Celebrating Clay: generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism

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January 2020 to December 2020

Jay Thakkar | Rishav Jain | Mansi S. Rao | Radha Devpura | Bhargav Padhiyar | Leena Jain

Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism

Project conducted by:

Sponsor

Project partners:

Collaborators:

AHMEDABAD CHAPTER

Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism

This publication is an outcome of activities conducted as part of the “Celebrating Clay: Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism” Project. This project was organised and conducted by Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre(DICRC), CRDF, CEPT University, India in partnership with The Clay Foundation, UK and British Ceramic Biennale, UK. The project collaborators included Manthan Educational Programme Society (MEPS), Institute of Indian Interior Designers (IIID) Ahmedabad Chapter and Indian Ceramics Triennale (ICT). This project was supported by the ‘Crafting Futures : India - UK Collaboration scheme’ by the British Council (under British High Commission) , UK. Design Innovation and Craft Resource Center (DICRC) and the Faculty of Design, CEPT University wishes to acknowledge all the participants, partners, collaborators and supporters of the project.

Every effort has been made to acknowledge copyright owners wherever necessary, but the publishers would be pleased to have any errors or omissions brought to their attention so that corrections may be published at a later printing.

Authors : Jay Thakkar | Rishav Jain | Mansi S. Rao | Radha Devpura | Bhargav Padhiyar | Leena Jain

DICRC Core Team members: Piyush Shah | Abhishek Ruikar | Daksh Dev | Isha Bodawala

Published by Design Innovation and Craft Resource Center (DICRC) CRDF, CEPT University Nilpa Campus, Navrangpura, Ahmedabad 380 009.

Gujarat, INDIA

All Rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or published in any form or by any means including print, photocopying and word-processing or distributed in return for payment or by public lending without the prior written permission of the copyright owner and publisher.

Subject to copyright laws. All quotations, reprints etc. must include a reference to the title of this publication. © 2021 Selection+Editorial Matter: DICRC

Celebrating Clay Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism Jay Thakkar | Rishav Jain | Mansi S. Rao | Radha Devpura | Bhargav Padhiyar | Leena Jain

Project conducted by:

Sponsor

Project partners:

Collaborators:

AHMEDABAD CHAPTER

Executive summary

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About the community

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1. About Gundiyali 2. About Mandvi 3. Craft community 4. Craft practice

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Engagements with Gundiyali

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1. 2014: Discovering Gundiyali 2. 2015: Initiating innovation 3. 2016: Encouraging community participation 4. 2017: Integrating technology & reconfiguring habitat 5. 2018: Envisaging tourism 6. 2019: Emphasising collaboration

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Project overview

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1. Project background 2. Project activities

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Project activities

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1. Initiating dialogue 2. Collecting oral narratives 3. Conducting knowledge exchange programmes 4. Building digital platforms 5. Disseminate project activities

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Additional activities

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1. Academic projects 2. Field visits

187 189

Impact

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Monitoring and evaluations

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About organizations

217

Acknowledgements

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End Note

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Executive Summary The project is a culmination of a series of engagements with the terracotta craft community of Gundiyali, Kutch, Gujarat, India, which evolved to bring together the ideas of craft and experiential tourism.

The project built on the learnings from previous engagements, gauging a larger potential within the craft community and the context of Gundiyali. The prior engagements include Initiating Innovation in 2015, Encouraging Community Participation in 2016, Integrating technology and Reconfiguring habitat in 2017, Envisaging Craft Experiential Tourism in 2018, Emphasizing Collaboration in 2019, and aligning these together, Celebrating Clay in 2020.

Craft in the area of tourism has largely been about passive consumption through the final outcome of the craft practice. Craft experiential tourism, however, is about ‘active participation’ in the ecosystem. In active participation tourists or visitors look to be a part of the regional lifestyle, in this context, part of the craft ecosystem, to build memorable experiences. Curating the different aspects of the craft cluster, forming immersive experiences for the visitors is essential to envisage craft clusters as experiential tourism hubs. India is dotted with craft clusters.

With a core focus on active participation, the craft experiential tourism initiative can drive engagement amongst visitors to benefit, empower, and position the craftspeople along with the outcomes. In order to do so, the craft cluster will have to be elevated to the local, national and international level. There are multitudes of activities that one can do so.

A systemic craft experiential tourism toolkit was developed at DICRC to create a framework that supports the initiatives. The toolkit acted as a ready reckoner or a framework for the project. The framework has five different stages to determine potential, discover possibilities, boost value, measure impact and form associations as a process in and around

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the context of the craft cluster.

The Crafting futures grant, programmed by the British Council aims to develop and strengthen the craft sector in India and provide models of practice and collaboration. The goal is to further strengthen the craft sector globally while enhancing or creating new networks between the UK and India.

As part of this project, the Terracotta craft cluster of Gundiyali, Kutch, Gujarat was chosen. DICRC, CEPT University has been engaged with this cluster since 2014. The Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre, India and the The Clay Foundation, UK collaborated for the project, “Celebrating Clay: Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism” to sustain and develop contemporary ceramics practice in India and the UK, fostering a creative dialogue between the two cultures and transform Gundiyali as an immersive tourism experience for the visitors. This project would become a torchbearer for the many more craft experiential tourism ventures across India.

Gundiyali is a village in Mandvi Taluka in the Kutch district of Gujarat State, India. The proximity of Gundiyali to the shore and a major trade route enabled export of the clay products in earlier times. The Kumbhar community of Gundiyali has been historically known for making matkas – earthen pots. These matkas are painted in red, white and black colours defining the local style and mark. Majority of craftsmen are highly skilled and make matkas throughout the year. Some artisans are also making water bottles, cups, glass, lamps, plates, piggy banks or gullaks. Matkas were not only used as utensils but also used in many religious rituals and festivals, which has led to bringing together faith and their collective meaning. Many craftspeople have also begun to innovate based on contemporary audiences, articulating craft practices into many different products other than matkas.

Over the journey of six years, various collaborative engagements through diverse projects, activities and events have taken place with the community starting from 2014. These include introducing innovation through design and technology, self-initiated challenges with the community, and introducing experiential tourism among others.

The collaboration with the community was holistic which resulted in bringing forward skill and innate resourcefulness of the terracotta craft community, making the engagements fruitful.

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In the year 2020, the Celebrating Clay Project took centerstage, which builds on the larger set of engagements that were done earlier with the craft community. This project looked at opportunities and activities to build Gundiyali into a full-fledged craft experiential tourism hub. The first activity was to initiate a dialogue with the community to understand their idea of how they want to bring this idea to their context and cocreate the venture further. This helped in gauging potential, identifying key personnel for different parts of the initiative. This also included the first-time ever mapping of a craft cluster through the process of drone photogrammetry. Further, this evolved into creating a rich directory of the twenty five craft families practicing the craft. The next activity involved collecting oral narratives, stories, and marking places of cultural, historical and physical interest for potential visitors. This process involved a rigorous field study that helped in creating three different themes for three experiential trails for the craft walk planned.

The other activities included an international residency programme with artists from across India and UK to live in Gundiyali, and be a part of a collaborative exchange. This activity however was modified into a digital Knowledge Exchange Programme (KEP) because of the worldwide travel ban imposed due to the global pandemic of Coronavirus (Covid-19).

Three KEPs were planned where 80+ craftspeople were participants, with 20+ expert speakers who exchanged knowledge around their individual practice, market opportunities, global trends and more.

These sessions encouraged craftspeople to dive deep into their cultural heritage, and bring a diversity of thought and practice in their craft.

A digital international mini-residency, Groundworks was also planned as the third of the KEPs, which allowed artists from across India, and UK to connect and respond to the cues from craftspeople in Gundiyali, and similarly, craftspeople in Gundiyali responded to the various cues and work produced by the artists across. The programme enriched opportunities to learn even more about the world and market needs, as well as learn about how to incorporate cultural heritage into the craft practice. About 93.6% of the craftspeople saw a difference in the way they designed craft as a result of their learnings from the Knowledge Exchange Programmes (KEP). These include 83% of the total amateur craftspeople, 89% of the total mid-level participants, and a 100% of expert craftspeople. Equally, 93.6% of the craftspeople felt that the programme had a major impact on how they incorporated heritage into craft design. These included 66% of the total amaeteur craftspeople, 96% of the total mid-level craftspeople and 97% of the total expert-level craftspeople.

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Due to the physical limitations of the global pandemic, a virtual exhibition was planned and designed to disseminate the outcomes of all the Celebrating Clay project along with all the engagements in Gundiyali since 2014. A comprehensive website has been put together that contains exhaustive information about the craft community, and the several projects done, with all the resources produced during this time.

The long term impact is for Gundiyali to become an exemplary case of a community continuously evolving to sustain the craft practice with the help of craft tourism as a catalyst. The benefits of the Craft Experiential Tourism hub will be situated around five major parameters, including identity of its people, sustenance and growth, empathy and collaboration, economy and value from intangible experiences, innovation and recognition.

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About the community There are more than 72 terracotta craft families in Gundiyali, Kutch (near Mandvi), from which about 25 families are engaged in the craft practice today. They practice the craft as a family, and also independently.

Through the years, associations were developed with all the craftspeople of the community, information about whom are documented and presented through an extensive mapping process. A diverse type of product ranging from traditional pots to contemporary terracotta water bottles were also mapped.

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A terracotta craftwoman refining clay in Gundiyali

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Gundiyali is a village in Mandvi Taluka in the Kutch district of Gujarat State, India. It is located 60 km towards South from Bhuj and 6 km from rural Mandvi, located close to the Arabian sea. Mandvi was once a major port of the region and has a 400 year old shipbuilding industry, which was practiced by the Kharva community that still builds small wooden ships.

The proximity of Gundiyali to the shore and a major trade route enabled export of the clay products in earlier times. A tight knit set of communities, Gundiyali has a lot of crafts practices including carpentry, pottery, textile crafts of tie-and-dye, and more.

There is a blend of faiths in the area, with the Muslim community, Jain community and Hindu community together. The trades are often practiced amongst the members.

The village is divided into various community zones.

A mosque between the cluster of small houses visible from a short distance marks the village of Gundiyali. On a usual day, people can be seen arranging matkas in open areas, preparing them to fire in open firing pits. The Kumbhar community of Gundiyali has been historically known for making matkas – earthen pots.

These matkas are painted in red, white and black colours defining the local style and mark. Many craftspeople have also begun to innovate based on

contemporary audiences, articulating craft practices into many different products other than matkas.

All clay craftsmen families are settled around one side of the village. Stories shared by potters show interlinkages between their religion and craft practices. Potters are said to be the descendants of the second son of Dhai Halima, who adopted Muhammad Paigambar. Gundiyali potters earn their living by selling products in local markets or to a fixed network of resellers around the nearby towns and villages. Majority of craftsmen are highly skilled and make matkas throughout the year. Some artisans are also making water bottles, cups, glass, lamps, plates, piggy banks or gullaks.

Matkas were not only used as utensils but also used in many religious rituals and festivals, which has led to bringing together faith and their collective meaning.

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Old port road Mandvi, Kutch, Gujarat, India

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Mandvi was once an active trade junction and one of the key ship building yards of India. The beach and bay area of Mandvi, in the past, was an ideal location which connected traders and travelers of Malabar Coast, the Persian Gulf, and East Africa.

In 16th Sanctuary, Rao Khengarji, a Jadeja ruler, established the town of Mandvi and built a fort that surrounded the city. The early town had a wall, about eight meters high and 1.2 meters thick. Much of the wall has disappeared, but originally, it had many gateways and 25 bastions. One of the bastions is used as a lighthouse which is near Mandvi Beach.

During the colonial era, European powers controlled most of India’s main ports. Yet, kings of Kutch and the Port of Mandvi were well-respected by foreign traders, and even the Mughals, who used the port for pilgrimages to Mecca as well as for imports and exports.

From the 1860s to 1900s series of natural disasters which destroyed the harvest in adjoining areas and massive disease outbreaks created a massive impact on the economic state of the town. Markets near the Mandvi ship docking yard still have old fabrication facilities running, a few ships can also be found getting built, while passing from Mandvi, by road.

The ship industry of Mandvi is slowly fading out, but new and massive

industrial ports have already been developed at Mundra and Kandla.

Today, Mandvi town is mostly promoted as a tourism spot. Existing ship industry is small scale. Other small industries in and around Mandvi are fishing and handicrafts.

Mandvi has mix of Hindu, Jain and Muslim communities living together with many sub-ethnic groups. One can find a lot of mosques in and around Mandvi along with some old architecture.

In 2010, the Government of Gujarat built a museum near the Mandvi beach in the memory of Late Shyamji Krishna Varma. The museum is dedicated to freedom fighters of India; it’s called Kranti Tirth. Mandvi also has many workshops, including those of carpenters, metal fabricators and collectors who store old furniture. There are places where local people visit like the Mandvi Beach, Azad Chowk, Bheed Bazar, Topansar Lake, Garden Area and market spaces. Small stalls can be found across Mandvi and Kutchh, selling delicious Dabeli. With a couple of beach sides.

Mandvi also has become a sweet spot for many hospitality services, resorts and hotels. The best time to visit is between October to February, with the festivals of Diwali and Christmas during that time, along with the popular Rann Utsav festival in Kutch.

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A terracotta craft family at work in Gundiyali, Kutch, Gujarat, India

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The craft cluster of Gundiyali, holds an immense historical, religious, economic significance. The terracotta craft community belongs to the Brar Muslim sect and are believed to be the descendents of Mohammad Paigamber’s foster mother who have migrated from Arab countries to Sindh and further to Kutch. It is said that their forefathers migrated here from Sindh (Pakistan) a few hundred years back and now they are an integral part of Kutch folk craft tradition. There are many members of the community that are based in Pakistan today, since the partition. From generations, craftsmen have been making earthen pots (matka) with the same shapes and designs as those seen in Harappan excavations.

at the mosque. Traditionally, the gender roles within the community have been divided between men and women.

Usually men are involved in the making process to create the products on the wheel, while women are involved in preparation of the clay, and later for painting the pots and ornamentation.

Women and men are equally involved in the craft process and work together in producing outputs. Some elder women in the community work on the wheel to make big plates as well.

The local Jain and Hindu communities are consumers of the products for matkas to store water for day-to-day purposes and for diyas and garbo for festivities like Diwali and Navratri.

There are about 72 terracotta families in all, of which about 25 families are engaged in the craft practice today.

They practice the craft as a family, and also independently. A cross-knit community, they are all associated with each other as extended relatives.

The craft community practices the craft across the year, and during monsoon they take a break from working on the wheel because the clay can’t be fired at that time. There are many community gatherings and rituals that take place across the year.

Every Friday, the men in the community gather to read the namaaz 13

A terracotta craftwoman painting the pots in Gundiyali, Kutch, Gujarat, India

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There are around 1248 houses out of which 160 houses are of Kumbhars or terracotta craftspeople. The craft practice has an elaborate slow design process. The coarse clay for terracotta craft is procured from Mondhwa rann, which is about five kilometres away from the village. The clay used for making products is basically in the rock form. These rocks are grinded into small particles. It is then soaked in water for some time so that it loses its hardness. These particles are then grinded again in the machine to get the powder form. In proper proportion, the water is added and is mixed properly with hands. This dough of clay is then wrapped up in a jute bag as it removes excessive water from the dough and also helps the clay to remain wet and avoid cracks. Round clay balls are made to make the products on the wheel.

The clay is moldable once wet and it achieves strength when fired. It’s porous so the material breathes, and acts like an insulator. The craftspeople use red colour gheru, black clay and white stone ground and mixed with water to paint the products, and make distinctive patterns using brushes made from the branch of date trees.

The gheru is applied on the products with the help of a rough cloth so that they achieve the natural shine.

The village is surrounded by the raw materials, and further thorns, twigs, cardboard waste and wood are

collected and fired for the kiln and some glass wool is used over broken pots or products to cover the kiln and stop the heat from passing out. The firing is done with the traditional method called pit firing.

The community uses the Chakda which is the potter’s wheel, and basic tools for pottery. In earlier times, they used the hand-operated potter’s wheel, and stick string to separate the product from the clay lump on wheel metal strips used to finish products. Electric wheels have now been introduced and are widely used as well. ‘Fumadu’ is a long plastic stick with a rotating wheel which has grooves on it to create lined patterns.

The ‘tappan’ is used for beating the products, ‘farai’ are stone tools used to give support from the inside while making pots by hand. Carving tools, knives and cutters are often used for ornamentation on the clayware.

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Engagements with Gundiyali Gundiyali, a village in Mandvi taluka in Kutch district has artisans practicing terracotta craft since generations.

There are about 72 terracotta craft families in all, of which 30 families are engaged in the craft presently at Gundiyali, and have been said to be in practice here for over 5 generations. Over the journey of six years, various collaborative engagements through diverse projects, activities and events have taken place with the community starting from 2014. These include introducing innovation through design and technology, and introducing experiential tourism among others. The collaboration with the community was holistic based on the context of the outer world and the community. These resulted in bringing forward skill and innate resourcefulness of the terracotta craft community, making the engagements fruitful. This section includes a brief overview of the first five years.

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DICRC team interacting with terracotta craftspeople at Gundiyali

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About Kutch is the largest district in Gujarat, India. It is widely popular for handmade skills, but there has been a significant focus on the textile industry. In 2014, Design Innovation Craft Resource Center (DICRC) studied terracotta crafts for conducting a Craft Innovation Training programme. After studying the terracotta craft clusters of Botad, Wakaner, Ahmedabad and Gundiyali, the one in Gundiyali was chosen based on the scope of intervention at design, social, cultural, technological and entrepreneurial levels. The terracotta craft community of Gundiyali is an enterprising community open to collaboration and growth, which led to an enthusiastic receptiveness to the project initiatives.

Participating Organizations Organizer: Design Innovation and Craft Resource Center (DICRC), CEPT University Partner(s): Manthan Educational Programme Society, i-STED Project, NSTEDB, DST, Govt. of India

Project Activities Documenting craftspeople: The terracotta craftspeople of Gundiyali were documented through a digital mapping procedure developed by DICRC. The mapping was done to develop a directory of the community and key stakeholders within to build connections for collaboration in the later stages.

Documenting craft process: An extensive documentation of the craft was done, which included the raw materials, tools, equipment and the craft process from sourcing raw material, kneading and preparing clay, making the objects, drying, painting to the firing process.

Documenting products: A diversity of traditional products like matkas (to store water), ketli (to hold tea) and Kulhad (for buttermilk) made by Kumbhar men and ornamented with natural paints from red, black and white clay and stones by Kumbhar women were documented. This also included the distinct community-specific motifs and patterns.

Project: Documenting Gundiyali Village The village of Gundiyali was documented with a focus on the terracotta crafts community by mapping the craft spaces, documenting craftspeople, craft practices and the various traditional outcomes they produce.

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Workshop at CEPT University about product development and innovation

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About By “Initiating innovation” to the craft community, the intention was to discuss the possibilities of craft innovation by adapting relevant new, original and important solutions using traditional techniques and skills at various scales. Traditional craft practices in India are embedded with an inherent empirical knowledge. This knowledge is a holistic and intuitive hold on understanding the relationship between the material skill and the larger context of sustainability.

Participating Organizations Organizers: Design Innovation and Craft Resource Center, CEPT University.

Partners: Manthan Education Program Society India, Ahmedabad, i-STED Project, NSTEDB, DST, Govt. of India, Industrial Extension Cottage, A Govt. of Gujarat Organisation; Commissioner & Secretary Govt. of Gujarat, Cottage & Rural Industries Institute of Indian Interior Designers, Ahmedabad, Regional Chapter (IIIDAhmedabad) Collaborators: Clay Club, Craftroots and FabIndia Project: Craft Innovation Training Program The project ‘Craft Innovation Training Program’ concentrated on developing a new range of Interior Architecture products by leveraging knowledge and

resources in areas of design, innovation and technology. It was aimed at looking towards sustaining the culture and economy of the terracotta craft in the present day context.

Project Activities Aadh: Aadh is a modular partition system that can be used as an interior architecture element, originating from the Craft Design Innovation process.

It was collaboratively developed by Priyanka Shah (an interior designer) with craftsperson Yakkubhai Kumbhar and his family at Gundiyali. It was installed at their house to divide the working space and verandah.

Tarkash: Tarkash is a modular cladding system that can be used for surface treatment in buildings. Tarkash means a vessel that contains all the wisdom, learnings and abilities for a particular craft. Tarkash was co-created by craftsperson Abdulla Daud Kumbhar and Iqbal Abdulla Kumbhar of Gundiyali village and Aarohee Nagecha (an interior designer), and was installed on the wall of their courtyard in their workspace.

Events IMIAD Workshop: ‘Conversation with crafts’: ‘Conversation with crafts’ was an international collaborative workshop that brought diverse voices into curatorial and craft-design processes. This led to the development of innovative prototypes through the 21

1. Process of making interior design elements 2. Exposure session with the community at Gundiyali 3. Tarkash with the family of Abdullabhai Kumbhar 4. Aadh with the family of Yakubbhai Kumbhar

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collective knowledge of 50+ national and international participants which included students and faculty from CEPT University, India; SUPSI, Lugano, Switzerland; Istanbul Technical University, Turkey; Hochschule fur Technik, Stuttgart, Germany and about 20 craftspeople from Gundiyali among others. The workshop emphasized the importance of ‘making’, by generating Craft-Design Innovations through collaborative working methods between master craftspeople and designers.

IMIAD Exhibition: The prototypes and products that emerged out of the IMIAD workshop led to an exhibition, which aimed to instigate critical thinking and sensitize the workshop participants as well as visitors about various tangible and intangible core concepts related to craft.

Exposure Workshops: An exposure program was conducted for the community with various site visits to design studios and retail outlets. The craftspeople were exposed to the fields of design, marketing, social media and e-commerce by various experts.

Craft Connect at CEPT University: An interaction session was arranged at CEPT University to connect the craftspeople to architects, interior designers, professionals and trade people.

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Women in the community looking at the self-initiated challenge

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About “Encouraging community participation” introduced a participatory and inclusive process to foster innovation by a deeper engagement with the community. This being an individual-centric approach, the activities were like a web which repeated, overlapped and coincided to empower the community with craft design innovation skills. In its initial phase, the idea of community driven innovation attempted to harness the skills and aesthetic abilities of the craft community. The idea of this program was to create a repository of product typology and associated narratives in the community using the ‘Self Initiated Challenge’ model.

