tell – stories of hope and passion, but also of their struggles.

A popular tourist destination, the permanent open-air market even attracts locals who come to purchase handicrafts or paintings or simply unwind.

Dilli Haat attracts between 2,000 and 6,000 visitors daily and features 62 stalls, allotted to artisans on a rotational basis.

Inaugurated in March 1994 and spread over six acres of reclaimed land, the market was envisaged as a platform for artisans and craftsmen from across the country to showcase their work.

Then why are they struggling?

Sharing her ordeal, Kamini Sinha, a Madhubani and Sohrai artist from Jharkhand, says:

“Today the biggest challenge for artists like me is the easy availability of screen and block prints of most of the designs we paint. As machine-made prints are available at much cheaper rates, customers don't understand the difference between the original handwork and those prints, and hence, are not willing to pay Rs 14,000 for something they can get for Rs 4,000."

Kamini Sinha, a Madhubani and Sohrai artist from Jharkhand.

(Photo Credit: Shambhavi Srivastava)

"I have around 25 women working with me – and I want more people to recognise our work. But since my sales are affected, it has become difficult for me to pay my staff," adds Sinha.

Despite being an original artisan, Sinha has never been able to get a shop in the main row of the haat, potentially affecting her sales. 

Khurja, a traditional Indian pottery style from Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh, has been facing similar competition, negatively impacting artisans. 

Irfan, a Khurja artist, at his stall in Dilli Haat.

(Photo Credit: Shambhavi Srivastava)

“Our sales have been drastically falling ever since Bone China became a popular alternative as it offers a variety of designs such as stencil and block designs at cheaper rates. Our products are hand-made after a rigorous process where we convert heavy stones into a liquid out of which we create designs which are then put into moulds, glazed, fired and finished. In this process, many pieces are also damaged and out of, say 100, we usually get 70-75 perfect pieces. As a result, our products are comparatively expensive, but customers do not value that,” says Irfan, a Khurja artisan at Dilli Haat, with tired eyes eagerly waiting for customers.

Handmade Khurja art on utensils at Irfan's stall in Dilli Haat.

(Photo Credit: Shambhavi Srivastava)

'Hard to Stay Relevant'

Many of the artworks on display at Dilli Haat are protected by a geographical indication (GI) tag, a sign used for products to specify their origin. But, despite this, artisans struggle to maintain their relevance in the modern world. Nevertheless, the primary aim of artisans travelling to Dilli Haat from their home states is to popularise their art or craft.

Ravindra Behra, a Pattachitra artist from Odisha, at his stall in Dilli Haat.

(Photo Credit: Shambhavi Srivastava)

Sitting in his shop surrounded by his intricate paintings, Ravindra Behra, a Pattachitra artist from Odisha, tells me his reasons for coming to Dilli Haat.

“These days customers are very ignorant... they need to be told about the entire process of creating the paintings in detail, otherwise they do not acknowledge their value or the hard work that goes into creating them. Here, at Dilli Haat, we get the opportunity to interact with hundreds of people, and out of them, some turn out to be good and understanding. We pay nearly Rs 70,000 for a shop for 15 days – and many times we are not even able to meet that amount through our sales. However, we keep coming back because we want to take our art to a wider audience, and we want people to know how beautiful our tradition is.” 

Ravindra Behra, Pattachitra Artist

Suresh Kumar Dhrube, a Gond artist.

(Photo Credit: Shambhavi Srivastava)

New forms of deceit have cropped up with people clicking photographs of the works they see at places like Dilli-Haat and creating duplicates to earn profits. However, this does not deter Suresh Kumar Dhrube, a Gond artist, from coming to the haat.

“We have been doing Gond painting for generations and I want to preserve my culture and tradition from fading away into oblivion and that is why I travel to Dilli Haat every year from Madhya Pradesh, regardless of the challenges and difficulties,” he says.

While this culture of making easy money through selling duplicates does sadden him a bit, he is confident that no one can copy his creativity and imagination, and he believes his efforts will pay off one day.

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