Body disability cannot stop Craftsmen

Posted on 18 mar 2008

Craftsmen are people that love very much their work, even all diseases from the world or their body disability cannot make them to give up.

For example Dharam Raju is a 44 years old craftsman that has refused to let anything stand between him and success. Raju can make dhurries, floating and scented candles. He also knits sweaters. He was stopped from teaching at city Jan Shikshan Sansthan by his visual disability but he didn’t give up, Raju taught the art of knitting woollens to some students. His work income helped him to give to his parents money support too.

Raju was congratulated by Tata Steel managing director B. Muthuraman for his success. “I have been doing this manufacturing for a long time. The production unit was started at my place in 1980 after which there has been no looking back. The product range has only diversified,” said Raju. Raju have stated his handmade wares and his skills at Goa and Patna. But now Raju display his presentations at a handicraft fair, Gandhi Shilpa Bazaar.

Gandhi Shilpa Bazaar is a handicraft fair that was organized by Union ministry of textiles. About 150 artisans all of them registered with the central body from different parts of the country are participating in it, and 40 kiosks from this fair are from Jharkhand participants. In this fair handmade products from Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Arunachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Lucknow and Burdwan district of Bengal are exhibited.

The program officer of Gandhi Shilpa Bazaar, Nishant Singa, said: "Our objective is to provide a marketing platform to artisans and to assist them in developing an understanding of designs being produced by artistes in other parts of the country."

Gandhi Shilpa Bazaar is a fair that offer a wide range of products including wooden furniture, bamboo handicrafts, and a large variety of terracotta and dokra work. Some pieces on artificial bonsai and textiles along with woollen dhurries, carpets, soft toys and jewellery are also available.