Participating Organizations Organizers: Design Innovation and Craft Resource Center, CEPT University, Partners:- Manthan Education Program Society India, Ahmedabad, NSTEDB / Department of Science & Technology Government of India Collaborators: Swadesi Suitcase Project: Tatva – Community driven innovation project Community Driven Innovation Project was an attempt to initiate an all inclusive and participatory process, bringing together the fields of craft and design. The idea was to engage with the community and foster the

idea of innovation within them. The idea of community driven innovation became the basis for the first pilot project with the terracotta craft cluster of Gundiyali, Mandvi Taluka, Kutch, Gujarat.

Project Activities The introductory project presentation: The project was initiated with a preproject presentation, gathering around 80 craftspeople from the community for the introducing the project. Previous engagements with the craft community were discussed, further initiating a dialogue about the future set of activities.

The self-initiated challenge: The self-initiated challenge looked at harnessing the craft skills and aesthetic abilities that already is inherent to the craftspeople and creating a repository of product typology, and the associated narratives that exist in the community. This was based on the Self Initiated Community challenge model, a web-like model which starts with establishing a link between designers and craftspeople, followed by initiating different opportunities, catalyzing ideas, concepts, and thoughts through workshops, exploring, making models, and recording outcomes leading to disseminating the learnings. This was delivered using interactive cards at two levels- theme cards and action cards.

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1. Discussing the self-initiated challenge with the community 2. Working with action and theme cards with the community members 3, 4. Hands-on pottery experience Prarambh: co-crafting journeys

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Event Prarambh (National Craft Fair 2016): “Prarambh: co-crafting journeys” was part of a seven day long ‘National Craft Fair 2016’with 1000+ visitors. This gave craftspeople the opportunity to share the values imbibed in their respective crafts and interact with audiences and buyers directly, enhancing their business potential.

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Kalakosh prototype being tested

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About Technological advancements constantly create possibilities by catalysing interaction between people, objects and spaces in the immediate environment. In India, traditional crafts are a representation of our cultural identity and also a primary source of livelihood for many communities.

This research-based design project was initiated to explore possibilities of complementing traditional craft practices with digital technology.

Participating Organizations Organizers: Organizers: Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC), CEPT University, Ahmedabad Partners: Ford Foundation grant for graduation project at the National Institute of Design, India Collaborators:Manthan Educational Programme Society (MEPS), NSTEDB/Department of Science & Technology,Government of India Project: Kalakosh A digital archive ‘Kalakosh’ was created; an outcome of technological integration, where ‘Kala’, refers to skill involved with craft and ‘Kosh’, refers to an archive. It enables traditional craft communities to digitally archive designs of their hand-crafted artefacts. It empowers craftspeople to showcase and share digital representation of their artefacts across multiple mediums and contexts.

The project was done by Bhargav Padhiyar as a part of his graduation project at National Institute of Design, Gandhinagar.

Project Activities Proof Of Concept (POC) prototype While building the digital archiving system, the first step was to gauge the interest level of the community followed by a rapid prototyping journey to demonstrate the idea. The plan was to create a digital hologram of any artefact placed on the turntable, which was executed using open source technologies, run on a windows system with a basic webcam.

Final prototype: The final prototype was designed, developed and tested for long hours; this prototype ran independently without any errors. With a few limitations like a limited size scan, 25 user limit and low camera resolution, the prototype was simulated and the Kala Kosh Digital Archive was now ready for use.

Events Maker Fest: Maker Fest is about developing a great maker community where people can learn, and share about the culture of making. The community of Gundiyali, as one entity came together to showcase their techniques and ideas – creating handson pottery explorations with the visitors.

The 3 day event brought together the making community from diverse fields.

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Caption(s): 1. Making the Kalakosh Prototype 2. Setting up the KalaKosh Prototype 3. Testing the KalaKosh Prototype 3. The Kalakosh Prototype

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Event X: Three craftspeople from the terracotta craft community of Gundiyali were a part of Event X for the Makerspace, Unsung Heroes. Event X is a design festival initiated by Unbind which brings together perspectives from diverse realms of Design.The craftspeople engaged in a dialogue with architecture students about clay and hands-on pottery.

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Caption(s): 1. Mixing clay for the walls 2. Plastering clay on the walls 3. Collaborative discussions with designers and craftspeople 4. Making process of components

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About “Reconfiguring habitat” was about an evolvement plan assessing the existing infrastructure in the community’s built environment.

The outcome led to suggestive measures and plan for expansion in a participatory process with the craft community and design experts.

Participating Organizations Organizers: Organizers: Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC), CEPT University, Ahmedabad Partners: Manthan Educational Programme Society (MEPS), NSTEDB/Department of Science & Technology,Government of India Project: Spatial reconfiguration of workspaces Spatial reconfiguration of the craft spaces was ideated to enhance the craft spaces and activities by facilitating better infrastructure to increase spatial efficiency. The activity started with an overarching frame to develop the village as Village Maker Space to add value at the macro and the micro level with various supportive activities in the identified pockets of the village. This was also done with consideration that it would further aid in inviting tourism; connecting craftspeople to the visitors in the process.

Project Activities Field research: The field research for spatial re-configuration involved extensive mapping and intricate contextual understanding of the communities’ craft practices. From the area covered by each craft activity, data, tools, techniques, sizes of products, to activity and spatial mapping.

Discussions with family: The community’s involvement was an essential part of the inclusive participatory approach of spatial reconfiguration. The teams from DICRC, CEPT University and Manthan Education Program Society were involved from planning to execution, where they took inputs from Yakub Kumbhar’s family to work on the design intricacies.

Execution of project: There was a spatial upgradation which added efficiency to Yakub Bhai Kumbhar’s workspace, increasing work area for the practice, and storage space along with a display area to sell products.

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Introduction | CET Model

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Discovering Possibilities

Study the cluster

Know the craft community

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Design a plan of action

Collaborate with partners

Reconfigure built environment

Enhance capacity

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Engage with the people

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Forming Associations

Determining Potential

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Boosting Value

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Establish sustainable practices

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Network with stakholders

Gauge readiness

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Project Identity Assimilate feedback 1

Craft experiential tourism model (CET Model) described in its stages

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Analyse shortcomings Measuring Impact

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Create opportunities

About With a shift in thought from people exploring authentic experiences instead of materialistic values – the idea of ‘experiential tourism’ has been evolving worldwide. Experiential tourism seeks to look at a tourist as someone who wants to be immersed into the culture, an individual who seeks experience on how people live their lives in a different part of the world through the lifestyle, food delicacies, livelihood, and the climate.

The experiential factor is beyond the ‘built’ environment and focuses on community dynamic. The human aspect of crafts and how it binds the community, lifestyle and culture as a catalyst combined with experiential tourism, gave germination to the idea of ‘Craft Experiential Tourism’.

cultural experience that an experiential tourist is seeking. The craft experiential tourism toolkit emerged in retrospect to the various initiatives carried out in Gundiyali. The toolkit acts as a ready reckoner or a framework for individuals and organizations across the globe who aim to facilitate a craft cluster in becoming a craft experiential tourism cluster.

Participating Organizations Organizers: Organizers: Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC), CEPT University, Ahmedabad Partner: Manthan Educational Programme Society (MEPS) Project: Craft Experiential Tourism Toolkit (CET) Craft experiential tourism establishes that there is more to a craft than the utility of its outcome, and looks at craft as a catalyst that sparks a dialogue about narratives and stories about the people, the place, the community – bringing forth the 35

Caption(s): 1. Ekta Gohel collaborating with Ruksana Salim Kumbhar 2. Monish Siripurapu with Jusab Kumbhar with the prototype of Beehive 3. Craft family with the products created during the fellowship 4. Anwar Kumbhar with the prototype of a playhouse game prototype

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About The idea of collaboration helped in cultivating opportunities by bringing visibility to showcase, promote and celebrate the rich craft traditions of the country. “Emphasising collaboration” encouraged various organisations, institutes, and professionals to connect with the craft community of Gundiyali, leading to an intermingling web of ideas and network.

Participating Organizations Organizers: Organizers: Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC), CEPT University, Ahmedabad Partner(s): Manthan Educational Programme Society, This project was promoted under: i-STEDProject, NSTEDB, DST, Government of India Project: Craft CoLABorative Fellowship Craft CoLABorative fellowship was developed as a platform for an exchange of ideas and skills as a collaboration between design fellows and artisans. It was planned for fellows to understand the traditional craft practice and for artisans to dive into contemporary design challenges and find solutions together.

country, of which 8 design fellows were chosen to work with 8 craftspeople and their families. The fellows were from diverse fields like architecture, ceramic, art, communication and research, based on the merit of their proposal ideas.

Collaborative making at Gundiyali: The fellowship was approached by fellows in collaboration with the craftspeople, co-creating their processes. The fellows immersed themselves into the craft environment, understanding the challenges of the community to develop contemporary outcomes with craftspeople and their families to satisfy local, national and international market needs. The fellowship’s outcomes led to products and product systems in the fields of interior design, architecture, technology, gamification and interaction-led education, lifestyle and utility.

Event Ekatra, spinning the wheel together The exhibition brought together the idea of co-creation of design and innovation, using the traditional craft skills and techniques with contemporary design. It was a dissemination of the three-yearlong craft design innovations done in the terracotta craft cluster of Gundiyali with the craftspeople and their families.

Project activities Fellowship open call: There was an open call for the fellowship, and proposals flooded from across the 37

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Project overview Crafting futures programme aims to develop and strengthen the craft sector in India and provide models of practice and collaboration. The goal is to further strengthen the craft sector globally while enhancing or creating new networks between the UK and India. The Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre, India and the The Clay Foundation, UK collaborated for the project, “Celebrating Clay: Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism” to sustain and develop contemporary ceramics practice in India and the UK, fostering a creative dialogue between the two cultures and transform Gundiyali as an immersive tourism experience for the visitors.

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DICRC team at Gundiyali during the initial dialogue with the craft community

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The Crafting Futures project by the British Council through the India - UK Collaboration scheme brings together Indian and UK partners to co-develop and collaborate on projects to explore new futures for crafts in India.

The major objectives of this programme include finding ways for: Discovering new ecosystems for the craft to engage with traditional skills, contemporary design and enterprise development together.

Driving women empowerment and leadership through craft Addressing global environmental challenges through craft Enabling a wide appreciation for craft tourism Discovering possibilities of digital technology for crafts With the collaborative activities in the last 5 years with the community, there has been an explorative and expansive diversification of their product range enabling a reach to a slightly larger market. The projects aimed to develop the ‘established cluster’ into a ‘mature cluster’ with the support of the entrepreneurial spirit of the community. The community has had a large interest in creating a space for dialogue and engagement

about their craft heritage for a global audience.

The Celebrating Clay : generating new forms of cultural production project aims to: Provide an opportunity for the craftspeople to engage with artists from diverse backgrounds Draw cultural tourists to the town and elevate the value of locally produced pottery Enhance livelihoods and attract new generations of craftspeople and artists Foster a creative dialogue between artists, craftspeople, designers, and entrepreneurs Foster interdisciplinary collaboration that helps develop innovative outcomes and new ways of work Bring diverse voices into curatorial and craft design processes

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DICRC team at Gundiyali during the initial field visits

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The intent was to undertake a pioneering project of creating perhaps the first-ever craft experiential tourism hub based on a systematic research framework. With the Craft Experiential Tourism Toolkit developed by DICRC, this project has the potential to be replicated and scaled up at any craft cluster in the country, most of which are not recognised at all. DICRC has more than ten years of experience in working with craftspeople and craft clusters. The nature of work undertaken varies, ranging from research and documentation, innovation of new craft applications, immersive education and training projects to address problems around infrastructure, gender, design exposure, market exposure etc. The approaches have been interdisciplinary and collaborative which add value to modus operandi of the organisation.

Craft experiential tourism has not been widely practiced nor applied systematically at many craft clusters in India. Direct engagement and associations with craft community and practices is essential. In order to develop and initiate this process we intend to do the following five sets of activities: Initiating dialogue with the community of Gundiyali craft cluster In the first step towards gearing the cluster as an experiential tourism hub, the first activity delved in determining the potential of the people and the place, to understand how ready they are for evolving into an experiential tourist hub.

Collecting oral narratives and stories from the cluster This stage involved collecting oral narratives from the community. This also included their childhood stories, nuances about the craft practice, folk stories, lifestyle practices from the past and the evolution to the present. The oral narratives also guided in creating a holistic plan of action and capacity building for interactive activities further.

Conducting Knowledge Exchange Programmes* The global pandemic emerged right before the international residency was planned, there was a need to gauge what can be done to engage in an international exchange without a physical residency. A digital Knowledge exchange Programme(KEP)was conceptualized to provide monetary support to the craft community during uncertain times, with a training programme that facilitates exchange of knowledge across local, national and international borders.

Conceptualizing and executing a virtual craft walk in Gundiyali* A craft walk was planned as an immersive curated experience that keeps the craft practice at the centre of the dialogue, discussing about the community - the culture, history, lifestyle, practice, etc. While due to the pandemic, since real-life interactions were not feasible, a guided virtual tour was proposed.

Disseminating project activities This project was imagined as a starting point for various long term relationships with the craftspeople, communities, organisations, professionals etc. A virtual exhibition and a website were curated and developed in this stage.

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*the new modified activity due to Covid-19 pandemic. Refer at the appendix for the original proposal

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Project Activities The Celebrating Clay project delved into generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism to promote active engagement over conventional passive consumption through products. It implemented the craft experiential tourism toolkit to transform Gundiyali in a craft experiential tourism hub. The idea was to promote a collective sustainable development of the craft and tourism industry. The impact has helped in situating Gundiyali on a global platform as a craft experiential tourism hub. It addressed some of the gaps in the craft sector like a lack of design and market exposure, connections with the source communities and representation of craft communities.

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Jay Thakkar, executive director, DICRC addressing the community

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In the first step towards gearing the cluster as an experiential tourism hub, the first activity delved in determining the potential of the people and the place, to understand how ready they are for evolving into an experiential tourist hub. With a participatory approach to the entire venture, dialogue was initiated with the craft community at Gundiyali. Human engagements are the building block of the experience, so the interaction and articulation abilities of craftspeople within the community aided the experience greatly.

were not directly associated with the craft, but helped in the larger picture of the venture design. The purpose was to familiarize and sensitize the community towards the larger idea of converting a village into craft experiential hub. This was the phase of introduction of the key craft families that worked along with the national and international artists and professionals

A comprehensive overview of the Gundiyali terracotta craft cluster helped in identifying opportunities and challenges for the craft community and experiential tourists. The purpose was to get deeper knowledge about community through understanding their lifestyle, craft practice, societal structure, cultural and historical evolution over the years, the tangible elements in the physical context, etc in reference through this project. At this stage, the idea was to engage with various people, from the leaders in the community, craftspeople, to traders in the nearby areas associated with craft or tourism, which included brands, emporiums, and food - stay travel services and expose them to the project. The idea was to engage with locals, including women and children from other communities who were or 47

Preparation for a participatory discussion with the community and national - international collaborators

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Objectives The primary objectives of this activity were to Gauge potential and readiness within the community and the village for becoming a craft experiential tourism hub Bring the idea of craft experiential tourism to the community and initiating a participatory dialogue to together build the venture Connect the national and international collaborators with the community to facilitate a larger level dialogue with all the different key stakeholders Understand the craft cluster’s existing systems, and interdependencies in the community

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Preparation for a participatory discussion with the community and national - international collaborators

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Process Participatory discussion with community members to initiate activities: To kick-start the project, an initial field visit was planned to initiate the discussion with the community.

An introductory meeting with the community was organised to discuss the overarching vision of the project, understand how they see it, and how they would like to be engaged. further also proposed our plan for the key activities planned over the year with the community. The interaction began through a project presentation done by the DICRC team detailing vision of the project and an overview of the crafting futures project. This was done in English and Gujarati for better inclusivity. It covered the project overview which talks about importance of the project, project partners, project activities which includes documentation of the village and its history, international residency, IMIAD workshop with CEPT and

other logistic issues which required addressal in organizing a project of this scale.

Remapping of the craft community: There were several field visits to Gundiyali to map the craft cluster. This included mapping of the entire village.

Different families in Gundiyali that practice the craft were documented with details related to their day-to-day activities, the craft practice, and the artefacts they create. It was inclusive of family tree naming, occupation of each person, estimated income, modes and scale of craft business etc.

Visual documentation included portrait shots of people, product photos, process pictures (if they are working), materials and tools.

Essentially, a comprehensive overview of the Gundiyali terracotta craft cluster was done to identify opportunities and challenges for the craft community and experiential tourists. The most important part of this stage was to 51

Caption(s): 1. Building a relationship with the local community & initial mapping 2. Interaction with the British team (The Clay Foundation) 3. Interacting with the community and facilitating introductions 4. The community with the DICRC team

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get deeper knowledge about the community through understanding their lifestyle, craft practice, societal structure, cultural and historical evolution over the years, the tangible elements in the physical context, etc in reference through this project.

This further helped in effectively understanding physical and human resources and where they would become touchpoints.

Building relationships with locals: Building relationships with people within the community and the locals was imperative to form fruitful collaborations. This process engaged various people, from the leaders in the community, craftspeople, to traders in the nearby areas associated with the craft or with tourism, including utilitarian services, brands, and food stay - travel services.

This also extended to approaching a few potential hospitality and travel partners in Mandvi, introducing them to the idea of craft experiential tourism and Gundiyali. Further interactions with locals, including women and children from other communities also took place as they are crucial in the larger picture of the venture design. Finally, all of this helped familiarize and sensitize the community towards the larger idea of converting a village into craft experiential hub.

An interactive online session with key stakeholders: An interactive online session was conducted with all national and international team members and the craft community to begin the project. This helped introduce the craftspeople to the team members, artists, organizations working together on this, and further engage in a dialogue to facilitate ideation.

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Outcome(s) The craft community of Gundiyali was mapped as a part of the activity. A craft people’s directory was created as a part of it. In the next pages, let’s meet the craftspeople. The craftspeople are sequentiated as a family, marked by the colour as an indication.

Mapping of craftspeople

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Fakirmamad Nurmamad Kumbhar Fakirmamad Nurmamad Kumbhar started learning pottery at the age of 15 from his brother. Later, when he got fluent with the traditional skills, he started his own practice of making matla (pots) of various shapes and sizes, water jugs, gamla (flower pots), rakabi (saucer), visi (money banks), etc. With a belief that a customer should never return empty handed from the house, he makes products beforehand and keeps them stored. Fakirmamad bhai is deeply rooted in his traditional skills and culture and has been teaching his son and daughter this craft. He believes that the practice should be passed on to generations.

Adham Fakirmamad Kumbhar Adham Kumbhar, son of Fakirmamad Kumbhar and Fatma ben Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta pottery for 5 years. He has been learning how to practice craft from his father and has been helping in making visi (money banks).

Curious to pursue and learn the craft further, Adham dedicatedly works for hours and tries to explore new forms on potter’s wheel.

Fatmaben Fakirmamad Kumbhar Fatma ben Kumbhar has been practising terracotta craft in Gundiyali for 8 to 9 years. After her marriage with Fakirmamad bhai Kumbhar, she learnt this craft from her mother-in-law, and since then she has been practicing it with her husband. She has been managing the raw material for the firing kiln, painting and storage and packaging of products made by her husband. She specialises in making paatar (flat plates) for kneading flour dough. She is a mother to a son and a daughter, and teaches her daughter about the practice.

Khatun Fakirmamad Kumbhar Khatun Kumbhar, daughter of Fakirmamad Kumbhar and Fatma ben Kumbhar, has been learning and practicing terracotta pottery craft after her school hours. She has been helping her mother in drying and collecting the products, painting them with plain red colour, preparing firing kilns and packaging products for delivery.

Farida Salim Kumbhar Farida Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for 11 years in Gundiyali. She specialises in making clay hearths, locally known as chulha and paatar (flat plates) which she learnt from her mother-in-law after her marriage with Salim bhai Kumbhar. Her husband manages the market and sales of the products made by Farida Kumbhar.

Abdulkarim Sidikbhai Kumbhar Abdulkarim Siddhik Kumbhar learned terracotta pottery in his childhood from his grandfather. Using the traditional skills, he has been making kodiya (earthen lamp), phirni (shallow glasses to serve seviyan), tea glasses, plates and tea cups for more than 25 years. He has also been making traditional products for the theme-based restaurants and hotels in Kutch. His products are sold locally in and around Kutch and nationally in Mumbai, Maharashtra. He is married to Julu bai and is a father to three children.

Shakinabai Daud Kumbhar Shakina bai Daud Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for more than 26 years. She was born in a potter’s family and helped her mother in making clay and drying products at a young time. After she got married to Daud bhai Kumbhaar, she started practicing the craft full time. She managed the raw materials, painting and selling of the products. After the death of her husband, Shakina bai started to make paatar (flat plates) and also taught her daughter-in-law. The flat plates are sold by her son Salim Kumbhar.

Sabir Abdul Kumbhar Sabir Kumbhar, elder son of Abdulkarim Kumbhar and Julu bai, has been learning pottery craft from his father for 2 years.

He has been learning to make kodiya (earthen lamp) and phirni (shallow glasses to serve seviyan) and helps Abdulkarim bhai in completing his orders after his school hours. He also looks after the raw material and helps in firing the kiln.

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Julubai Abdulkarim Kumbhar Jullu bai Kumbhar has been practicing pottery craft for 16 to 17 years in Gundiyali. Abdulkarim bhai taught her and helped her understand the craft processes after their marriage. Since then, she has been managing clay preparation, painting, firing and packaging products made by Abdul bhai and his son.

Shakina Esmail Kumbhar Shakina bai, having learnt this craft from her husband Esmail bhai Kumbhar, has been practicing terracotta craft for more than 11 years in Gundiyali. She has been painting pots made by her husband and manages the raw material for firing the kiln.

Esmail Jusab Kumbhar Esmail Jusab Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta pottery for more than 26 years in Gundiyali. He learnt the craft from his grandfather in his early age. He, since then, is practicing this craft full time and makes terracotta water pots which are sold locally and nationally. He is married to Shakina bai.

Osman Husen Kumbhar Osman Husen Kumbhar has been practising pottery craft for 16 years in Gundiyali. He is known for making water pots. He learnt this craft from his father at a young age. His products are sold largely in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Aminabai Osman Kumbhar Amina bai Kumbhar has been practicing pottery craft since 16 years in Gundiyali. Having been born in Mumbai in a potter’s family, Amina bai was introduced to craft at a very young age and would help her mother and father with craft processes.

After her marriage with Osman bhai Kumbhar, she has been practising it full time with him and paints the products made by him.

Husen Ismail Tank Husen Ismail Tank is one of the experienced terracotta craftspeople of Gundiyali. He has been practicing this craft for more than 26 years. He has learnt the pottery craft from his father and is known for making diva (earthen lamps) and Ganesha idols. On the occasion of Ganush Chaturthi, he goes to Mumbai to make the idols. His products are sold mostly in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Aminabai Husenbhai Kumbhar Amina bai Kumbhar learnt the terracotta craft from her mother-in-law after her marriage with Husen bhai Kumbhar.

She has been practicing it full time for 26 years. She specialises in painting matla (pots) and making paatar (flat plates) out of terracotta. She has been making huge flat plates and one of her achievements is making a 2.5 feet diameter flat plate. Her plates are sold nationally, especially to heritage properties and hotels, for keeping flowers at the entrances.

Yasin Husen Tank Yasin Tank, the elder son of Husen and Niyamat Tank has been learning this craft from his father for 2 years. He has been assisting his father in making diva (earthen lamps).

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Niyamat Husen Tank Niyamat Tank, originally from Mumbai, has been practicing the terracotta pottery for more than 21 years. Having been born in a potter’s family, Niyamat has been practicing pottery since her childhood and has learnt this craft from her mother.

After her marriage, she has been practicing full time with her husband Husen Tank. She manages the raw materials for making and firing products.

Alimamad Sidik Kumbhar Alimamad Siddhik Kumbhar learnt terracotta craft from his elder brother Abdulkarim Kumbhar. He uses moulds to make pots and water bottles and has been also helping his elder brother with the craft. He has been practicing pottery craft for 6 years in Gundiyali. Apart from pottery, he also sells metal and plastic scrap.

Khatunbai Alimamad Kumbhar Khatun bai Kumbhar has been practicing pottery craft for 2 years in Gundiyali. She has been learning this craft from her brother-in-law and his wife and has been helping them with various craft processes like collecting raw materials for making and firing products, drying and managing their storage.

Salemamad Mamad Kumbhar Salemamad Kumbahr has been practicing terracotta craft for 25 years in Gundiyali. Having learnt this craft from his father, he has specialised in making various sizes of matla (pots). With his nature to experiment with sizes, he has been making small to big sized pots and selling it locally and in Maharashtra. He likes to share with people, his knowledge and experiments of making large terracotta pots.

Shakinaben Salemamad Kumbhar Sakina ben Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft since 20 years in collaboration with her husband Salemamad Kumbhar in Gundiyali. She learnt the practice from her mother-in-law, and now is in charge of painting matla (pots) made by her husband.

Amad Daud Kumbhar Amad Daud Kumbhar learnt this craft from his grandfather at the age of 15 years. Since then, he has been practicing terracotta craft by making matla (pots) of various sizes and shapes to store perishables and also used in ceremonial activities like housewarming, marriage or death and festivals.

Being particular about baking his pots, Amad bhai makes his own kilns using his traditional knowledge to ensure good quality of his products. He is married to Shakura bai and has two sons and three daughters.

Saleman Salemamad Kumbhar Saleman Kumbhar has been learning terracotta craft from his father, Salemamad bhai Kumbhar. With his keen interest in learning the craft, he has been practicing it after his school hours, and now, has been practicing it for 4 years by making bird feeders.

Shakurabai Amad Kumbhar Shakura bai has been practicing terracotta craft for more than 26 years with her husband Amad Daud Kumbhar. She paints the matla (pot), made by Amad bhai, with different patterns and designs using dry date sticks and natural colors. Apart from painting, she also makes paatar (flat plates) and teaches craft to her daughters-in-law. She is a mother of two sons, Hasam and Shakur and grandmother to two grandsons.

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Hasam Amad Kumbhar Having learnt terracotta craft from his father, Hasam has been practicing it part time for 15 years. He has been helping his father, Amad bhai in making pots and managing the sales of products. In his leisure time, Hasam practices making miniature pots by exploring their shapes and forms and finishing it with different materials like mirrors and paint.

Apart from pottery, he runs a poultry farm in Bidada village.

Hamidabai Hasam Kumbhar Hamida bai grew up helping her mother, Late Jillu bai with preparing clay after her school hours. Ever since then, she has known the terracotta craft. She would help her father to dry pots and watch her mother paint pots with traditional patterns. After her marriage, it has been two years since Hamida bai started practicing and learning the craft of making paatar (flat plates) from her mother-in-law.

Shakurbhai Amad Kumbhar Shakur bhai Kumbhar has been practicing craft for the past five years. He is learning this craft from his father. He is enthusiastic about continuing the craft practice along with his college studies. He is experimental with the craft and likes to develop new ideas in a slow, evolving manner. He is also a great communicator and connects well with people, especially on social media.

Aisabai Daud Kumbhar Aisa bai Daud Kumbhar is one of the oldest and most experienced craftswomen of Gundiyali. She has been practicing terracotta craft for more than 45 years. She is known for painting matla (pots) and paatar (flat plates) with intricate geometric patterns and designs. In her early years, she practiced this craft with her husband Daud bhai, and would manage raw materials in collaboration with her husband for making products and firing them. She was in charge of painting products and preparing the firing kiln.

Jamilabai Osmanbhai Kumbhar Jamila bai Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for 26 years. Having learnt this craft from her husband Osman bhai after marriage, she practices to paint and create patterns and designs on the matla (pots) made by him.

Abbas Daud Kumbhar Abbas Daud Kumbhar has been practicing the craft of terracotta for more than 30 years in Gundiyali. He had learnt this craft of making pots from his father at a very young age. He specialises in making various shapes of matla (pots) which are used to store water, curd, buttermilk and also used in occasional ceremonies of birth and death. He has been actively taking part in local fairs and sells his products in the local market of Mandvi and nearby towns like Bhuj, Bidada and Mundra and also in Mumbai, Maharashtra. He is married to Sharifa bai and has two sons.

Osman Daud Kumbhar Osman Daud Kumbhar learnt the craft from his elder brother and father, and has been practising for more than 26 years.

In his young days, he started helping them to make pots after his school hours. He specialises in making various types of matla (pots) to store water, curd and buttermilk. His pots are sold across Gujarat, especially Porbandar. Every monsoon, he takes a break from pottery and builds RCC roofs for buildings.

He is married to Jamila bai, who also learnt the craft from him.

Sarifabai Abbas Kumbhar Sharifa bai Kumbhar learnt terracotta craft from her motherin-law after she got married to Abbas Kumbhar. Initially, she would help her in making clay and drying products. Later when she learnt the techniques of painting products, she actively took charge of painting pots made by Abbas bhai and can paint around 45 to 50 pots in a day using dry date sticks and natural paint. She has been collaboratively managing the raw materials for firing and packaging of products with Abbas bhai and is in charge of painting matla (pots) made by him.

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Abdulsatar Abbas Kumbhar Abdul Satar bhai is the son of Abbas bhai Kumbhar, who has been practicing pottery traditionally since childhood. He makes matkas (pots), and gullaks (money banks).

Anvar Alimamad Kumbhar Anvar Kumbhar is the elder son of Sherbanu ben and Ali Mamad Kumbhar. He has learnt this craft from his father and has been practising it since 15 years. He makes contemporary products like wind chimes, bird feeders and artefacts. His interest lies in exploring forms out of terracotta and hence he has been making lamps of different shapes. He carves the surface of lamps with various patterns to play with light and shadows. Anvar Kumbhar had developed traditional board games like sinh bakri (lion and goat) and bharat kakdi (nine men’s morris) out of terracotta. He also manages product selling in the family and travels across India by taking part in exhibitions, national and local fairs. He is married to Ruksana ben and has a three year old son, Imran.

Yasararfat Alimamad Kumbhar Yasararfat Kumbhar, a student of psychology, has been practicing terracotta craft since 5 years. He learnt this craft from his father Ali Mamad Kumbhar and his elder brother Anvar Kumbhar. After his college hours, he helps his father in making earthen glasses and his elder brother in making bird feeders. Apart from pottery, Yassar is interested in photography and videography. He actively handles the social media accounts of his family.

Sherbanu Alimamad Kumbhar Sherbanu ben Kumbhar got introduced to the terracotta craft after her marriage to Ali Mamad Kumbhar, and has been practicing the craft for around 28 years. She assisted her mother-in-law in early days after her marriage to learn the craft when Ali Mamad Kumbhar travelled to the Middle Eastern countries. She manages the raw materials and is actively involved in craft processes like preparation of clay, painting and polishing products and firing them. Sherbanuben and Ali Mamad Kumbhar have two sons, Anvar and Yasararfat, and a grandson Imran.

Alimamad Daud Kumbhar Alimamad Daud Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for more than 30 years. He specialises in making terracotta bottles and miniature pots apart from making vessels and pots. During his early years, his visit to the Middle Eastern countries provided him with exposure to bring about innovation in his pottery craft which he resumed upon his return. Ever since he has been working full time as a craftsperson in Gundiyali. Interested in exploring terracotta and ceramics around the country, Alimamad bhai has taken part and sold products in many exhibitions and national fairs.

He is married to Sherbanu ben and has two sons Anvar and Yasararfat and a grandson, Imran.

Suleman Daud Kumbhar Suleman Daud Kumbhar has been practising the terracotta craft for more than 35 years. Suleman bhai learnt this craft from his grandfather and currently makes matla (pots) in various forms and sizes to store water. At the age of five, he used to accompany his grandfather to the clay excavation areas, and would often take tools from him and tap the pot.

He is known for his decision making skills and has been a former sarpanch of the village. Presently, Suleman bhai being a senior master craftsperson advises most of the young craftspeople in the community.

Ruksana Anvar Kumbhar Ruksana Anvar Kumbhar is married to Anvar Kumbhar. She has been practicing pottery since childhood, helping her mother in painting pots and artefacts. She is also a mother to her son, Imran.

Late Jillubai Suleman Kumbhar Late Jillu bai, one of the most experienced women, practiced terracotta craft for more than 40 years in Gundiyali. She would paint 75 to 80 pots a day using natural colors and dried date stick brushes. With the curiosity of learning the craft, as a young girl, Jillu bai would sit near her grandmother and see her painting pots with different patterns for hours. Her grandmother would then give her a broken pot to paint on.

At a very young age, Jillu bai became a helping hand to her father’s family, and after her marriage with Suleman bhai, she managed the raw materials for clay making and firing process along with painting pots, managing household chores and 65 raising kids.

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Salim Suleman Kumbhar Salim Kumbhar, having learnt terracotta craft from his father Suleman bhai, has been practicing it for more than 26 years.

Having exposure to educational institutions through attending pottery workshops, Salim bhai wishes to send his children to pursue further studies in clay and ceramics. He makes matla (pots) for storing water, buttermilk, curd and artefacts like wall plates. During his free time he makes lamps and explores various geometric carvings to create patterns through light.

Alimamad Osman Kumbhar Alimamad Osman Kumbhar started practicing terracotta craft at the age of 12. He accompanied his grandfather while making matla (pots) and learnt the craft from him. After a few years, when he learnt the craft, he started practicing it full time and has been making various kinds of pots for storing water. He is married to Sakina bai.

Jamilaben Salim Kumbhar Born to a potter herself, Jamila ben grew up helping her mother in preparing the clay dough for her father to make pots. She has been practicing terracotta craft in Gundiyali for 6 years. She was well versed with the clay making process before her marriage with Salim bhai. With household chores and managing to raise her three children, Jamila ben paints pots and wall plates in collaboration with her husband. She learnt painting from her mother-in-law, the late Jillu bai.

Sakinabai Alimamad Kumbhar Sakina bai has been practising terracotta craft for around 20 years in Gundiyali. After her marriage, she learnt this craft from her mother-in-law by helping her with clay making and drying products along with managing household chores. After she mastered the craft skills, she has been practicing it full time with her husband. She paints on the pots made by him and helps him with the firing process.

Jalabai Osman Kumbhar Jala bai Kumbhar, one of the oldest craftswomen in the community, had learnt the terracotta craft from her motherin-law after she got married to Osman bhai Kumbhar. It has been more than 45 years of her practicing this craft. In her early days, she would paint around 80 to 90 pots made by her husband and would also look after the clay making process and manage raw materials for firing the kiln. Presently, she makes clay toys and figurines.

Suleman Osman Kumbhar Suleman Osman Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft in Gundiyali for more than 26 years. He has learnt this craft from his grandfather. He is known for making matla (pots) for storing water. He is married to Jenabai in collaboration with whom he practices the craft full time.

Abubukhar Osman Kumbhar Abubukhar has been practising terracotta craft for more than 26 years. Having learnt this craft from his grandfather, he specialises in making matla (pots) of various sizes used for storing water or buttermilk. His pots are sold in and around Kutch and Maharashtra. In his leisure time, he makes small clay toys for children to play.

Jenabai Suleman Kumbhar Jena bai Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft along with her husband, Suleman bhai Kumbhar for 10 years.

Having learnt this craft from her mother-in-law after her marriage, she paints pots made by Suleman bhai. She is also learning to make toys and figurines out of clay.

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Ismail Mamad Kumbhar Ismail Mamad Kumbhar at a very young age, learnt terracotta craft from his father and helped him with making products like matla (pots). He has specialised in making pots and has also passed his knowledge of traditional craft to his sons. He has been practicing terracotta craft in Gundiyali for more than 30 years. He is married to Khatu bai Kumbhar and has two sons and a grandson.

Ibrahim Ismail Kumbhar Ibrahim Kumbhar, the elder son of Ismail Kumbhar and Khatu bai, has been practicing terracotta craft for 15 years. He learnt the craft from his father, and specialises in making matla (pots) that are used to store water. He also manages the sales of the products in the family.

Salim Ismail Kumbhar Salim Kumbhar, younger son of Ismail Kumbhar and Khatu bai has learnt this craft from his father. He is known for making big matla (pots). He has been participating actively in the local fairs, training programmes, design workshops and likes to broaden his perspective of traditional crafts in the contemporary world. His products are sold in local markets of Mandvi, Bhuj and in villages in and around Kutch and also in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Salma Ibrahim Kumbhar Salma Kumbhar was born in a potter’s family, and was well versed with the process of terracotta from a young age.

Before her marriage, she would help her parents with making clay and drying products. After she got married to Ibrahim Kumbhar, she started learning to paint water pots using different patterns and designs from her mother-in-law, Khatu bai.

Khatubai Ismail Kumbhar Khatu bai, after her marriage to Ismail bhai Kumbhar, learnt this craft from her mother-in-law. For more than 26 years, she has been collaboratively working full time with Ismail bhai.

She is incharge of painting matla (pots) made by Ismail bhai and her sons with different patterns and designs. She also manages raw materials for products, and takes care of clay preparation. She believes in passing on the craft knowledge and is also teaching the craft to her daughters-in-law.

Iliyas Nurmamad Kumbhar Iliyas Kumbhar has been practicing the terracotta craft for more than 26 years. He specializes in making various kinds of pots for storing water, milk and buttermilk and has learnt this craft from his father.

Rukhshana Salim Kumbhar Rukhshana Kumbhar learnt the traditional techniques of terracotta from her mother-in-law after her marriage with Salim Kumbhar. She has been practicing for 2 years and is now learning to paint pots with different patterns and designs.

She also actively participates in the clay making process with her mother-in-law to understand the consistency for making clay lumps.

Satar Iliyas Kumbhar Satar Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for around 16 years in Gundiyali. He has learnt this craft from his father. He has been managing the market and sales of the products made by him and his father, and has been actively participating in local trade fairs to widen the market reach.

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Havabai Iliyas Kumbhar Havabai Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for more than 26 years in Gundiyali with her husband Iliyas bhai Kumbhar. After her marriage, she learnt the craft on her own by observing family members practicing the craft and since then, she has been practicing it full time. She paints the pots made by her husband and her son, and also teaches her daughter-in-law about the craft.

Razak Iliyas Kumbhar Razak Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for 11 years in Gundiyali. Having learnt this craft from his father, he has specialised in making various sizes of pots to store water, milk and buttermilk.

Hamidabai Satar Kumbhar Hamida bai Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for a few years in Gundiyali. After her marriage with Satar Kumbhar, she has been learning this craft from her mother-inlaw and has been helping her with painting matla (pots).

Roshanbanu Razak Kumbhar Roshanbanu Kumbhar is a fresher to the terracotta craft.

She has been learning it from her husband and other family members. She has been practicing it for 2 years and is involved in craft processes like sorting raw materials for firing, making clay lumps for products, drying and firing products.

Amad Mamad Kumbhar Amad Mamad Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft for 26 to 28 years. He is known for making visi (money banks) and gamla (flower pots). Having learnt this craft by watching his grandfather and father, Amad bhai used to practice pottery on wheels after his school hours. With a keen interest in food, Amad bhai develops various kinds of hotplates for biryani with a mechanism that keeps the biryani hot for a longer time by adding hot water in it. He actively participates in the local fairs and sells his products in local and national markets. He is married to Sarifa bai and has three children, Jusab, Ashif and Marjina.

Ashif Amad Kumbhar Ashif Kumbhar, younger son of Amad Kumbhar and Sharifa bai, has been learning pottery from his father and helps him make visi (money banks). He has been practising it for 2 years.

Being a secondary school student, he takes part in pottery competitions and tries to promote the traditional craft in his annual functions.

Sarifabai Amad Kumbhar Sarifa bai learnt terracotta craft after her marriage to Amad bhai from her mother-in-law. She has been practicing terracotta craft for around 20 years in Gundiyali. She makes and paints paatar (flat plate) which are used to knead flour into dough and is sold across Kutch. She also manages the clay making process, painting and selling products locally, along with managing household chores. She is a mother of two sons, Jusab, Ashif and a daughter, Marjina.

Marjina Amad Kumbhar Marjina Kumbhar, daughter of Amad Kumbhar and Sharifa bai, has been learning and practicing the terracotta craft for two years from her mother and grandmother. She assists with making clay or paints paatar (flat plate). She likes to explore and makes human and animal figurines from clay.

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Jusab Amad Kumbhar Jusab Kumbhar, elder son of Amad Kumbhar and Sharifa bai, has learnt this craft from his father, and currently makes visi (money banks). He pursued a course in Electronics from ITC, Mandvi which developed his interest to integrate technology with terracotta and has learnt to make terracotta water cooler. Being an enthusiast about music and plants, Jusab uses his skills to make musical instruments and contemporary planters. He is married to Saherabanu and has a daughter named Sakira.

Kasambhai Harunbhai Kumbhar The family of Kasam Harun Kumbhar is known for making various kinds of terracotta pots used for storing water, buttermilk, curd and also for ceremonial occasions like marriage and festivals. He has been practicing the pottery craft for more than 40 years and had started learning this craft from his father Harun Kumbhar at the age of 11. Since then, he is practising it full time with his wife and specialises in making matla (pots). He is married to Amina bai and has two sons, Salim and Abdul. He has also passed on his knowledge about this craft to his sons and his grandchildren, when they would sit with him while he practices.

Late Sarabai Mamadbhai Kumbhar Sara bai, mother of Amad Kumbhar, has been practicing terracotta craft for more than 40 years. She is one of the senior-most craftswomen in Gundiyali. Being married to a potter, Sarabai was new to this craft and learnt it by herself.

Later, she helped her mother-in-law with craft processes like making clay for the products and preparing the firing kiln.

After the death of her husband, she decided to take forward the craft and started to make paatar (flat plate). She is known for decorating these plates with various geometric patterns using natural colours and dried date sticks.

Salimbhai Kasambhai Kumbhar Salim Kumbhar has been practising terracotta for more than 16 years in Gundiyali. He has learnt this craft from his father Kasam bhai. With his interest in music, he would match the beating of his pots in the rhythms of ghazals and old songs.

Knowing the importance of his skills and traditional craft, he has made miniature tools for his son to learn the craft. He has been taking parts in local fairs and exhibitions. Apart from music and pottery, he has been practising farming.

Hanifabai Salimbhai Kumbhar Having been born in a potter’s family, Hanifa Kumbhar has been practising terracotta craft for 20 years. She learnt this craft from her mother at a young age and would help with craft processes like cleaning and making clay, paint products and prepare firing kilns. After her marriage to Salim Kumbhar, she has been managing raw materials for products and firing kilns and painting and packaging products made by him. She is a mother to three children.

Maliben Harun Kumbhar Maliben, younger sister of Kasam bhai, has been assisting Amina bai in various craft processes for more than 20 years.

She helps her in sieving clay, making lumps, drying products and stacking the fired products in storage.

Aminaben Kasam Kumbhar Amina bai Kumbhar has been one of the oldest and experienced craftswomen in the terracotta craft cluster of Gundiyali. She has been practising terracotta craft for more than 40 years. She learnt it from her mother-in-law while carrying out different craft processes like getting raw materials from clay excavation areas, making clay lumps, drying products and preparing film for firing products with her.

Later, she started painting the pots made by her husband with different patterns and designs using natural colours and dry date sticks. She also makes paatar (flat plates) which is used to make flour dough and sells it to the local market of Mandvi and Bhuj. Sometimes, while painting pots, she narrates stories and shares her wisdom with her grandkids.

Bhakhar Harunbhai Kumbhar Bhakhar Harun Kumbhar, younger brother of Kasam Kumbhar, has been practicing terracotta craft for 21 years. He has been performing craft processes like drying products, collecting them from firing kilns and arranging them in storage space.

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Yakub Harunbhai Kumbhar Yakub Harun Kumbhar is one of the most experienced craftspeople of the terracotta craft cluster of Gundiyali. He has been practicing this craft for more than 45 years. He inherited this craft at a very young age from her father and grandfather.

He would practice each and every craft process with them.

After his marriage to Fatma ben, he started to practice terracotta craft on his own with her, and sold his products. He has been seeing the craft community of Gundiyali flourishing each day and is one of the important decision makers of the community. With his interest in design innovation and storytelling, he can be seen exploring techniques to make products while sharing his experiences to his grandkids and other children of the community. He is a father to three sons and two daughters.

Fatma ben Kumbhar One of the most experienced and master craftswomen in the craft community of Gundiyali has been practicing pottery craft for more than 38 years in Gundiyali. Having born and brought in Bhujpar in a farmer’s family, Fatma ben was new to the craft at the time of her marriage with Yakub bhai Kumbhar.

With a curiosity to learn the craft, Fatmaben learnt it from her mother-in-law. Later as the family expanded and they had children, both of them started practicing together. She is one of a few women of Gundiyali who has worked on wheels and made products. She has been managing the raw materials, firing and painting products. With pottery, she also practices stitching and bandhani (tie and dye) craft and teaches her daughters-in-law and grandkids about it.

Husen Kumbhar Husen Kumbhar, younger son of Yakub bhai Kumbhar and Fatma ben, learnt this craft from his father. In his twenties, Husen bhai travelled to Arab countries and across India while practicing pottery part time and exploring himself while travelling. After returning back to Gundiyali, he has been managing the market and sales of the products of his family and helping them with the craft. He has been taking part in exhibitions and local fairs with his elder brother, Siddhik bhai Kumbhar.

Jamila Kumbhar Jamila Kumbhar has been practicing terracotta craft collaboratively with her entire family for 10 years. She learnt this craft from her mother-in-law after her marriage to Husen bhai Kumbhar. A mother to three children, Jamila ben, with her sister and mother-in-law manages the raw material, painting and firing the in the kiln, packaging and storing the products. She actively works hands on by attaching handles to the tea cups or jugs made by her brother-in-law and fatherin-law.

Sidhik Yakub Kumbhar Siddhik Kumbhar, elder son of Yakub bhai Kumbhar and Fatma ben, has been practising terracotta craft for more than 15 years in Gundiyali. He has learnt this craft from his father. He started learning this craft at a young age and now practices full time with his family. He has specialised in making divo (earthen lamps), garbo (small pot with holes used in the festival of navratri to carry and dance) phirni (shallow cups) for seviyan, tea cups, water jugs. With his interest in sculpting, he has been making terracotta figurines and figures, animals and sculptures in his free time depicting the culture of Kutch. He actively takes part in local and national fairs and exhibitions and has been dealing with orders from across Gujarat and Maharashtra. He also teaches pottery to the young boys in the community.

Kulsum Sidhik Kumbhar Kulsum ben has learnt terracotta craft from her motherin-law after her marriage with Siddhik bhai Kumbhar. She would collaboratively work with Siddhik Kumbhar in sculpting terracotta figures and figurines. She has been managing raw materials for products, painting and firing the products and packaging them for dispatching. Being a mother to three children, Kulsum ben manages household chores and pottery together with the help of her mother-in-law and her sister.

Amana Ibrahim Kumbhar After her marriage to Ibrahim bhai Kumbhar, Amana Kumbhar learnt terracotta craft on her own by observing the family members practising it. Since then, she has been practicing it full time. For more than 26 years she has been painting the products made by her husband with various patterns, natural colours and dried stick brush.

Ibrahim Abdulabhai Kumbhar Ibrahim Abdula Kumbhar has been practicing pottery terracotta craft for more than 26 years in Gundiyali. Having learnt this craft from his friend Yakub bhai Kumbhar, he has been making products and selling them in Mandvi market and nearby villages.

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One-on-one conversations with the craftspeople for narratives

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Craft practices are at the center of the experience, acting as a catalyst to spark conversations about culture, society, community, festivals, faith, food, rituals, philosophy, lifestyle and livelihood. Narratives allow building associations with the community.

After initiating a dialogue with the people at Gundiyali, a systematic oral history documentation was carried out that included information about the culture, society, community, festivals, faith, food, rituals, philosophy, and livelihood. Immersive understanding of Gundiyali and its larger community aided in curating the interventions and experiences with the community. It also helped for creating a holistic plan of action created in collaboration with the community, bringing forth feasible possibilities.

The narratives played an important role for capacity building in the later phase for interactive activities further.

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Capturing local context within the community while talking to master craftspeople

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Objectives We delved into different aspects of the community life in a systematic way engaging in organically emerging conversations. The essence of Gundiyali was captured, in an attempt to: Build deep and strong associations with the craft community to facilitate a better collaboration and aid capacity building Produce resource material for all the stakeholders, activities and for dissemination Co-create conversations and experiences with the community through their lens

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Caption(s): 1. Interaction with Yakub Kumbhar 2. Interaction with Suleman Kumbhar 3. Interaction with Jamila Kumbhar 4. Team interacting with Alimamd Kumbhar and Anwar Kumbhar

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Process Mapping oral narratives and stories from the community and locals The mapping process involved rigorous documentation of the physical context, social structure, cultural knowledge, the craft practice and the community. There were stories from master craftspeople about how the craft was practiced earlier, their lifestyles in the past and the present, what they hope for the future, the stories of their ancestors, social structure and decision making practices within the family.

The oral narratives also gave a glimpse into folklores, traditions, struggles of the community from different lenses - the master craftspeople, the men, women, children and the older members of the community. There were nuanced stories about some of the objects that were made, how they came into being, where the idea originated from and how it was relevant in use at

the time. Several contextual points including different parts of the house, the village, stepwells, the partition with Pakistan and how it impacted the community - several points of historical significance also came into conversations.

Apart from the craft community in Gundiyali, the documentation of the surrounding communities, locals, narratives from the Sarpanch, and other local stakeholders were collected in a systematic process. This also emerged into identifying more touchpoints and narratives associated with those.

Here are some of the points marked:

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Anganwadi Centre Anganwadi is a type of rural child care centre in India. They were started by the Indian government in 1975 as part of the Integrated Child Development Services program to combat child hunger and malnutrition. Anganwadi means “courtyard shelter” in Indian languages. A typical Anganwadi centre provides basic health care in a village. It is a part of the Indian public health care system. Basic health care activities include contraceptive counseling and supply, nutrition education and supplementation. Located between the Zero point and Mafatnagri. It has one classroom, small kitchen and play space outside. While passing by during the day, we can hear the sounds of children playing.

Azad Chowk Near to bheed bazaar, Azad chowk is one of the important and famous spots to find various food options. Various lorries of authentic local food items can be found here. On the edge of the road of Azaad chowk, lorries of coconut water, vegetable and fruit vendors are present. The road connecting Bheed bazaar and Azaad chowk is full of lodges that serve fixed thali (meal) for lunch and dinner, electronics and garment shops. A famous authentic Gujarti food serving restaurant called Ashirwad Lodge is a must visit for any visitors of Mandvi.

Auto rickshaw Stand The auto rickshaw stand is adjacent to the Gundiyali bus stand. Most auto rickshaws that run between Mandvi to Gundiyali start from here. They are generally shared by multiple people travelling to the same destination or in the same direction, which allows each person to pay a reduced fare. The idea of shared autos are common in many parts of India. These auto rickshaws can be hired for independent use too. One can find auto rickshaws with 3 seaters and 8 seaters capacities that generally run between Mandvi to Gundiyali from early morning to the evening around 7pm.

Bakery This is the only bakery located at Gundiyali owned by Anwarbhai Tanki. He bakes various delicacies in his wood fired baking setting which is located inside a traditional house.

Anwarbhai regularly makes khari (puffed biscuit), biscuits, pastries, cakes and butter, which he also sells to some shops in the nearby villages. Anwarbhai also takes orders for special occasions. Especially on the occasion of Muharram, lamchi, a local sweet similar to naan khatai (baked biscuits) is baked for the people of Gundiyali.

Bheed Bazar Bheed bazaar is one of the markets of Mandvi where authentic gujarati food restaurants, handmade ice cream and farsan shops can be found. There would be lorries of dabeli and jalebi on the road edge. Apart from food, clothes, metalware, hardware, etc can be found here.

Boat Model Makers & Collection Museum The Mandvi ship museum exists at the end of the road along the Mandvi ship building yard and just before the Mandvi port office. It is a workshop and showcase of many miniature models of the boats and ships. The building of this museum is also inspired from the shape of the ship.

Blacksmith Workshops (Traditional Craft) These are a series of shops which are two to three generations old. They make tools used by farmers and ship builders. The craftspeople also make anchors used in the ships till date. These shops seem to continue operations as part of the old Mandvi town which benefited from the rich ship building industry of Mandvi.As the workshop is under a roof having minimum space, one can view the beating of metal tools and anchors happening along the sides of the street. Entire process of making tools and anchors can be viewed by visiting these workshops. After the drastic decline of shipbuilding work at Mandvi port these are only a few old shops still left in Mandvi.

Bus Stand From the Gundiyali bus stand, one can travel to Trigadi, Nana padia, Kandagra, Navinaal and reach up to Mundra, by taking buses. At the corner is also an auto-rickshaw stand from where one can hire rickshaws to travel to Mandvi. The bus stand is an important social hub in the village. There are tea shops under large canopies of trees, where people of the village congregate and engage in conversations over a cup of chai and a game of cards or carrom. Some of the shops offer a small snack as well.

There are barber shops along the street where the men of the village go for their haircuts. The bus stand becomes a commercial hub as well with the presence of fabrication shops, fuel shops and mechanic repair shops. There is also a public toilet in the vicinity. Occasionally, one can see camel carts and animal herds passing by through the bus stand.

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Cement block making workshop While walking down from the Bus stand to Zero Point, there are multiple workshops that make cement blocks. Spread around an open field these blocks are made with human chains, and many people stand in a sequence to keep the production flow smooth. This work requires many people’s engagement and is very tiring, and so it is only active in the early morning. These blocks are cheap in cost and are mostly used in all contemporary constructions in the Gundiyali village and around the rural areas around Gundiyali. In the past people used mud blocks in Gundiyali, which kept the house temperature comfortable, however it demands continuous maintenance. Emergence of the cement block making practice shows transformation of practice and the changing needs of the community. Now people prefer to use materials which are cheap, and easily available supporting fast construction which makes cement blocks a perfect choice for them.

Cluster of traditional houses Gundiyali was home to many communities which stayed here for the trading opportunities which were present in earlier days until the Mandvi port was thriving. The economic opportunities around Mandvi were not just national but international connected with Pakistan, Gulf countries and Africa. Due to many reasons like, the non-functioning of Mandvi Port, 1947 partition, Bhuj earthquake in 2001, and finding better economic opportunities in other places outside Kutch, various communities from Gundiyali continued to migrate away. Such a migration affected the life at Gundiyali, as a result even today many houses are not in use and unoccupied.

Clay excavation site Clay excavation site is located in Modhwa Rann, around 3km from Gundiyali. This is the location from where the Kumbhar Community of Gundiyali has been sourcing clay since generations.In the past due to restriction of local princes the community used to source clay at night. However later they had got the land reserved for themselves. Since this was verbal communication Kumbhars formally still did not own the land. A few years ago, the industrialists in the nearer site had occupied this land and after a lot of struggle by the Kumbhars community, they got their land formerly reserved for the potter’s community. Now it is protected and dedicated for the excavation of clay for uninterrupted practice of craft by the Government of Gujarat. Kumbhars commute here regularly to source clay and in nearby areas to collect dry wood for firing the kilns.

Craft space 1 Fakirmamadbhai’s house is the last house in Gundiyali towards the Mafatnagri road which then goes parallel to the sea coast till Mandvi town. Fakrimamad bhai’s house space has two sheds which are dedicated for doing craft work. There are two kilns; one is for smaller products and the other is for making bigger products especially matla (pots).

Fakirmamadbhai’s family produces craft products in bulk and stores them so they can sell it at various opportunities. This practice keeps their house space generally full of the craft products. From his terrace, one gets a panoramic view of wild forests followed by Arabian sea.

Craft Space 2 This craft space belongs to a family where women make terracotta flat plates, locally known as paatar. The open area in front of their house is where the women make the plates, Their tools and the small quantity of clay products are found around the house at one side. At another end, scrap materials are found which are collected from across the village and sent for recycling by Shakina bai’s son.

Craft Space 4 Esmail Jusab Kumbhar’s house is one of the first houses in Mafatnagri. It is located close to the primary school of the village. At the entrance to his house, there is a large open space with a kiln in a corner. Raw materials and baked products are stored under a shed and dried pots in the sun.

Esmail bhai practices crafts in the semi-open verandah space leading to his living room.

Craft Space 3 Abdulkarim bhai’s house is behind the primary school in Mafatnagri. All around their house one can find multiple craft products, raw materials, tools and constant flow of work in progress. Interestingly the setting of craft work completely takes in the open space and space outside his house which makes it difficult to distinguish his house boundary. In the compound, a rectangular kiln is made for firing products by him and his wife. The edge of the boundary wall is lined by grass bushes. Abdulkarim bhai has a big open space to work outside his house. His younger brother Alimamad Sidik also works with him to learn the craft.

Craft Space 5 This house belongs to Hussain Isabhai. Inside the premise of their house they have two sheds under which the pottery wheels are set up. The space behind the house is used for storing the products. The male members of the family, Husain Isa bhai and his son Osman Husen bhai make various sizes of pots. Aminabai Osman and Aminabai Husen not just paint the pots but also make paatar (flat plate) of various sizes.

Stacks of baked and painted products can be seen around their house.

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Craft Space 6-7 At the entrance of Husen bhai Tank’s house, there is a circular firing kiln made by him which he uses to fire earthen lamps.

Rest of the open space is used to keep raw materials like clay and dry sticks used for firing. Near the kiln, clay is spread on the ground to retain the extra moisture and crush it into finer pieces using a thrash bat. Along with the raw materials, earthen lamps made by the father and son can be seen placed on the ground for drying. His house has a L-shaped semi-open verandah, which is used for practicing craft processes like throwing and painting. The finished products are stored inside the house in one of the rooms which are later dispatched for respective deliveries.

Craft Space 9 Salemamadbhai’s house and craft workshop is in the Maska Kumbharwada which is near to Mandvi. There is a big open space between two houses which are living areas. A shed is made around these houses which is used for practicing craft. Behind these houses there is a kiln for firing the pots.

Salemamadbhai and his wife Shakinaben are generally found working from under the shed. Salemamadbhai experiments and makes objects of various shapes and sizes which are spread around his workspace. The open space in front of their houses is used to dry the craft products.

Craft Space 8 Alimamad Sidikbhai practices terracotta craft at his elder brother Abdulkarim bhai’s house. So, in his house he doesn’t have his own setup for practicing craft. He collects and sells scrap materials for reuse or recycling. Many used objects can be seen that have been purchased by him in the open space of his house.

Craft Space 10 While entering Amad bhai’s house, a triangular kiln can be spotted right near the entrance. The narrow entrance leads to an open area of which a side is the living space, one side is used for practicing pottery and storing products whereas, on the opposite side, cattle, donkey and goats reside. In the workshop space Amad bhai can be seen making matla (pot) most of the time. Amad bhai collects firewood from the nearby forest on a regular basis and stores it near the kiln for ease of using it while firing products.

Craft Space 11 Osmanbhai’s house has an old wooden entrance which opens in a courtyard which is in front of their house. Next to his house he has a semi open space where Osmanbhai has arranged his potter’s wheel. During monsoon, he takes a break from pottery craft and works as a contractor for making RCC roof structures. All his materials like bamboo and metal frames etc are also kept in the same open space along with the craft products, which is generally used only in one season.

Osmanbhai and Jamilaben can be found working together in making matla in the space next to their house. Osmanbhai works on the wheel and shapes pots through beating technique and Jamilaben paints them with traditional patterns. These matla are then stored in the storage room near their work area.

Craft Space 12-13 This craft space contains three residences and work areas organised around a large common courtyard.

Three brothers, Ali Mamad Daud Kumbhar, Abbas Daud Kumbhar and the late Abdullah Daud Kumbhar’s families live and work here. The space is organised in such a way that the front area of each individual residence is used for craft related activities.

Alibhai can be seen practicing pottery in a semi-open space raised on a plinth, near to the kitchen. This space has direct access to the firing kiln at the backside of the house, enabling easy movement of products from workspace to the firing kiln. This kiln is shared with Suleman Daud Kumbhar, Abbas Daud Kumbhar and Osman Daud Kumbhar. Sherbanu ben uses the space in front of the house to paint the pots.

Abbas bhai, while making matla, sits in the otla of his residence. In front of his residential space, there’s a place where he generally stores the pots that are made by him and his son.

Since the late Abdullah Daud Kumbhar’s sons chose to do construction work and tailoring work, the pottery space is no longer used. Instead, a small space of the house has been dedicated to store and display Abdullahbhai’s tools and craft products.

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Craft Space 14 Suleman bhai’s house has three semi-open spaces which are used for practicing pottery. One is right at the entrance, which is an old structure with a simple metal roof. It is used

by Suleman bhai for beating pots. Following this there is an open space, where raw materials are kept, clay is prepared, products are dried and two electric wheels are kept, one for Suleman bhai and the other for his son, Salim bhai.

Suleman bhai is a former sarpanch of Gundiyali and senior most craftsperson in the community so he also regularly visits houses of other craftspeople and advises young people practicing craft.

The third semi-open metal roof structure, in front of the open space is used by Salim bhai to make matla (pots) of various shapes and sizes. Other than pots, he also makes wall pieces and paints them with minute geometrical designs, of which some are installed in the living room of his house.

The house has a semi-open otla where Late Jilubai used to paint pots using natural colors and dried date sticks as brush.

The open space in the centre of the house is generally used for making clay and drying pots.

Sometimes, the pots are dried on the terrace when the space is full.

The pots are fired in the kiln made across the street, outside Alimamad bhai’s house which is shared by Abbas bhai, Alimamad bhai Osman bhai and Suleman bhai’s family. Fired pots are stored in the open space of the Kumbhar masjid by the family.

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Craft Space 15-16-17 Three brothers Alimamad Osman, Abubakhar Osman and Suleman Osman share this space in front of their three houses. Near to each house each family has their own small otla where they sit and make the pots. The common space has a triangular kiln which is shared by all three brothers. In this shared space, stock of raw material and craft products are kept for drying and after baking products are kept in front of their house before they are sold.

One can have a glimpse of all the processes of terracotta craft here, since most of the time the work done by the brothers is at different stages. The space in front of the house allows families to connect, children to play and continuation of the craft practice.

Craft Space 18 Ismail bhai’s kiln and workshop are on either side of the Kumbhar masjid compound. In their craft working space we can spot entire families working on making pots. Male members are immersed into shaping the pots and women are engrossed in painting them using dried date stick brushes and natural colors. Their workshop is in a narrow but long space.

Their kiln is visible publicly as it is on one of the walkways of the village.Most of the time while passing from Kumbhar masjid we can find their family either setting up the kiln or taking the products out after baking. The firewood collected from a nearby forest is stored near the kiln for immediate firing of products.In this space Salimbhai and Ibrahim bhai work on their potters’ wheels as they learnt from their father Ismail bhai. Rukhsanaben and Salmaben are generally found to be painting floral motifs on the matla as they learnt from their mother in law, Khatubai.

Craft Space 19 Illiyas Nurmamad bhai’s space is exactly next to the Kumbhar masjid. They have a kiln inside their house which is next to the entrance. With a big open space in front there are two living spaces made for the family. The open space is used to dry pots and store them after baking. Illiyas Nurmamadbhai mostly makes matla sitting at the otla of one of the houses.

Havabai also practices craft and in the space next to where Illiyas bhai sits, she paints pots and helps him during the firing process. Satarbhai is son of Ilyas Bhai. He owns a tempo and manages the sales of the products made by his family. His tempo is parked in the open space of the house.

Craft Space 21 Amad Kumbhar’s house is last in the Kumbhar Masjid lane.

All members of the family are engaged in practicing craft. The entrance of the house is in a narrow open space, which leads to a semi-open verandah, followed by living areas. This semiopen verandah is used for cooking and practicing terracotta craft by Sarifaben and Sara bai. During the winters, they sit in the open spaces to make and paint paatar (flat plates), to catch a bit of the sun. Products like visi (money bank), paatar, gamla (flower pots) can be seen arranged on the ground for drying under the sun by Sarifa ben or Marjina. There is another living space which was built recently, where Amad bhai, Jusab and Asif work on their wheels. The open space expands gradually and has a kiln where products are fired.

Raw materials for clay and firing are kept in this open space organically. Near the firing kiln, a room is made to store fired products. The front yard of this house is sometimes full with paatar kept for drying.

Craft Space 20 Rajak Illiyas Kumbhar lives next door to his father, Illiyasbhai Kumbhar. His house and craft work space face each other separated by an open space, where he stores his fired pots.

Craft Space 22 Kasambhai’s house is near Sumera masjid. He has a big open space for practicing pottery, storage for products and raw materials and a kiln for firing. A route for villagers to cross the village passes from the middle of his open space.

Family spends most of their time in the craft space performing various craft processes at a time. Salimbhai and Kasambhai are usually seen engaged in making matla (pots) in their semi-open working space or working with the setup of a kiln.

Aminaben and Hanifaben paint matla (pots) and stack them for sun drying in open space, which is in front of their semiopen working space. The open space around their house attracts a lot of children from the village. A neem tree stands upright near the triangular kiln, where the family has made a swing for children of the village. A lot of times, Aminaben sits near the swing and makes paatar (flat plate), where children 89 swing, play and observe the making of paatar.

Craft Space 23-24 Yakubbhai’s house is near the Sumera Masjid. Like most houses in the village, each of the domestic spaces are organised around a large open space. A few years ago, the craft spaces were framed by the large neem where Yakubbhai and his son Husenbhai sat under it while using the wheel. The semi-open spaces are where the women of the family sit and paint the craft products. With the kitchen located facing the work space under the neem tree, the open space in between, transformed into an open cooking space and the dining space. The domestic and craft spaces almost were fluidly interchanging.

In 2018 when Yakubbhai wanted to make some renovations, DICRC and Manthan collaborated with him to reorganise some of the spaces in their house. The craft spaces were segregated under a new semi-open structure where enough space was provided for all the craft activities including storage of raw materials. This created enough space for the domestic activities to be organised in a cluster. This has over time increased the efficiency of the craft practice. The structure was built by the community and the women of the family decorated the spaces with lipan kaam (mud plastering) and painted patterns on the walls.

Yakubbhai’s elder son, Sidhik Kumbhar lives next door with his living spaces separated with a partition wall for privacy.

He practices the craft with his father and brother in the newly created work space. In a barren land opposite the house, is a traditional pit firing kiln and a newly built brick kiln that the family use for firing their products.. They make products like phirni (shallow glasses for serving seviyan) and kodiya (earthen lamp) regularly. They also make cups, saucers, pots and artefacts as per orders .

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Craft Space 25 Ibrahim Abdullah bhai works on pottery from his house space and he fires his terracotta products by sharing a kiln with Illiyas bhai.

Darbar Community Hall This is a community hall in the centre of Gundiyali village, next to the Kumbhar faliyu. The Darbar community seems to be the oldest residing at Gundiyali and the one praying to Gundiya Mata for many generations. Many people from this community are farmers by occupation. This community hall is used by Darbars for various social, cultural and religious events of their community members. However this community hall is also used by other communities of Gundiyali for organising occasions like marriage, religious ceremonies, etc.

It also becomes a space that allows different communities to congregate and be a part of each other’s ceremonies.

Drabudi Temple and Beach Dhrabudi temple is a religious site that attracts many pilgrims.

It is located near the Dhrabudi beach coast. There is a small artificially made lake which stores water outside the temple premise. Every year many local tourists from Gujarat visit this temple as it is an important pilgrimage site.

Drishti Crafts Drishti crafts is a local textile craft organisation. They have a store where they sell block printed fabrics, garments, bags and accessories. Behind the craft store there is a workshop where the craft production takes place. Drishti crafts involves the local craftspeople from Kutch and women groups in Mandvi for making their products. It is situated on the road connecting Mandvi and Gundiyali.

Drinking Water point for Animals Reverence for water is high in arid regions like Kutch. The region is also home to many pastoral communities. Pastoral communities of Kutch are known for their traditional attire and walking around the landscapes of Kutch with their herd of cattle and animals which includes cows, buffaloes, goats, sheeps, bulls and sometimes camels.

As a result, it is common to find many spots where we can find kunds i.e. water bodies in public spaces where animals can drink water. This is one such water point in Gundiyali, where water is made available for groups of cattle or camels passing by. These are built by the Grampanchayat or sometimes by community members nearer to the place where water can be regularly and easily filled in these ponds so that no animal passing by goes thirsty.

Entrance to Gundiyali One can reach Gundiyali after a 7km journey from Mandvi.

Once known with the phrase in Kutchi language “Char sheher ne paanch mu Gundiyali’’- it literally meant “after four cities, the fifth is Gundiyali”. This phrase in local language celebrated the fact that Gundiyali was such a big village that it was considered almost a town after four main cities/ towns of Kutch, i.e. Bhuj, Bhachau, Mandvi, Anjar. Gundiyali village once flourished with trade, craft and other kinds of socio- economic activities because of its close proximity to the Mandvi port, which used to be a hub for traders for India, Africa and Gulf region.Gundiyali still has people from various communities residing i.e. Darbar, Kumbhar, Sumra, Jain etc. People of Gundiyali are engaged in farming, pottery, construction work and some other people join in industrial areas and shops around Mandvi.

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Entrance to Kumbhar Faliyu In Gundiyali, a cluster of houses are identified as per the community that resides in it. These clusters are called ‘Faliyu’ in local Kutchi language. A faliyu is named after the surname of the community. Onomastic research says that most surnames in the world are mainly of five types, occupational, personal description, toponymic (from a place name), patronymic (from the name of a father or ancestor) and names signifying patronage. Kumbhar is an occupational surname and indicates that the people of this community are potters. So Kumbhar faliyu is a cluster of Kumbhar houses.

This is the entrance for Kumbhar Faliyu.

Gundiyali lake Gundiyali lake is located at the edge of the village after the bus stand road ends. The lake is seasonally filled with water.

However, there is generally a lot of weeds due to puddles of water present around the surface of the lake. It often attracts the pastoral communities passing by with their herd of sheep, cows and goats. Various kinds of birds can be spotted around Gundiyali lake in the winter months as it is close to the sea and many migratory birds pass by from here.

Gundiyali is situated in Kutch, a deserted region. People value water due to its scarcity in the region. When the first round of rains fills up the lake, Gundyali people pay respect to the lake in a unique way. A competition is organised

by Grampanchayat where the swimmers from Gundiyali village participate to find the thrown coconut in the lake. The competition takes place with the background sounds of drums and the winner receives the award.

Ground of Kumbhar Masjid At the entrance of Gundiyali from the Mandvi road, there exists an open ground, behind which one can spot the Kumbhar Masjid. This ground is owned by the Kumbhar masjid committee. Apart from Pattha peer dargah, a roofed structure is made in the ground to conduct religious functions and celebrations. It is used for special occasions like religious ceremonies, weddings, death ceremonies etc. It is used for community purposes only.

Another small open space is in front of the masjid which has a madrasa at one of its corners. It acts as a playground for the children coming in madrasa. Also, this open space is used by the potters to store their pots on minimum prices. The loading of their pots in the trucks happens on this ground. .

Gundiyamata temple The name Gundiyali is derived after the name of Gundiyamata, a goddess of the Darbar community, one of the oldest communities living in Gundiyali. In the past, the temple was located at the entrance of the Gundiyali village on the road that goes outside Gundiyali from the Bus Stand side. Behind the temple there are many small religious shrines called paliya which are traditionally created when important people from the Darbar community pass away. More than fifty such small paliya and multiple temples are present around the Gundiyamata temple. Amongst the main structures some of them are made using stone and are present for a long time.

Some community members remember stories told by their previous generation that earlier Gundiyali village was around this side. As a proof they explain that even today when this area is excavated people find fragments of old pots from underground.

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House with crafted facade While walking towards the Kumbhar-Faliyu from the bus stand, an unoccupied house with a decorated and crafted facade is located at the junction. This house has an electric tower inside its premise which is installed much later as the property remains abandoned. This house has a unique façade which gives hint into how the rich families of Gundiyali built their houses in the past. The facade of this house has wooden carved doors, stone carved elements around the door and the naliya (roof tiles), traditionally were once built by the potter’s community of Gundiyali community. Wood crafts are also practiced in other villages of the Kutch regions. Stone crafts were not specific to this region, so the patron might have invited the skilled craftsperson to Gundiyali to stay for the time they crafted these intricate work.

Jusabsha Pir Dargah A religious site, dargah located right at the Salaya beach.

From this place one gets a scenic view of the ocean and hears the sound of sea waves which adds to the contemplative feel of the site.

Jain Upashray Upashray is a space where people from the Jain community gather for prayers and religious ceremonies. This wood carved facade is of an old upashray which is currently not in use. A new Jain temple has been created nearby to this upashray. Many people at Gundiyali follow Jain religion. Most Jain families were into local trade and are till date potential customers of the potters of Gundiyali. However, most of them have been migrated to cities like Ahmedabad and Mumbai, leaving a few in the village.

Kranti Teerth museum This museum was set up in memory of Shri Shyamji Krishna Varma, who was associated with India’s freedom movement.

Kranti teerth museum is built by the Gujarat Government complex. It contains two buildings: a museum and another one called “India House”. The museum here pays tribute to freedom fighters of India and gives a glimpse of Shyamji Krishna Varma’s life and his contribution to the Indian community before freedom. There is a play space, canteen, amphitheatre, library and hangout areas to spend peaceful time with family and friends. The souvenir shop here pays tribute to craftspeople of Kutch with a mural and allows the craftspeople to sell their products to visitors of the museum.

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Kumbhar Masjid Kumbhar Masjid is located in Kumbhar Faliyu, a section of Gundiyali Village where potter families reside. The Kumbhar Masjid, also known as Bagdadi Masjid was set up near the dargah of Pattha peer. The Kumbhar Masjid in Gundiyali depicts intertwining of the craft community’s identity, religions and craft. On every Friday, the men of the community make sure to visit Kumbhar masjid to offer Namaz. Community also follows islamic calendar and some members prefer to fast during the month of Ramadan and take a month-long break from practicing crafts, which they resume after celebrating Eid. For the craftspeople being able to travel to Mecca (a spiritual journey) once in lifetime is seen as an event of great pride and blessing, rest of the families make sure they send their prayers via those who are going on pilgrimage.

Main market Mandvi The market of Mandvi town is one of the important markets for people residing in the town and nearby villages. It is a long stretch of market with various shops, selling from nails to furniture pieces. Walking towards the narrow streets of the Mandvi market, one may find various chai walas surrounded by people at any hour of the day. This market is nearer to the port and has shops selling all kinds of goods. Nowadays it is more of a local market, since the ship building activity has significantly reduced at Mandvi. The old buildings in the market with articulated wooden and stone facades remind of the local craftsmanship. The market is glorified as one of the busiest markets in the past, and is compared to the present city of Mumbai.

Lime plastered stepwell Stepwell literally means ‘wells’ with ‘steps’. Before electricity and piped water supply existed, in arid regions like Kutch stepwell structures were important as they provided an interface to access the groundwater. Water from stepwells was potable and also used for daily needs. Because of its scale and design, stepwells were not just water access points but were also spaces for social interaction.

Before ease of transportation existed, travellers from Mandvi used to go around by walking. For such a group of travellers, a place to rest, spend a night or halt in their journey was important. Gundiyali had one such facility called dharamshala.

This stepwell was possibly part of a dharamshala where travellers, while they pass or rest, could quench their thirst and store water for their journey ahead. Stepwells are found around all various routes that link to Mandvi.

Mandvi auto & taxi stand Auto rickshaws are the best way to travel around Mandvi town. Shared auto is much cheaper and for personal comfort one can hire a personal auto as well. Local auto rickshaw drivers know all the tourist sites in and around Mandvi that one may want to visit. One can also go to nearby villages named Gundiyali, Salaya, Maska from here. Taxis are for a bit of a long journey. Any taxi from the taxi stand can take you to other cities in Kutch like Bhuj, Mundra etc at affordable prices.

The taxis are generally shared by other people intending to visit the same place just like shared auto rickshaws. However hiring a personal taxi is always possible by cracking a deal with the driver.

Mandvi Beach Famous spots for tourists to spend time and enjoy the view of Arabic ocean while sitting at the beach. It is a public space with many food stalls and rides along the beach which maintains the everyday vibe of the place like a holiday. This is a place where locals of Mandvi, and travellers from the state frequently visit. Mandvi Beach is also promoted by Amitabh Bachhan in the campaign “Kutch nahi dekha to kuch nahi dekha” promoting the Rann Utsav, a festival that attracts many tourists in Kutch. A Mandvi Beach Festival is organized by the local government to promote more tourism as it adds value to the local economy during the months of November to February.

Mandvi bus stand Mandvi bus stand or Bus depo is located around the road where the ship building yard is. This is a place from where one can take a bus journey to travel around Kutch and Gujarat. The interstate bus facility runs on a number of fixed routes and schedules. The bus stand has a washroom facility.

Outside the bus station there are a number of snack shops where one can wait while the bus comes and if hungry can enjoy eating dabeli which is a famous dish in Kutch.

Mandvi Bridge Mandvi bridge was built on the Rukmavati River in 1883; it is the longest existing structure of its kind in India today. This bridge was built by Vishram Karman Chawda of Chandiya belonging to the Mistri community. (source:wikipedia) Mandvi Bridge is a place for panoramic view of the old port of Mandvi, the beach and the making of ships under construction.

Ruins of the bastion of Mandvi fort can be seen from this place. It allows people to safely pass through both sides of the Rukmavati river. The bridge also has an iconic gate which embarks the entrance to the town of Mandvi and is associated with the identity of Mandvi.

Modhva village of fisherman and beach Modhwa is a village where the people residing are predominantly from a fishing community. A beach lines the edge of seashore where many migratory birds visit. The seashore turns into bright hues of pink in the winters when the flamingos visit. The site will be a delight for birders and travellers alike.

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Multiple snacking joints Around the bus stop of Gundiyali, there are a few shops serving packaged food like wafers, fryums, cold drinks, soda, icecream and milk for travellers and local people. These shops also have a facility of indoor games like carrom board where people can play along with a cup of chai.

Open storage of matla (pots) This open space belongs to Kumbhar masjid. It is used by some of the craftspeople from the Kumbhar community for storing their fired matla, until their orders are shipped to the traders. Piles of painted pots are stacked up in rows one on top of the other here along the boundary wall of this space. In the past, this open space was also used by Kumbhars to make naliya (roof tiles) in groups. The making of naliya congregated all male and female Kumbhars in this open ground as it required collective efforts for producing them in bulk. The process included preparation of clay, making and cutting naliya, drying and finishing, painting and firing them. One of the iconic landmarks of Gundiyali, the space has a sense of visual dynamism that comes from the constant change of matla that are stored.

Noor Shah Karim Shah Dargah Diverse communities have been residing at Gundiyali from centuries. Darbar and Mulsim communities are believed to be the ones who were always at Gundiyali. Depending on the socio-economic conditions, communities have been settling at Gundiyali and moving away, too.

This is the oldest shrine found at Gundiyali. The remains of this shrine are also visible in the form of carved stones which are spread across the site. There is a mosque in the nearby area which is also believed to be as old as the shrine.

However, it has been recently renovated and a boundary wall is also created to safeguard the space of the dargah and mosque.

Post Office The Gundiyali post office is situated near the bus stand. This is a public post office located within the village limits from where letters and mails are received and posted.

Public toilet This is a public toilet unit present at one side corner of the bus stand compound.

Remains of a well During times before piped water systems became common, wells were an important water source in the everyday life of Gundiyali people. Close to the Gundiyali lake and the Noor Shah Karim Shah Dargah, there exists an entire complex of water facilities. Couple of wells, a water tank, and a water purification plant can be spotted here around an open ground.

There are also remains of probably the oldest well in Gundiyali. Only the top surface of the circular well is visible now. Since this is in close proximity to a spiritual site, the past stories of it remaining full of (drinkable) sweet water were considered to have a spiritual quality.

Raval Pir Dada Temple The Raval Pir Dada Temple site is a place where people donate toy horses in continuation of their beliefs in a folk tale. Raval Pir, an ancient folk character, used to work under the regime of Gudiyal’s darbar prince. He had powers to convert clay horses into living horses. In his stories he seems to be kind and protective of the Gundiyali Community. With his magical abilities he had saved lives. In his memory and seeking his blessing people still donate horses in the temple of Raval pir. This is a very old temple made in memory of Ravalpir. This is also a site that offers scenic panoramic views of the ocean. One can easily walk to the nearby beach.

School This is the only school with higher secondary education in Gundiyali and in nearby villages. Gundiyali is a big village and there are many students who come to these schools from the nearby villages. For such students special buses are arranged by the local Government which allows students to reach the Gundiyali bus stand around their school hours.

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Ship artisans (wood workers) Mandvi has over four centuries of tradition of ship building.

In the 18th century, the Mandvi merchants collectively owned a fleet of 400 vessels trading with East Africa, Malabar coast and the Persian Gulf. In the early 19th century, it was a major port of entry for the inland trade with Malwa, Marwar and Sindh. Mandvi could emerge as a rich town with the parallel growth of its ship building activities. These ship building industries helped the business people of Mandvi to earn huge revenues via export trading. But in later years a number of events like outbreak of diseases, famine and beginning of other better port facilities led to decline of Mandvi port.

(Source :wikipedia). However it still functions in limited capacity.

Ship building businesses hire local craftspeople, source raw wood from Malaysia with combining metal and wood work they build the entire ship from scratch. Only basic tools are used which allows economic opportunity to the local craft community. At one point of time at least three to four ships can be seen as being built at the Mandvi ship docking yard as building one ship can take about two years to complete. After the ships are ready they travel to the gulf regions. One can enter into the ships that are under construction and interact with the ship makers to learn about their process.

Stone built stepwell Stepwells in the local Kutchi language are also known as chhilad. Gundiyali used to be one of the biggest villages due to its close proximity to Mandvi. Many travellers used to pass from this village. Also, locals from various villages came to Gundiyali for local trade instead of Mandvi, which could have been a difficult journey during a time when transportation meant walking or going on a cart with the cattle.

This stepwell which exists in an open area near the bus stand is built in stone and has unique features to it, which indicates the multiple ways it was used in the past. The stepwell possibly existed in the public space and might have been used for any local or traveller. One side of the stepwell has a fleet of steps reaching to the water source. Opposite to it is the space for the rope and pulley system to directly fetch water from top. The small pools around the structure also show that the same space was also accessed by cattle and animals for drinking water.

Tea point Chai is an integral part of everyday life of people in the region.

Typically, three-four sips of tea is served in kulhad (terracotta cups) or rakabi (saucer). Tea is served at home every hour or two. When not at home, one would still have that cup of tea at a chai ka galla (tea stall). Many tea stalls dot the streetscapes of Gundiyali, of which this is one.

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Topansar Lake Chai is an integral part of everyday life of people in the region.

Typically, three-four sips of tea is served in kulhad (terracotta cups) or rakabi (saucer). Tea is served at home every hour or two. When not at home, one would still have that cup of tea at a chai ka galla (tea stall). Many tea stalls dot the streetscapes of Gundiyali, of which this is one.

Wagher Masjid Wagher Masjid belongs to the Wagher community who were mostly into fishery work and business. Wagher community is one of the oldest communities residing at Gundiyali, like Darbar community. However most members of their community during partition moved to Karachi. Many members of this community still reside at Gundiyali and they regularly visit this mosque to offer their prayers.

Vijay Vilas Palace The Vijay Vilas palace was built during reign of Maharao Shri Khengarji III, the Maharao of Kutch, as a summer resort for the use of his son & their to the kingdom, the Yuvraj Shri Vijayaraji and is therefore, named after him as Vijaya Vilas Palace. The palace is built with red sandstone. It has all the elements of Rajput architecture. The carved stone works of Jalis, Jharokas, Chhatris, Chhajas, murals and many other artistic stone carvings, colored glass work on windows and door panels all have been done by the architect and craftsman from places like Jaipur, Rajasthan, Bengal and Saurashtra, and local Kutchi artisan community, the Mistris of Kutch and Suthars. The mixture and mingling of architect and style of different regions of India, as such, can be distinctly seen in design & architecture of the Vijaya Vilas Palace.

Water point This is a water facility setup privately by a resident of Gundiyali. It is located between the bus stand and the zero point. Gundiyali villagers have an option to buy RO filtered water at this point. Many villagers fill water from here in the matka (earthen pot) or in the plastic cans from the taps set up outside. One can fill water in a bottle or a bigger container at affordable rates.

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Zero Point Zero Point is a shopping and food junction for the people of Gundiyali. At this point three roads split; one road comes from Mandvi, second goes towards Dhrabudi and Modhwa villages via Mafatnagri and third to the Gundiyali bus stand.

At this junction, there are multiple shops which are around the Wagher Masjid. These shops sell cutlery, garments, toys, tailors and vegetables at this junction and are open for the day time till the evening. The nashtawale (snack vendors) generally start late afternoon and are open till late evening around 8 pm. Locals and passerbys enjoy eating local delicacies like dabeli, bhel, bhajia, fafda, samosa and other such food items across a few snack shops at Zero Point.

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Collating, organizing and translating the oral narratives: After extensive fieldwork, notes from all the researchers on the field were organized, collated and marked based on the different people interacted with. Further, the narratives had to be translated into English for accessibility to all the teams across nations.

Producing resource material for all the stakeholders and other activities: After the oral narratives were collated, and organized, it needed to become resources for different stakeholders and for activities, so they were labelled, and documented in a consumable form. This was used as a resource by several stakeholders, whether to create the narrative map, story map for the craft walk, other digital dissemination materials and also for students to develop storytelling prototypes from it.

Drone photogrammetry An aerial survey using drone photogrammetry techniques was done in the terracotta craft village of Gundiyali. The survey covered an area of around 100 hectares of the village to understand the topography and habitat of the village. Layering this with a physical survey, we were able to map the green cover, built infrastructure, craftspeople houses and workshops, heritage sites, spatial narratives and other important placemarkers in the village.

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Oral narratives documentation at clay collection area

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Outcome The oral history documentation of the craft community of Gundiyali provided collections of stories about the history and evolving practices of the terracotta craft community, how Gundiyali village changed over the time and its relation to the town of Mandvi. Using drone photogrammetry the village was documented from aerial view and the collection of narratives were placed across landscape using a GIS application to curate the following three trails.

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2 3

4

8 7

9 11

10

12

13 18

19 20

14

17 15

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Drone photogrammetry produced map of Gundiyali with all the points marked for Trail 1

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6

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1

Trail 1: ‘Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam’ 1

Gundiyamata Temple

2

Gundiyali lake

3

Noor Shah Karim Shah Dargah

4

Lime plastered stepwell

5

Tea and Snack points

6

Bus Stand

7

Stone built stepwell

8

Cluster of traditional houses

9

Bakery

10

Jain upashray

11

Darbar Community Hall

12

Craft Space 23-24

13

Craft Space 22

14

Craft Space 14

15

Craft Space 12-13

16

Craft Space 10

17

Kumbhar Masjid

18

Craft Space 21

19

Craft Space 18

20

Open storage of matla(pots)

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12

5

4

9 8

7

1

6 3 2

Drone photogrammetry produced map of Gundiyali with all the points marked for Trail 2

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Trail 2: ‘Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam’

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13

15

1

Entrance to Kumbhar Faliyu

2

Kumbhar Masjid

3

Open storage of matla (pots)

4

Craft Space 14

5

Craft Space 11

6

Craft Space 12-13

7

Craft Space 18

8

Craft Space 22

9

Craft Space 23-24

10

Zero Point

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Craft Space 6-7

12

Craft Space 5

13

Craft Space 4

14

Craft Space 3

15

Craft Space 2

16

Craft Space 1

16

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1

44

36 33

34 35

2

1

108

Trail 3: ‘Gundiyali ni Maati Mandvi no Dariyo’

1

Mandvi auto & taxi stand

23

Bus Stand

2

Mandvi bridge

24

Tea and Snack points

3

Entrance to Gundiyali

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Drinking Water point for Animals

4

Entrance to Kumbhar Faliyu

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Cement block making workshop

5

Craft Space 12 & Craft Space 13

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Cement block making workshop

6

Craft Space 14

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Wagher Masjid

7

Open storage of matla (pots)

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Zero point

8

Kumbhar Masjid

30

Craft Space 5

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Craft Space 19

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Craft Space 22

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Drabudi Temple and Beach

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Craft Space 23 & Craft Space 24

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Raval Pir Dada Temple

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Darbar Community Hall

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Kranti teerth museum

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Jain upashray

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Drishti Crafts

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Cluster of traditional houses

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Auto rickshaw Stand

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Azad Chowk

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Stone built stepwell

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Bheed Bazar

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Noor Shah Karim Shah Dargah

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Main market Mandvi

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Gundiyali Lake

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Ship artisans (wood workers)

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Gundiyamata Temple

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Boat Model Makers & Museum

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Still life 4.0 by Reyaz Badaruddin, produced as part of Knowledge exchange programme

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The coronavirus pandemic slowed down the entire world, and day-to-day interactions were put to a hold. Over time, everyone had to start gearing up for the ‘new normal’. As a response to the same, many on-field activities took a pause. Craftspeople were severely impacted by the pandemic, as it restricted markets, travel and logistical transfer of material from one place to another. Converting this crisis situation into an opportunity, a Knowledge Exchange Programme was initiated for the craftspeople of Gundiyali.

The activity reimagined the idea of exchanging knowledge between different speakers and creators across the country and the world and the craftspeople of Gundiyali. To further aid the monetarily uncertain situation for the craftspeople, a stipend was a part of the programme as well.

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Craftsperson registering for digital Knowledge Exchange Programme

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Objectives The primary objectives of making the Knowledge exchange programme were To create a channel of monetary funding for the restrictions on trade during the uncertain Covid-19 pandemic.

Facilitate an exchange of contemporary knowledge between speakers across the world and traditional knowledge from craftspeople in Gundiyali. Both needed he programmes were designed under three major themes:

transforming times.

• Storytelling through technology and products: This programme helped to emphasise how storytelling adds value to the craft practice, and introduce craftspeople to digital methods during the isolated times.

• Local and Global trends: This programme brought forth the idea of trends in the local and international markets and how to relook at their individual craft practice with what is going on around them and in the global scenario.

The themes were: • Design for diverse markets: This programme aided to sensitize craftspeople with the changes in consumer behavior and the kind of market opportunities that have emerged so they could ideate products catering to the needs of

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Poster to invite registration for Knowledge Exchange Programme (English Version)

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Process Preparation Identifying core areas of Knowledge exchange programmes(KEP): The core areas of the programme were identified with multiple participatory discussions with the team members, craft community members, and subject areas, after which the three themes were decided : Designing for diverse markets, Storytelling through technology and products, and Global and local trends.

The evolving structure for the KEPs Each programme of the Knowledge Exchange Programme was planned to be disseminated in four parts, chronologically.

• An introduction to the focus theme: This is a video that introduces and discusses the theme, giving an overarching narrative to the programme.

This marks the initiation, setting

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the tone and expectation of the programme.

Speaker sessions with experts in local, national and international markets based on the main theme.

Speakers were brought on board based on their area of expertise and how it relates to the programme.

The design challenge was a set of exercises based on the theme that gave prompts for the craftspeople to generate and develop ideas.

A set of case studies was the last part of the programme where relevant real-life examples were shown to the craftspeople based on the theme.

Content curation for the programme Theme content Content was curated based on each theme and aligning it with the goals of the programme for the craft community.

This required a secondary overview for analysing trends, reports, consumer

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Poster to invite registration for Knowledge Exchange Programme (Gujarati Version)

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behavior trends, industry-specific trends, traditional knowledge and latest updates in the pottery and ceramic world. This also required understanding the shifts in the Indian craft industry, and streamlining relevant content for reaching the craftspeople. This also required primary inquiry in understanding the kind of inputs needed, and the knowledge gathered in the previous field work to bring out a cohesive holistic output.

The educational material was a mix of digital and physical modes. The digital mode was used for major presentation with an introductory video, design challenges and case studies with visual cues and narration.

The physical mode was used for supporting materials like flashcards, and worksheets to talk about best practices and give more resources.

Speaker videos Alongside curating overarching content for the programme, we connected with speakers across the world based on the themes and expertise areas. Each speaker came up with a topic based on our theme to present to the craft community.

The speakers were contacted through our large network of organizations and previous work with the craft community where several of our speakers got connected to us.

Implementation Orientation to the knowledge exchange programme: An orientation video was released through the digital platform of Whatsapp. The initiative and its objectives and the necessity to transform the craft practice based on the changing scenario with the pandemic was discussed with the community. The community was further invited and encouraged to participate.

Invitation call for registrations: To begin with, before the beginning of each programme, an invitation call was sent to members of the community. They received information about the area of training, duration, expected time and outcomes, along with the participation honorary amount given to each participant. The registrations were done using text messaging or Whatsapp messaging.

After the registration phase, a whatsapp group was created for each programme for correspondence.

Conducting the Knowledge Exchange Sessions Before starting a module, printed educational material wherever necessary was sent to participants.

• Introduction to training programme & the design challenge: On the first day of the programme, the introduction video focused on the theme was sent along with the design challenge.

This helped set the tone of the content from the delivery and participants were oriented towards understanding the material better.

Introduction videos provided multiple perspectives to look at the theme alongside the 121

1. Field ambassadors guiding the craftspeople to view content 2. One-on-one discussions between DICRC team and craftspeople 3. Explorations for the design challenge

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design challenge that prompted a practice-based approach to better understand the theme.

• One-on-one discussions: Oneon-one discussions with each participant was conducted by the team to know their thoughts, initial ideas, what they gained out of the video, if they have any queries, areas of inspiration and more.

These helped to individually define the programme and its take-away subjectively for each participant.

• Sharing expert speaker videos: Further expanding on different aspects of the theme, expert videos gave an in-depth learning experience. This also gave craftspeople a chance to engage with multiple sets of ideas and thoughts on their practice.

Further, it allowed experienced practitioners and experts from different fields to get associated with the craft community.

Craftspeople watched the videos over a couple of days.

• Detailed discussions: This is in continuation to the previous oneon-one discussions, going further into idea evolvement and key takeaways from all the sessions so far. The design challenge and its outcomes were also discussed with the craftspeople to further aid their journey.

• Design Challenge: With sessions and discussions, craftspeople developed their ideas simultaneously, and a further few days to develop the programme outcomes. From product ideas and objects, stories in digital mediums to themes of local trends, there was a diversity of ideas that came across through harnessing the thinking abilities and tactical skills.

• Case studies & conclusion: Case

studies of different organizations, communities, brands, products and innovations were shown to the craftspeople for each of the themes, to conclude the sessions. A dialogue and inspiration of how they can redefine their craft practice came about from these inputs.

• Evaluations: After every programme, an evaluation of the outcomes and learnings was done to take key feedback for developing the next set of materials.

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Poster for KEP 1: Designing for diverse markets

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Objectives Since the global pandemic changed the entire perception of how products and services are availed and consumed, the needs, market and accessibility considerably transformed. This theme was to bring in perspectives to expand the horizons for the craft sector by learning about new emerging markets. The key objectives for the programme include: Introducing an approach to craft community for understanding and tracking emerging needs of the market, and identify diverse opportunities A hands-on ability to design a new product brief, ideate and design for a new market

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Stills from the introductory video for Design for Diverse markets illustrating market opportunities and introducing the design challenge

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Process The entire programme was disseminated in three parts, first an introduction and deep dive, followed by expert sessions and finally, a few relevant case studies.

Part 1: Introduction

Core team introduced the community to the diverse market opportunities: The first part was intended to introduce and deep dive with the community at the thematic area, with appropriate cues to encourage enquiry and intrigue further interest.

This also led to a brimming of different perspectives, so participants based on their individual skills and interest could explore a certain area further.

Identifying trends and market opportunity areas: This included studying different trend reports, looking at local, national and international consumer behavior and mapping the trends of how the idea of

availability, consumption and spending had evolved, in times of no-contact and strict lockdowns, and the immediate responses after the stringent pandemic restrictions were to be taken away.

Further, these trends were synthesised to come up with market opportunities and find the connecting points to the terracotta craft. Here are some of the market opportunities identified: Opportunities to sell diverse products on online platforms • Terracotta for small products: Economy has seen a dip worldwide.

Cash flow is uncertain. People however want to buy small things that make them and others living close or far, feel good and remembered. There is a market opportunity for gift and novelty products like jewellery, badges, small home decor products which act as reminders of solidarity.

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care products: People are paying greater attention to well-being to keep themselves healthy. Eating habits and cooking habits have changed substantially across the country. Everyone has started becoming more conscious of what they eat and want to consume essential nutrients in a natural way. Earthen utensils and serveware are known to be better for health. Positioning products in this way can open a whole new audience for earthenware products.

Terracotta for sustainable homedecor and gardening products: Since people are living at home and working from there full time, they’re trying to bring nature to their home with air-purifying plants and small gardens. We can look into innovation in planters and home-decor pieces that are small, easy to carry and use. Also, collaborating with nurseries to add seeds or plants into this can open an entirely new space.

Opportunities to tie-up with other businesses as a part of their products / services Terracotta for packaging: Since there is now a growing sensitivity towards the environment, people are trying to limit their use of single-use plastics. They’re also now sourcing farm-produced food and from local vendors. This opens a new market for terracotta-based packaging, as it gives products a longer shelf-life, essential nutrients and is good for disposal too. Tyingup with businesses and innovating ways to package using terracotta, also experimenting with mixes can be useful.

Terracotta for healthy interiors: Sustainability for the environment

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and physical being calls for better materials for interiors of homes, workspaces, or otherwise.

Terracotta to use on walls as a finish helps make the walls breathable.

Innovating with new mixes to ensure that walls are waterproof yet healthy is the core challenge here Opportunities from the change in pre-covid and post-covid in the local scenario Resurgence of local tourism: Terracotta positioned at Rann Utsav: Owing to the fact that most people haven’t been able to move around away from home for a very long time, there will be a resurgence of people from in and around the Kutch area to visit the rann. The tourists will be from the local areas of Kutch and further Gujarat. This calls for being prepared for small souvenirs and utility products specially curated for Rann utsav that can be positioned there, telling the story of Kutch or the community.

Terracotta for rituals and festivals: Since coronavirus stopped people from any communal gatherings, as the virus subsides, people would reconnect with the concept of community and festivals. Diwali, New year will be approaching soon and there is a gearing up for huge orders across mediums - local channels, online medium as well as new products.

Defining the design challenge: To allow for a better hands-on experience on being able to ideate, design and make products or services for the new market opportunities, a design challenge was introduced. This helped in guiding participants for understanding consumer, market, trend, and how it will emerge further, along with how to make a product that would be aligned to all of

this. Some of the aspects touched on this were to answer these questions as a blueprint before starting the making process: • Who am I making for? Who is the user?

• What would the user like the product to do?

• Is there a problem I can solve with this product?

• How would the shape of the product / material look like?

• How large should the product be?

• What mark of Gundiyali should the product have?

• Where will they buy it from?

Creating the visual presentation: A visual presentation of all the content was created, keeping in mind the intent to allow for ideation, and thought with multiple directions and perspectives, simple icons, and photograph references were used to show the different market opportunities. These were captioned in the vernacular (Gujarati) for better accessibility.

Scripting, translating and recording the video in vernacular language: The content then needed to be scripted together for a compelling narrative, translated into the local language and recorded in vernacular tongue.

This video was presented by Asst.

Prof. Rishav Jain (Research expert at DICRC, CRDF, CEPT University).

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Speaker session posters: 1. A Potter’s Mind Map by Snehal Kashikar 2. A visit to my studio Lal mitti by Reyaz Badarrudin 3. New designs and market by Sumiran Pandya 4. The voice of Craftpreneur by Vikas Gupta 5. Diverse market and Design by Shreya Alok Gupta 6. A walk to Banana Pottery studio by Thomas Louis

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Part 2: Expert speaker sessions

Concurrently, many experts that have been associated with terracotta or ceramics practices were brought on board to collaborate and put together different perspectives from their individual practice to enrich the theme further. This gave both a breadth of possibilities, and a depth of interest for the participants to learn from. Here are some of the topics that experts presented on: • A Potter’s Mind Map by Snehal Kashikar Snehal Kashikar, a ceramic artist based in Ahmedabad, took craftspeople through the mind mapping diagram for introspecting crafts and skills as an artist, an important tool to get a clear picture. This process helped her to engage with her own practice deeply, opening new doors to various mediums of expression as an artist.

• A visit to my studio Lal mitti by Reyaz Badarrudin Reyaz Badarrudin, a ceramic designer takes the community on a virtual visit to his studio Lal mitti in Andretta, Himachal Pradesh, India. His inspiration keeps evolving to reflect a wide range of interests which mix social and aesthetics considerations. Lately, he has engaged with aspects of craft and craftsmanship, exploring the place and role of artisans.

• New designs and market by Sumiran Pandya Sumiran Pandya, the co-founder and Director of Gaatha talked about the new design and market to terracotta craftspeople of Gundiyali. Taking an example of a pot, he discusses various shapes, sizes and ornamentation on it,

creating evolution in its design and appearance.

• The voice of Craftpreneur by Vikas Gupta Vikas Gupta, owner of a brand ‘Chhapak’, a multidisciplinary designer, mentor, educator and entrepreneur took the craft community on the journey of a craftpreneur. He talked about designing by understanding the needs of the current market and explorations in materials for making products for the current market.

• Diverse market and Design by Shreya Alok Gupta Shreya Alok Gupta, a ceramic artist is based in Dharamshala, Himachal Pradesh. She spoke about her experience on curating products for various markets, largely functional and decorative ceramics.

• A walk to Banana Pottery studio by Thomas Louis Thomas Louis, a ceramic designer is based out of Goa. In the video, he takes the craftspeople for a virtual walk to his pottery studio Banana Pottery in Goa. Thomas, with his keen interest in music, had developed some instruments out of terracotta which he shared with the craftspeople.

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Stills from the case study for Design for Diverse markets illustrating examples of market sensitive clay, terracotta and ceramics products

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Part 3: Case studies

Case studies helped in showing examples of various brands, products, product systems that were aligned to the emerging markets. Further, case studies delved deeper into analysing the different aspects of product innovation. These encouraged the participants to take inspiration from other contexts to innovate in their own context.

• Terraplanter: Terraplanter is an innovative planter which is portable. It only needs water as terracotta works like soil and solves the problem of underwatering and over-watering. There is space for adding seeds as well to make it user-friendly.

• Nirlep Bhoomi: The Nirlep Bhoomi is a cooking utensil made out of terracotta and coated with teflon for it to be microwave friendly.

• Elementry: Elementry is a brand that makes handmade products for home-decor, kitchenware and serveware. The terracotta range is microwave and baking safe.

Terracotta bottle for water and storage container with wooden cover.

• Kalypso Yogurt: Terracotta used to package yogurt as a sustainable substitute for plastic or other materials. The goodness of earthy minerals added to the yogurt, helps increase its shelf life and also make it reusable, • Claymen: A studio-based brand that works around small products that can be kept as collectibles or as utility. Intricate and raw, the work is focused on human expression and emotion.

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Design plans and explorations by different craftspeople with small products, utilities, and murals based on market opportunities

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Outcome With a total of 30 craftspeople participants, the programme progressed with inputs from expert videos, and one-on-one discussions, craftspeople explored diverse market opportunities. and created prototypes based on the needs of the contemporary needs. Some examples included utilitarian products, murals, tiles, souvenirs, and innovative planters.

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Poster for KEP 2: Storytelling through technology and products

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Objectives Storytelling is an important aspect of setting the narrative of the physical, social, and cultural context of the craft. While the making happens independently, reaching out to people needs impeccable storytelling of the craft, of its makers, of where it was made and how, for enabling better appreciation and perceived value of craft practice and crafted products.

The main objectives were: To encourage craftspeople to find cues and inspiration to tell stories about their culture, community, history, context and products.

To introduce craftspeople to different ways of digital storytelling and equip them with the right tools and practices.

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Stills from the introductory video for Storytelling through technology and products illustrating different storytelling aspects and methods

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Process This programme had a similar dissemination structure to the last, first an introduction, followed by in-depth and breadth-wise understanding of the theme and a few case studies.

Part 1: Introduction

Core team introducing the community to the importance of digital storytelling and cues for inspiration: This part introduced the community to the value of storytelling, and gave inspiration cues for how to curate and think about stories and further how to share them with communities local, national and international.

Define storytelling and inspiration for cues: To begin with, a brief of the different aspects of a story was narrated to set the tone of the programme better. This was about a crafted artefact, the Kathatara from the Barmer region of Rajasthan.

Story of Kathatara: “In a village called Konara, we visited a vernacular house made of mud. The house had several hut-like structures called dhani that were built within a boundary wall. Each of these huts constituted a different space of the house. While one was the living and the bedroom, another a kitchen and the third a store room. We were told that this is the vernacular / traditional way of building houses in the region due to the climatic conditions and availability of resources. When we walked into the kitchen, we saw this beautiful structure that looked like a cabinet made out of mud. It was around six feet tall with intricate mudrelief patterns on it. The lady of the house who was showing us around, Taridevi told us that this is a kathatara.

It is a larder used to store cooked food items, dairy products and spices used in everyday cooking. This was unique to this region because it was built similar to and as part of the house itself.

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She told us that she had made this herself. She told us “In earlier times it was not necessary that the bride was given everything in dowry. Few things like chulho (hearth), bel (inbuilt shelves), kothlio (larder) required to run the house were made by us under supervision of our mother-in-law. It is easily noticeable if a helping hand was involved in the making of these as patches would differ with poor finish and unsatisfactory results.”

Taridevi also mentioned that this type of larder was common in the villages of Barmer. And it was mainly made by the women in the house. Every year, they would apply a layer of lipan to maintain the kathatara.“ The story was based on three pillars the place, the people, and the object.

These became the cues for inspiration for stories.

1. Place The place was about the physical context whether it’s a village, a city or any other part of the world that influences the people. The stories about Place can be about lifestyle, living situation, food, seasons, festivals, clothes, places we like to inhabit or visit. The stories of how place influences crafts is also important to understand and talk about. These stories shape individuals, shaping the community towards an identity. These stories are important to also establish craft traditions relevant to today’s times.

2. People This discussed storytelling from the point of view of anecdotes of individuals and community as a whole, individually as a craftsperson, craft family, and everything around that influences. This encouraged craftspeople to talk about what they think, their interests, their place and context, craft skills, experiences as

craftspeople, and more.

3. Products or Objects Products or Objects are a tangible manifestation of skills and need/utility.

For example, the matka connects to the imperative part of human existence, water. In an intangible sense, in the region of Kutch, it is a container of memories. Memories of droughts in the past, which led to mass migration many years back - it also talks about the many stories of people who left, who stayed, and everything else in the between. In any case, just a simple matka has so many stories associated with it. Similarly, so will objects like the gullak, tavdi or any other utensil. These objects also have stories associated with the material used, the technique used, the motifs and the patterns; such stories lend a sense of uniqueness that increases its value.

Introducing mediums for storytelling: This talked about the various ways of storytelling - using voice, which can easily be recorded as an oral recording or a video to show any moving image, or by using pictures by taking photographs, drawing and painting. Another way it talked about was through words, by writing stories or poetry. These can find their way as a part of your product or these stories can sometimes inspire you to make a product.

Design Challenge: The design challenge was to ignite ideas for storytelling, and present it on a social media platform.

This was done by first encouraging craftspeople to identify a story that they wanted to share which could be either about place, people (personal narratives) or products, and use a medium to express. These mediums could be written, voice or imagery. At the end, they were to share this on a

social media platform.

Creating the visual presentation: A visual presentation of all the content was created, keeping in mind the intent to allow for ideation, and thought with multiple directions and perspectives, simple icons, and photograph references were used to show the different market opportunities. These were captioned in the vernacular (Gujarati) for better accessibility.

Scripting, translating and recording the video in vernacular language: The content then needed to be scripted together for a compelling narrative, translated into the local language and recorded in vernacular tongue. This video was presented by Mansi S Rao (Senior Research Associate, DICRC, CRDF, CEPT University).

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Speaker session posters: 1. Kahani Kumbhar ki (Story of the potter) by Aparna Jaishankar 2. A smile in my heart by Ela Mukherjee 3. A magical toy by Jignyaa Vyas 4. Contemporary storytelling using traditional crafts by Nisha Vikram 5. Basics of film making by Storyloom films (Nidhi Kamath & Keya Vasani) 6.Use of Whatsapp and Instagram to promote crafts by Kumar Manish 7. My shop on Facebook by Vasim Samadji

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Part 2: Expert Speaker sessions

Experts that have been associated with storytelling, marketing and social media based practices were brought on board to collaborate and put together different perspectives from their individual practice to enrich the theme further. This gave both a breadth of possibilities, and a depth of interest for the participants to learn from. Here are some of the topics that experts presented on: • Kahani Kumbhar ki (Story of the potter) by Aparna Jaishankar Aparna Jaishankar, a Gold Medallist in Social Work (MSW) from Bharathiar, started the banner ‘kAhini - What’s your story?’ where she creates various modules for learning through stories for children and training material for educators. In the video, Aparna has emphasised on the importance of storytelling with a strong message- ‘Every product has a story associated with it.

When a potter sells a product, she/ he also gives a part of herself/ himself with the product in the form of a story.

• A smile in my heart by Ela Mukherjee Ela Mukherjee is a ceramic artist from Delhi, and in the video, shared her story as an artist. She shared her journey from being a mother to a child to a ceramic artist. She talks about memories, feelings and inspirations arriving to her from various incidents. She has found inspiration for her artwork from her memories of a toy she played in her childhood.

• A magical toy by Jignyaa Vyas Jignyaa Vyas, a well-known theatre actress from Gujarati theatre, spoke about theatre

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plays as a medium to share craft narratives. Jignyaa has conveyed a strong message of the strength cultural and craft stories possess and how can it be shared by using mobile phones.

Contemporary storytelling using traditional crafts by Nisha Vikram Through this video, Nisha Vikram has talked about the execution of craft narratives and stories. She has mentioned the key aspects that she takes care of while executing those narrative and stories in the form of murals and paintings.

Basics of Filmmaking by Nidhi Kamath and Keya Vaswani Nidhi Kamatha and Keya Vaswani, filmmakers (Storyloom Films, a National Award winning, Forbes India and National Geographic featured duo Keya Vaswani and Nidhi Kamath based in India), spoke about the basics of shooting a short video through a mobile phone.

They explained about capturing the context, people and craft process in alignment with the basic fundamentals of filmmaking.

Use of Whatsapp and Instagram to promote crafts by Kumar Manish Kumar Manish, an experienced communications and social media strategist (he runs Communicate Karo, a social communications organization working for NGOs, government & academic institutions), spoke about promoting crafts through the use of platforms like Whatsapp and Instagram.

The emphasis was on using social media for business purposes and further shared the success story of Madhubani mask makers.

Facebook pe Dukaan My Shop by Vasim Samadji Vasim Samadji, a communication and social media strategist

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Stills from the case study video for Storytelling through technology and products illustrating different brands and organizations

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showed the steps of making an account on Facebook. He encouraged craftspeople of Gundiyali to explore the option of a Facebook shop for selling their products online. This gave all the craftspeople an opportunity to own a shop virtually and spread their market reach by sharing products and craft stories.

Part 3: Case studies

The case studies included social media accounts of several brands and individual craftspeople to show the different ways in which stories are told - about place, product, or people, or a mix of all.

• Kutch Tourism: Kutch tourism advertisement is one of the most popular tourism campaigns in the country, with Amitabh Bachan as the endorser. The advertisement shows the different aspects of the physical context and culture.

• Okhai: Okhai is a brand that works with women craftspeople, primarily from the Okhamandal region of Gujarat working on crafts like applique, embroidery, and more. They document stories about individual craftswomen, product shoots and the region of Okhamandal on their Instagram page.

• Ellementry: The brand is known for its lifestyle and utility products like cookware and serveware made of terracotta, copper, and wood. The brand showcases its product shots by showing use-cases.

• Nirmisu: A craft brand that works with different regional craft traditions. They showcase the process of Dabu craft and raw materials used in interesting ways.

• Soumaiya Kala Vidya: Soumaiya Kala Vidya is an artisan design institute in Kutch that houses a unique design programme for artisans. Graduating students have created videos talking about their products and process.

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Stills from some of the video documentations done by craftspeople

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Outcome There were 30 participants in the Knowledge Exchange Programme for Storytelling through digital products.

After hearing diverse perspectives about storytelling through talking about people, place and products, craftspeople documented their own narratives. These narratives were videos, pictures and texts that talked about stories of the craft practice, individual practitioners, about the motifs and patterns, regional folk musical instruments, history of the craft, and about the village and its culture.

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Poster for KEP 3: Global and local trends

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Objectives The global and local trends programme served as an international online residency facilitating an interaction between the craft community and international artists.

Artists from across the borders in the UK based out of Stoke-on-Trent and Manchester, alongwith artists in India from Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra connected with craftspeople from Gundiyali on a digital platform to exchange ideas and re-imagine individual practices collectively. The objectives were to Create an opportunity for participants across borders to share knowledge, practical skills, techniques and ideas.

To enable participants to re-imagine their practice, experiment with materials, play with ideas, stories, narratives and use digital technology through workshops and interactive documentations.

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Meetings to develop the idea for KEP 3: Global and Local trends (Includes team members from DICRC, British ceramics Biennele, The Clay Foundation, Manthan Educational Programme Society, Indian Ceramics triennele, and also artist collaborators

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Process Part 1: Conceptualization of the Groundworks digital residency

The team at DICRC shared the structure for the Knowledge Exchange Programme which was shared with the team at The Clay Foundation, British Ceramics Biennale to build a structure for the 3rd KEP based on that. They put together a programme which was geared towards experimenting with collaboration, materials and techniques and further recording these as experiences in form of photographs and videos. The main idea was to generate new forms of inspirational cues to respond to.

Intermediary meetings to develop the idea: The teams from DICRC, Manthan and The Clay Foundation worked together to further build on the foundational approach to make it more approachable to the context of Gundiyali. The tasks were streamlined to make it an exchange between

artists from across the world and the craftspeople in Gundiyali.

Short introduction video: A short introduction video was presented by Kathan Kothari (Coordinator, Manthan Educational Programme Society, Ahmedabad) explaining the idea of the mini-residency and the process of the programme.

Development of the activities: A responsive exchange-based programme was designed to facilitate a digital residency that helped develop an artistic dialogue between artists and craftspeople. The idea was to experiment with materials and techniques in different ways to see how ideas emerge and record the experiments using photographs and movie clips. There were a set of activities to choose from, where participants could work on their own and also collaborate with other people 151

1,2: Stills from the introductory video 3,4: Design explorations and tasks for KEP 3

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using the materials they usually use but in a different approach. Here are some of the activities: • Collaborate with another person to combine pots and plates of both and make new shapes • Look and record part of the making process, and focus on close up of the process.

• Record the preparation before making - getting the tools ready, laying them out, mixing materials and preparing clay.

• Arrange tools and objects to create new shapes and forms by stacking, piling, placing and positioning. Photograph each step.

• Make new patterns from looking at the shapes and forms that have been created, draw/scratch/paint the patterns with clay or other materials onto old pots or new pots and new shapes. Photograph these experiments.

• Collect and position different task outcomes together to create a new story that can be recorded in a picture or short movie clip.

Task 1: The narrative of making and place in Gundiyali - All participants were invited to map part of the making journey of raw clay to finished pots; including stages of sourcing clay -processing/preparing clay – making pots. This journey was mapped through recording/picture taking and action by the potters themselves – personal views and understandings of the journey to be expressed to enable relooking at the work of the potters, an early way to explore and think about new contexts and value of expression.

Task 2: Play with ideas in space, experiment with some temporary interventions using raw clay, temporary constructions using

available pots/materials, in different spaces and places that are part of the Gundiyali potters story. Photograph the process of making the interventions or display

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Videos by different artists: 1. Gabriella Rhodes 2. Peter Jones 3. Jo Ayre 4. Stephen Dixon 5. Reyaz Badarrudin 6. Ramesh and Rasika Hengadi

Part 2: Short films by various artists

A series of short films were made by artists from the UK, Himachal Pradesh, India and Maharashtra India showing their work, and inviting responses by setting tasks for the participants.

• ‘Groundwork’ by Gabriella Rhodes, Peter Jones & Jo Ayre The video ‘Groundwork’ was made by three artists who worked for two days exploring, experimenting and playing with objects, clay and shapes. They made marks, patterns and building ideas in an abandoned workshop located in an old pottery factory. The artists used only basic materials and objects that are present in the workshop.

Gabriella Rhodes is a ceramic artist and creative practitioner living and working between Wales and Stoke-on-Trent.

She seeks to create work that reflects the grounding nature of clay and often investigates this through hand building, low firing and reused or local material.

Peter Jones is an Associate artist for the British Ceramic Biennial and manages the festival install and operations. His practice explores ideas of process, expertise , people and material, this exploration is particularly focused on the Old Spode factory site and the process and people based there throughout its history.

These elements are investigated through performance, film making and installation.

Jo Ayre lives and works in Stoke-on-Trent and is a resident artist and studio manager for the British Ceramics Biennial. Jo’s practice is concerned with people, place and process, how clay as a material can be used to communicate with others, and can connect through sensory experience, heritage and culture.

• Making commemorative plates by Stephen Dixon UK Ceramic Artist, Stephen Dixon showed the process of the pots and plates he makes.

The plates tell different stories as a commentary on what is going on in society or to commemorate a person, a place or an event.

A Professor of Contemporary Crafts at Manchester School of Art, Stephen’s career as a maker is defined by a commitment to politically engaged practice, and a belief in the power of craft to engage the public imagination and to make a difference. As an academic and researcher as well as a maker, his practice engages with the narrative and decorative traditions of figurative ceramics, and brings this rich visual vocabulary to bear on contemporary issues and contemporary experience.

• Still life by Reyaz Badarrudin Reyaz talks about his journey from Benaras to the UK. He talks about his series ‘Still Life’ that depicts his idea of society, arts and crafts.

A ceramics artist based out of Andretta in Himachal Pradesh, his work explores a variety of thematics.

His inspiration keeps evolving to reflect a wide range of interests which mix social and aesthetics considerations. Lately, he has engaged with aspects of craft and craftsmanship, exploring the place and role of artisans.

• Warli Art by Ramesh Hengadi and Rasika Hengadi Ramesh Hengadi and Rasika Hengadi, Warli artists from Dhanu, Maharashtra talk about storytelling through Warli art. The video seeks to encourage cues for stories from the terracotta crafts community of Gundiyali which creates a dialogue between two craft practices, with which Ramesh and Rasika also engage in finding a way in which craft practices can collaborate to tell stories of each other.

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Outcomes of Knowledge Exchange Program 3 1. Response by Ismail Jusab Kumbhar from Mafatnagri, Gundiyali 2. Resoonse by Shakinabai Kumbhar from Mafatnagri, Gundiyali 3. Response by Yasar Kumbhar from Kumbhar Faliyu, Gundiyali 4. Warli art on Gundiyali by Ramesh and Rasika Hengadi, Maharashtra

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Outcome The Knowledge Exchange Programme on Global and Local trends took the form of a digital residency with 40 craftspeople who participated in the programme. The craftspeople talked about the social, cultural, geographical, craft practice based stories of their village and the artists from across the UK responded with their outcomes in ceramic plates as well as warli art. The craftspeople also responded to the videos sent by artists in the UK, Himachal Pradesh and Maharashtra in India exploring wall paintings, abstract aesthetic arrangements and by decorating terracotta plates.

Responses of craftspeople: Craftspeople worked on documenting their making process and preparation.

They created abstract new forms and aesthetic arrangements to experiment with their materials. Short clips of making processes, stories from the

village and their personal experiences were also produced. Based on the videos of the artists, craftspeople also responded with stories through objects.

Responses of artists: Artists were based across the national and international boundaries. Each artist used their own technique and sensibilities to respond to the cues from the craftspeople. Responses were documented as photographs, movie clips or objects. The responses included a compilation of various techniques and processes of the terracotta craft practice in Gundiyali based on the images and videos sent by craftspeople, a commemorative plate inspired from the visual cues, and a warli painting as an exchange of showing stories of a craft through another.

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Drone photogrammetry generated map through GIS, to mark and locate spots in the community

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Travel came to a halt: locally, nationally and internationally, and a social distance was the necessity. This called for an immersive experience that was achievable through virtual and digital mediums. Discourse and dialogue was still the foundation of the project. A wider engagement with different kinds of audiences across the globe needed an in-depth study and an even more collaborative, co-constructive and communicative approach. A digital craft walk was planned as an immersive curated experience which keeps the craft practice at the centre, and discusses the community, culture, history, lifestyle, practices and narratives.

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Objectives The primary objectives of building digital platforms for wide audience engagement were To narrate the story of Gundiyali through oral narratives, stories and craft processes using the resource materials developed in the previous phases To create an immersive experience for diverse audiences and place Gundiyali on the global map for craft tourism

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Process Identifying the key points of interest: An extensive mapping and documentation of the village through GIS system and drone photogrammetry, along with the oral narratives collected, created a resource bank to fetch interesting points for the walk. These were mapped and stories were collated for each spot. These included public spots, heritage spaces, social and religious landmarks, craft spaces and workshops.

Ideating the three trails: Based on the points marked, a set of three different trails was curated to experience the terracotta craft cluster of Gundiyali under three different themes. These themes include: Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam (Gundiyali and the terracotta craft), Maati ane Kumbhar ni Vartao (Terracotta and the stories of craftspeople), Gundiyali ni Maati Mandvi no Dariyo (Gundiyali’s terracotta, Mandvi’s shore).

The first trail, Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam (Gundiyali and the terracotta craft) captures the pulse of Gundiyali’s community life in tandem with the terracotta craft practice The second trail, Maati ane Kumbhar ni Vartao (Terracotta and the stories of craftspeople) traces the terracotta craft families of Gundiyali and talks about their life, space and experience with the craft process and outcomes The third trail, Gundiyali ni Maati Mandvi no Dariyo (Gundiyali’s terracotta, Mandvi’s shore) talks about the shore of Mandvi town, and different points of Mandvi in context with Gundiyali and the terracotta craft community.

Digitizing the trails:The drone photogrammetry image was used and an interactive map of the three trails was created on the website for public viewing of these three different ways to experience Gundiyali virtually.

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Interactive trail routes that one can experience on the Gundiyali website

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Outcomes The oral history documentation of the craft community of Gundiyali provided collections of stories about the history and evolving practices of the terracotta craft community, how Gundiyali village changed over the time and its relation to the town of Mandvi. Using drone photogrammetry the village was documented from aerial view and the collection of narratives were placed across landscape using a GIS application to curate the three trails.

‘Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam’: There is an oral anecdote in the region of Kutch saying “Char Shehr ne Panne Gundiyali” meaning, Gundiyali was the largest after the four main towns of Kutch. This gives a hint about the glorious past of Gundiyali village. In the past, Gundiyali became home to many communities with its proximity to the then active port Mandvi. The Kumbhar community is a unique

one amongst many communities still residing at Gundiyali since then. Various historical events have influenced the decline in Mandvi’s importance, leading to migration of various communities from nearby places including Gundiyali. However across the time, the Kumbhar community has been continuing their craft practice and currently their fifth to sixth generation is keeping the tradition alive. The trail Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam begins with an introduction to history of Gundiyali village and further focuses on history, life, practices of the terracotta craft community around the Kumbhar Faliyu. It takes you through Craftspeople houses, workspaces and common points of interest in Gundiyali.

Duration: 1.5 - 2 hours How: walkable

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Interactive trail routes that one can experience on the Gundiyali website

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‘Maati ane Kumbhar ni Vartao’: The Maati of Gundiyali embodies stories of the hearts, hands, and skills of the Kumbhar community. The aesthetics of the terracotta craft of Gundiyali is a result of the collective work of the entire community across generations, of whom, each craftsperson has played an unique role in creating the identity of the craft, the community and the place. This curated trail Maati ane Kumbhar ni vartao will take you across Gundiyali to meet the craft families. On this trail, one can experience the journey of clay from raw material to a form, how traditional craft thrives with innovation, celebrating women craftspeople who bring clay pots to life with drawings/ paintings. Further, interact with craftspeople and know about how the craft practices are a means to their independence. One can witness the continuity of the craft, see young generations learn by working with their masters. In the physical realm, this trail is also an opportunity to have a hands on experience with the maati of Gundiyali Duration: 2.5 to 3 hours (two/three wheelers, car) ‘Gundiyali ni Maati Mandvi no Dariyo’: Mandvi was once an important historic port and had a full fledged ship building yard, traces of which can still be seen. Due to its location along the Arabian Sea, it thrived as a junction for businesses, trade, pilgrimage, and more. In historical times when Mandvi was growing, the places around it also flourished.

One such place was Gundiyali village located at about 7km distance.

Gundiyali was then growing as a junction for local trade and a resting point for travellers on their journey further from Mandvi. It is said that

at Mandvi, ships made would sail for Gulf and African regions. On the ship’s first journey, the ship owners would fill the ship with thousands of matka (pots) since sailing an empty ship was considered inauspicious.

Over time many communities migrated from these regions bringing the shipping industry to decline.

Currently the evidence of this history that is connected to Mandvi and Gundiyali can be found in the ruins of monuments, stories imbibed in key places such as stepwells, historical markets and the craft traditions which are still alive. The Kumbhar community of Gundiyali has been preserving and practicing their tradition of making clay products across the tide of time and the Arabian sea for more than five generations.

This trail Gundiyali ni Maati, Mandvi no dariyo takes one around places and people between Mandvi and Gundiyali with sites of historical importance living craft traditions such as shipbuilding and pottery, famous food experiences, religious sites, and museums. This day-long trail traverses around 20 km and it is curated as a complete experience of Mandvi and Gundiyali. One can experience how both places are attempting to relive their glory by reconnecting to their shared history and craft traditions from their glorious past.

Duration: 4-5 hours How: transport needed (two/three wheelers, car)

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Entrance view of the Celebrating Gundiyali, beyond Clay : Exhibition

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The milestones in the project are starting points for various long term relationships with the craftspeople, communities, organisations, professionals etc. In entirety the project encapsulates all the engagements with the terracotta crafts community of Gundiyali. The project activities were disseminated in the form of a virtual exhibition, Celebrating Gundiyali: beyond clay which showcases the timeline of engagements along with the Celebrating Clay project. The website Celebrating Gundiyali showcases all the projects and outcomes along with the details about the craft community.

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Snapshots from the virtual exhibition walkthrough during the inauguration ceremony

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Objectives The virtual exhibition was planned to disseminate the body of work done during the project and initiate long term collaboration.

To connect craftspeople to various craft production organisations and practices to generate revenue for the community in the longer run.

To spark conversations about how the community can be benefited with the idea of craft tourism, and how long term collaborations can impact the craft practice.

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Planning of the exhibition (initial process)

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Process Direction for Space Design: A section of the Lilavati Lalbhai library was taken as the venue for the exhibition.

This space was then imagined on a digital platform. Shades of terracotta, and white walls were selected as a combination for the space. A curved wall was designed to direct the exhibition walkway guiding the user to different parts of the exhibition.

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Direction for Content dissemination: The content was largely divided into three parts, a brief overview of the five years of engagement, the Celebrating Clay project in detail and finally, a dive into Gundiyali and the craft community. Here’s how it was disseminated: • Timeline (2014-19): The first part of the exhibition guides the user in, showing in brief the journey of collaboration with the craft community of Gundiyali in the first five years of engagement.

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This includes the first introduction with ‘Discovering Gundiyali’, ‘Initiating Innovation’, ‘Encouraging community participation’, ‘Reconfiguring habitat’, ‘Integrating Technology’, ‘Envisaging craft tourism’, and ‘Emphasizing collaboration’, respectively as themes for every year.

Celebrating Clay (2020): This entails the main focus of the exhibition which is the project under Crafting Futures programme : Celebrating Clay: Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism, which includes project activities like ‘Initiating dialogue with the community’, ‘Collecting oral narratives’, and ‘Conducting Knowledge Exchange Programmes’ which were ‘Design for diverse markets’, ‘Storytelling through technology and products’ and ‘Global and local trends’.

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Poster and teasers for the exhibition

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tour of Gundiyali: Further the exhibition also had the profiles of the different craft families and craftspeople documented for the craftspeople directory. An experiential tour of Gundiyali was presented as a virtual trail.

Resources and Other sections: Resources like the various toolkits and reports made over the years, academic projects that showcase studio outcomes of ‘re-imagining vernacular’, an acknowledgement for all organizations and collaborators involved, and finally, the link to the Celebrating Gundiyali Website.

Design and fabrication of the exhibition The exhibition was designed with content for the walls on Rhino, and widgets for information on the popups were also created to give more details about the different sections.

These collectively were uploaded on the Ortelia platform which helped in hosting the exhibition virtually.

Promotion of the exhibition A press release was done for the exhibition in the local newspapers along with poster invites to the students, faculty, and patrons of CEPT University and CRDF. Teaser posters of the exhibition were designed and promoted on various social media handles of CEPT University, DICRC as well as of key team members. A registration link was created at the end to enable prior registrations and details for the exhibition.

Launching the exhibition The exhibition was launched on 18th December 2020 at 5pm Indian Standard Time. More than 300 participants attended the launch,

which included an inaugural dialogue and a guided walkthrough by key team members at DICRC. This was followed by a panel discussion, where the panel included members of the craft community, key people representing the different organizations including partners and supporters.

The panelists included Alimamd Kumbhar, Salemamad Kumbhar from the community, Prof. Jay Thakkar, (Executive Director (DICRC), Associate Professor (Faculty of Design, CEPT University)) who spoke about the idea of working with design innovation and design as a catalyst to bring innovation in craft; Barney Hare Duke (Artistic Director, British Ceramics Biennial, UK) on conducting an online residency- the idea of digital knowledge exchange and interacting through digital mediums; Jonathan KennedyDirector Arts, India on British Council India’s perspective on Crafting Futures programme and the craft experiential tourism project; Katia Stewart (Global Programme Manager for Crafting Futures) talking about the British Council’s Global Programme: British Council UK’s perspective on crafting Futures programme and the craft experiential tourism project; Kathan Kothari(Manthan Educational Programme Society, India) on the idea of working with communities in Indiaspecific challenges and opportunities along with Stephen Dixon (Professor of Contemporary Crafts, Manchester School of Art, UK) bringing forth an international perspective on the clay and contemporary crafts, the idea of maker in the UK.

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Stills from the virtual exhibition

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Outcome The virtual exhibition positioned Gundiyali as a craft village on the global map, and was targeted to tourists and practitioners locally and internationally. There are several walls and walkways in the exhibition which include, the timeline between the years 2014 to 2019 showing the various engagements of the first five years. In focus is the Celebrating Clay project conducted in 2020, the craft community and the village of Gundiyali. Finally, the exhibition also links visitors to the resources developed over the years, academic projects and the website, Celebrating Gundiyali.

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A screenshot of the website’s homepage

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Objectives A comprehensive and exhaustive collection of information collated on a digital platform to create a resource beyond boundaries of region and time.

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Initial visual iterations and interface design concepts

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Process Direction for design: The website is the most updated resource on the collated work and the engagements with the community. A minimal, contemporary approach was taken in consideration with specific graphical elements that gave a glimpse into the community, for instance, the potter’s wheel was used as an icon for the home page.

Direction for Content dissemination: The content was divided into six major sections, apart from the about section and the home page Engagements: This section includes comprehensive data on engagements with Gundiyali throughout the years, along with a project timeline.

The terracotta craft community of Gundiyali is an enterprising community open to collaboration and growth.

Over the journey of six years, various collaborative engagements through diverse projects, activities and events have taken place with the community

starting in 2014. These include introducing innovation through design and technology, and the introduction of experiential tourism among others.

• Stories: The oral history documentation of the craft community of Gundiyali provided collections of stories about the history and evolving practices of the terracotta craft community, how Gundiyali village changed over the time and its relation to the town of Mandvi. The village was documented from aerial view and the collection of narratives were placed across landscape using a GIS application using drone photogrammetry(in activity 2) to curate three trails, Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam, Maati ane Kumbhar ni vartao, and Gundiyali ni Maati, Mandvi no Dariyo.

• Community: This section talks about information about the village, the craft community, the collated 179

Initial visual iterations and interface design concepts

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craftspeople directory which has information about the different craft families and craftspeople, along with the craft products.

Resources: This section is a compilation of the open-source research approach which has been a fundamental guiding value of the projects at DICRC. Several kinds of resources were developed over the six years of engagements with Gundiyali. The publications are a contextual documentation of the different projects done with the terracotta craft community of Gundiyali. Toolkits are based on models and frameworks developed at DICRC to guide different craft design processes like craft innovation, training or evolvement of craft clusters into craft experiential tourism hubs and so on. There are videos, presentations, lectures, videos and prototypes also developed at different milestones of the projects.

Celebrating Gundiyali: Beyond Clay (Virtual exhibition): The website also hosts the exhibition, Celebrating Gundiyali: Beyond Clay, showcasing the different initiatives of the past six years and particularly focuses on the latest project, Celebrating Clay: Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism supported by the Crafting Futures Programme of the British Council. Hosted by CEPT University, Ahmedabad the exhibition emphasizes on the idea of developing opportunities for sustainable development in the craft communities by bringing craft and experiential tourism together.

Website design The website was designed and coded to accommodate the different projects and interactive parts. The prototyping was done on Figma, and after several iterations on working with the larger team, the website was finally launched at the workshop.

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Screenshots from the website, www.celebratinggundiyali. com: sections include Engagement page (2017 section), Craft Community (about Gundiyali, craftspeople directory)

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Outcome A website documenting all the engagements with the terracotta craft community of Gundiyali was created as a timeless resource where one can access the projects, resources, and information about the village and the community.

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Additional activities These activities were an additional part within the project, which facilitated the idea of craft experiential tourism further, bringing in students and professionals from the country and the world to engage with the community.

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Academic project outcomes in the form of card game, narrative map, packaging and graphical novels 1. Game poster & graphic novel: Nikita Nath 2. Narrative Map: Vedanshi 3. Packaging: Sakina Tajani

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About As a part of the undergraduate studio, “Reimagining Vernacular” conducted

by Jay Thakkar at the Faculty of Design, CEPT university, students did a field visit to Gundiyali. The outcomes of their study emerged as board games, graphic novels, narrative maps to showcase the stories, culture, traditions, craft practice and lifestyle of the terracotta craft community of Gundiyali. The students lived with the community and dived deep into stories and narratives, including mapping the community, its folk and oral stories, particular nuances to ideate and design the outcomes.

Storybook Design: This was done to focus on developing narratives through an immersive ethnographic journey. The final outcomes were storybooks which had visuals and illustrations of the cultural and physical context.

craft practice and the community largely personal stories, and larger family trees. Further a specific thematic area of narrative was chosen to build narrative maps which included context mapping, family stories mapping, products and more.

Board game design: Taking narratives of the village, board games were designed inspired from oral narratives, personal stories or a larger context of Gundiyali.

These were developed with inspiration and development of visual and written vocabulary from contextual studies.

Graphic novels: Graphic novels were also conceptualised and designed to narrate an experience or a journey of an object / artefact or a product from Gundiyali’s terracotta craft cluster.

Contemporizing Indian crafts: This activity focused on understanding context, motifs, materials used in crafts and the layers of detail. This was helpful in establishing a language and style, and the outcomes were in the form of mixed media.

Visit to Gundiyali & narrative map building: An ethnographic study was conducted at Gundiyali to understand the context of the village, craft cluster, 187

Field visit by IMIAD students

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IMIAD postgraduate students As part of the Postgraduate studio, “Craft+Future=?” conducted by Rishav Jain at Faculty of Design, CEPT University, national and international students conducted a short field study of Gundiyali in January 2020. These students were from the International Masters in Interior Architecture Design, and Master of Interior Design programs. The students engaged in detailed documentation of the craft process- the tools, techniques, infrastructure and the production process. They also interacted with the community and documented details of craftspeople and their craft practices.

The purpose of this visit was to engage in one on one conversations with the craft community of Gundiyali and develop a position on traditional craft practices.

Visit by Greek travellers Vicky Lantzaki and Christina Lantzaki were travelling across Kutch exploring the cultural contexts and also various craft practices in the vicinity. They found out about Gundiyali’s terracotta craft cluster on social media, and reached out to a craftsperson, Jusab Kumbhar from the community.

They wanted to have an immersive experience of how pottery was practiced in India and visited Gundiyali where they were received by the community and they were shown around the village.

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Impact The impact of the project helped in situating Gundiyali on a global platform as a craft experiential tourism hub. It took steps in addressing some of the gaps in the craft sector, like a lack of design and market exposure, connections with the source communities and representation of craft communities.

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• 3 week-long field

visits to Gundiyali were organized for an in-depth contextual understanding of the community, lifestyle and comprehensive documentation. This created resource material for the rest of the activities.

• More than 80

terracotta craftspeople, and an additional 20+ metal and woodwork craftspeople were mapped and their stories were documented as narratives to celebrate the spirit of the community, and craftsmanship.

They were interviewed for collecting narratives related to craft practice, products, lifestyle and their experiences about and with the craft.

• More than 60 points

were qualitatively mapped in and around Gundiyali after an aerial map generated through the drone photogrammetry survey which includes craft spaces, cultural spots, points of historical influence, tourist interests and local eateries. These then emerged into experiential trails.

• 3 experiential trails

were developed that allow visitors to experience Gundiyali in different ways. ‘Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam’, ‘Maati ane Kumbhar ni Vartao’, ‘Gundiyali ni Maati Mandvi no Dariyo’ varying in the depth and length of the visit.

The first trail, Gundiyali Gaam Kumbhari Kaam (Gundiyali and the terracotta craft) captures the pulse of Gundiyali’s community life in tandem with the terracotta craft

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practice. The second trail, Maati ane Kumbhar ni Vartao (Terracotta and the stories of craftspeople) traces the terracotta craft families of Gundiyali and talks about their life, space and experience with the craft process and outcomes The third trail, Gundiyali ni Maati Mandvi no Dariyo (Gundiyali’s terracotta, Mandvi’s shore) talks about the shore of Mandvi town, and different points of Mandvi in context with Gundiyali and the terracotta craft community.

• 300+ visitors

on the inaugural launch event of the virtual exhibition. The exhibition would continue to stay for 2-3 months after the launch.

• Around 100 craftspeople

(women and men), along with other members of the community participated in the online interactive session with the collaborators and stakeholders.

• 12 design professionals

visited the terracotta craft cluster to study crafts, immerse themselves and try hands-on pottery with the craftspeople.

• 8 story maps and 8 board games were developed by the

students of the Faculty of Design, CEPT University after collecting oral narratives as a part of the studio, Reimagining Vernacular

• 80+ craftspeople

from various age groups participated in the three-month knowledge exchange programme

• 20+ speakers (national and

international) from various fields of craft, design, marketing and storytelling shared their knowledge and experience with the craftspeople participants.

• 40+ videos and 100+ photo documentations were shared

by the craftspeople participants showing different craft processes and sharing cultural stories.

• 2 young craftspeople

in the village became field ambassadors, taking lead for the community as anchors for the programme for coordination with the craftspeople in Gundiyali and team in Ahmedabad.

Further, the project facilitated larger holistic goals of sustainable development of the community, craft practice and tourism in these ways: By addressing equality, diversity and inclusion.

The region of Kutch, Gujarat India, has been an important place marker on the crafts map of India. However, the focus has been mainly on the textile crafts of the region as a result of which many smaller clusters have been marginalised with little or no visibility. Gundiyali has been one such cluster and the project aims to bring equal importance to the place on the craft map. The idea of craft experiential tourism approach was to keep the entire craft community at the centre. The craft has been practiced by an entire family where all the people participate in different stages of the process. By choosing to work with an entire family, the project included everyone irrespective of their caste or gender or age. Traditionally roles within craft production are gendered, although this appears to be changing. The project highlighted the roles played by women seeking to empower them as key to future craft practice as the modes of production adapt to future needs, circumstances and opportunities.

Through the multiple exchanges and radical changes in the world during the project, the young people in the

community stepped up to support the project. The craft of terracotta involves a large cross section of the village community including women, young people and disabled people - the project was conscious towards including all the craftspeople of the community in the activities charted out.

Along with equality, diversity and inclusion, the project also considered scalability and replicability as key parameters necessary for impact. The methodology of the project allows it to be replicable in craft clusters across the country. Building collaborations with multiple stakeholders allows for scaling up the project on diverse and interdisciplinary fronts. This approach was derived from the Craft Experiential Tourism Toolkit developed by DICRC. By creating value for the Indian Craft Cluster In India, there are around 3,500 craft clusters which include craft practices like basketry, mat weaving, cane articles, earthenware, folk paintings, glass, horn and bone, leather, jewelry, metalware, musical instruments, pottery, sea shell crafts, woodwork, etc. employing about thirteen million people according to the National Council of Applied Economic Research.

Craft in the area of tourism so far, has been about passive consumption through the final outcome of the craft practice. Craft experiential tourism, however, is about the ‘active 193

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participation’ in the ecosystem.

Active participation is where tourists are looking to be a part of the craftspeople lifestyle, in this context, part of the craft ecosystem, to build memorable experiences.

Curating the different aspects of the craft cluster, forming authentic experiences for the visitors is essential when envisaging craft clusters as experiential tourism hubs. With a core focus on active participation, the craft experiential tourism initiative shall drive engagement amongst visitors to benefit, empower, and position the craftspeople along with the outcomes.

The cultural heritage of the crafts lies in the intangible knowledge embodied in the craftspeople. It involves the community and the stakeholders.

A multifaceted - multimodal multidisciplinary approach was used to ensure the value and transfer of knowledge. The engagement or experiential design of the craft experiential tourism hubs was designed with a holistic approach to capture the sensorial aspects visual, verbal, olfactory, tactile, and imaginary.

The inflow of diverse groups into Gundiyali provided the necessary exposure to both the craftspeople and the visitors. In many craft clusters, there is a disconnect between the craft users and the craftspeople due to inconsistencies with the market scenario. By enabling craft tourism, such gaps can be reduced and a more ethical process of consumption of crafts and craft products can be ensured.

The replicable and scalable nature of this project would enable more such projects to be undertaken in many more craft clusters thereby envisioning to create a large scale impact in the craft sector.

By evaluating project impact The project was streamed towards making the cluster into a self-sustaining form as an experiential tourism hub. It was essential to define how to measure the impact the initiative created for the community, and the associated stakeholders. The larger intention was also to collect feedback from the various people associated in this initiative to understand the shortcomings, and to design solutions for improvement and evolvement. From the internal stakeholders to the external receivers of the initiative, a review of the entire venture was planned for a seamless run. Based on the insightful points, an analysis and a plan of action points to act upon in the craft community was concurrently developed and planned for implementation.

The immediate impact was to align the process of Gundiyali’s transformation into a best practice example for cultural tourism. The initiative was also championed from within the community through extensive softskill capacity building as part of the project. The immediate result will see an increase in footfall of local, national and international tourists into Gundiyali in the near future.

The expected long term impact is for Gundiyali to become an exemplary case of a community continuously evolving to sustain the craft practice with the help of craft tourism as a catalyst.

The benefits of the Craft Experiential Tourism hub will be situated around five major parameters: • Identity: Providing an identity to the cluster by bringing the craftspeople to the forefront.

• Sustenance and growth: Tapping into the direct involvement of craft users and tourists in the making process to aid evolution of the crafts.

• Empathy and collaboration: Creating an empathy circle from the tourist to the craftspeople and back to the tourist makes it a wholesome human centred system design.

• Economy: The craft community thrives on the visiting tourists and the local businesses and people find opportunities that were untapped earlier.

• Value: Value is created from memories and meaningful experiences to bringing recognition, innovation, markets and further intangibles for the craft community.

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Monitoring and Evaluations To understand the impact the project had on the community, and larger stakeholders, a feedback loop was created to collect feedback from the various people associated in this initiative. The monitoring and evaluation framework was developed at the British Council.A perceptual understanding of various factors and parameters related to the practice and the programme were collected before and after the programme to understand how it evolved the cluster’s thoughts, ideas and monitor how it would translate back into the practice.

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Participant mix The feedback was taken from 63 participants. About 46% of these were women, and 54% were men. Further, 48% of the participants were expert craftspeople, of which 77% were men and 23% were women. 43% of the participants were mid-level craftspeople, of which 70% were women and 30% were men. Among the 9% amateur participants, 50% were men and 50% were women.

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The programme challenged them to think about the various possibilities beyond the conventional paradigm of practice by incorporating a design thinking framework. Here are a few things we learnt from the community’s words on impact of the programme: Experimentation within the craft practice At the core of the programme was based on experimentation and innovation. The community was exposed to voices of diverse practitioners that triggered new methods. Craftspeople across the amatuer levels to the experts started experimenting with the way they used the material they had, with new objects and new ways of looking at contemporary markets.

They mentioned learning to make murals, glazing techniques, making new forms in the plates they make, colour combinations and surface ornamentation techniques, designs for the diverse contemporary needs and also aesthetic arrangements in shapes.

their traditional past, and how they can adapt it to the present scenario. They further aspired to learn more about these ideas moving forward with their practice.

Craft tourism to connect with a global community Participants liked the idea of connecting globally with artists and enthusiasts.

They look forward to inviting tourists to show them the craft practice, and also learn from the tourists’ perspectives.

They were elated with the diversity of cultures they could experience by interacting with different makers across the globe, and now aspire to talk about their community, culture and craft practice with tourists.

A set of questionnaires developed at the British Council were also shared with the craftspeople before and after the programme. The findings have been illustrated and discussed in the following pages.

Reinforced values in craft and culture The participants felt a strong newfounded sense of appreciation for the craft and cultural heritage. The idea of exploring their physical and cultural context to derive inspirational cues made them find a sense of appreciation and learn more about 199

Pre-programme survey

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Post-programme survey

The percieved importance of cultural heritage grew evidently during the programme. Before the programme, 93% of the total expert participants, 93% of the total midlevel participants and 83% of total amatuer participants felt that cultural heritage is important, whereas post the programme 100% of the participants felt that cultural heritage is an important aspect of the craft design process. About 87% expert level, 30% mid-level and 100% amateur level participants felt that cultural heritage is very important, and the rest found it important.

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Pre-programme survey

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Post-programme survey

The opportunities to learn about cultural heritage were positively observed during the programme. Before the programme, 100% of the total expert participants, 93% of the total mid-level participants and 33% of total amatuer participants had opportunities to learn about cultural heritage, whereas about 100% expert level, 100% mid-level and 75% amateur level participants felt that they had opportunities to learn about cultural heritage in the programme.

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These are all findings about the awareness of finding opportunities in the craft sector and further about willingness to develop a career in the craft sector.

Of the 48% expert craftspeople from the total, about 83% knew how to find opportunities in the craft sector, 67% already have a career in craft, 23% feel that they will surely have a career in craft and 10% feel that they’ll have a career in craft.

Of the 43% mid-level craftspoeple, about 65% from the total knew how to find opportunities in the craft sector, 5% already have a career in craft, 63% think they’ll surely develop a career in craft and 5% feel that they’ll develop a career in craft.

Of the 9% amateur craftspeople, about 33% from the total know about finding opportunities in the craft sector, while 33% feel they’ll surely make a career in craft, 67% think they’ll make a career in crafts.

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Participants felt a great change in how they design craft and feel that they’re able to better incorporate heritage into their design due to the different aspects of the programme and their learnings. 100% of total expert craftpeople, 89% of the mid-level craftspeople and 83% of amateur craftspeople saw a change in the way they design craft. 97% of the total expert craftspeople, 96% of the mid-level craftspeople and 66% of the amateur craftspeople feel an enhanced capability to translate heritage into their design after the programme.

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100% of the participants feel that tourism is essential to the craft practice, where 88% of the total expert craftspeople, 63% of the total mid-level craftspeople, and 83% of the amateur craftspeople felt that tourism is very important to the craft practice. While 100% of amateur’s believe that inclusive economy is essential to the craft practice, 91% of the total midlevel craftspeople and 94% of the total expert craftspeople feel that the inclusive economy is important to the craft practice.

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“This programme has motivated me to keep the craft traditions alive by practicing it. It has motivated me to be more vocal about my craft and process with people using different mediums” - Male, expert

“I liked how the craftspeople of Gundiyali were able to make new things during the programme” - Female, Mid-level

“From this project, I got to know about a lot of new perspectives of crafts and craft practice. I will be eager to talk about the my practice to the tourists” -Male, expert

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“I learnt to make and explore different designs on the plates that we make” - Female, expert

“Through artist videos, I observed and learnt about the colour combinations used in the products” - Female, expert

“I developed new ideas related to design and products after learning about it in the programme. It has also given me exposure to marketing” -Male, expert

“I learnt how plates can be used to express different ideas” -Female, mid-level

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“From this programme, I have learnt new things. By using this knowledge, I want to make something out of terracotta that has association with the people’s health, like we make water pots” - Female, mid level

“Through this programme, I got exposed to the works and ideas of other artists which triggered new thoughts and ideas in my practice” - Male, mid-level

“I learnt about how social media can be used to sell and market products” - Female, amateur

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“The learnings were great. It was an experience to share my craft practice and know about the practice of different artists across India and UK” - Female, mid level

“Clay can be mould in desired form, shape and size. It was great to understand how different artists used this medium to express themselves” - Male, amateur

“I learnt about how a simple product or an idea can take shape of an extraordinary product” - Male, expert

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“I have grown as a person from this project.

I aim to learn more and more from this project and the videos shared. It is full of learnings which will help me grow more” - Female, amateur

“All the ideas, thoughts and learnings were great throughout the programme. It is equally import to present and market product in an appropriate way to reach more people” -Male, expert

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“I understood the perception of art of the artists through the shared videos. The art and related works are the reflection of the thoughts of an artist. With this, I also learnt about how to stay rooted with culture and craft along with expressing thoughts through design” - Male, expert

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About Organizations Design Innovation and Craft Resource Center, CEPT Research and Development Foundation, CEPT University

The Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC), CEPT University, India functions as a research centre for the development and understanding of the traditional and vernacular building and craft practices of India. At DICRC, crafts are studied under two primary categories: SMC (Space Making Crafts) and SNC (Surface Narrative Crafts).

DICRC’s prime goal is to promote the significance of, and encourage the study of, the traditional and vernacular building and craft practices of India by means of dedicated research and innovation.

In order to do so, DICRC relies on five major focus areas: Research and Documentation (which includes mapping, documentation, research and analysis), Innovation and Development (through workshops, internship and fellowship programs), Education and Training (by means of conducting lectures, seminars and forums to establish the role of craft in Interior Architecture at national and international level), Application and Collaboration (taking up national and international collaborative research projects), and lastly, Resource Building and Dissemination (sharing the collaborators process and results of all our activities on our open source platform the Building Craft Lab [BCL]).

DICRC is a conducive platform where design thinking engages with a range of crafts and traditional knowledge. It also provides consultancy services to creative persons, artisans and the interior architecture industry for the implementation of innovative ideas in the field of crafts within current interior architecture education as well as practice. DICRC was founded by Prof. Krishna Shastri (former Director, DICRC and former Dean, Faculty of Design, CEPT University) and Jay Thakkar (Executive Director, DICRC and Associate Prof.

Faculty of Design, CEPT University).

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British Council The British Council is the UK’s international organisation for cultural relations and educational opportunities. The objective is to create friendly knowledge and understanding between the people of the UK and other countries. The British Council does this by making a positive contribution to the UK and the countries we work with – changing lives by creating opportunities, building connections and engendering trust. The British Council is recognised across India for its network of three libraries and cultural centres. They offer a range of specialised projects in arts, education, English language and society to audiences across India and more than 100,000 members.

British Ceramics Biennale The British Ceramics Biennial (BCB) launched in 2009 with a festival celebrating and showcasing contemporary ceramics from across the world. Set in Stokeon-Trent – the heart of the UK ceramics industry, the festival took place in established venues and non-traditional spaces across the city. In over a decade, BCB has built up a programme of projects of artists’ residencies, fellowships, commissions, education and enterprise projects running year round. The initiative is intended to be a catalyst for regeneration in the region and to create a platform for innovation and excellence celebrating the best in current ceramic practices, both nationally and internationally.

The Clay Foundation In February 2015, The Clay Foundation was established as a registered charity, with the express purpose to build on the achievements of BCB and create a legacy for the City in a new cultural agency. Its mission is to build upon the heritage of the Potteries as the home of British ceramics through education, projects and events to stimulate and promote awareness, creativity and innovation across a range of arts and contemporary ceramics practices.

Manthan Educational Programme Society Manthan, the brain-child of late Mr. Ramesh Kothari, was established as a not for profit organization with an aim to eradicate the qualms of science by developing a scientific temper in the young minds and the members of communities. Manthan gives great significance to curiosity in minds of students, educators and trainees for experiential learning through various expressive mediums – initially through folk art like puppet shows followed by educational tools, radio programs, exhibitions and by creating a massive outreach programme through Hands-on activities and resourceful kits. Since more than a decade Manthan has been involved in Entrepreneurship Development across several districts of Gujarat. Manthan focuses on using Science and Technology as a medium for Entrepreneurship Development. Special training and learning modules are developed for several different areas of work in different regions.

The training is conducted in a vernacular medium. In the past few years, several activities have been conducted in the regions of Kutch, Bharuch, Surendranagar and Narmada of Gujarat State.

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Indian Ceramics Triennale The Indian Ceramics Triennale, initiated by the Contemporary Clay Foundation, aims to showcase and nurture the growing diversity of ceramic art expression in India and to exhibit together with the best practices in international contemporary ceramics. Presenting cutting edge art, the Indian Ceramics Triennale broadens the scope and viewership of the ceramic medium within the visual arts field.

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Acknowledgements Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre (DICRC) Team Prof. Jay Thakkar – Executive Director Prof. Krishna Shastri – Former Director of DICRC Prof. Kireet Patel– Former Advisor Prof. Rishav Jain – Research Expert Mansi S. Rao – Senior Research Associate Mitraja Bais – Senior Research Associate Samrudha Dixit – Research Associate Piyush Shah – GIS/IT Consultant Radha Devpura – Research Assistant Abhishek Ruikar – Research Assistant Bhargav Padhiyar – Research Assistant Leena Jain – Research Consultant Daksh Dev – Research Assistant Isha Bodawala – Research Assistant Kirtan Shah – Research Assistant Priyanka Shah – Exhibition Designer Luca Kaussen – Exhibition Designer Jayesh Gohel – Website Designer UK/India International Residency team Barney Hare Duke – Artistic Director, British Ceramics Biennial, UK Gabriella Rhodes – Ceramic Artist, UK Jo Ayre – Ceramic Artist, UK Lokesh Ghai – Project Manager, Ahmedabad, India Peter Jones – Ceramic Artist, UK Ramesh Hengadi – Warli Artist, India Rasika Hengadi – Warli Artist, India Reyaz Badaruddin, Ceramic Artist, India Stephen Dixon – Professor of Contemporary Crafts, Manchester School of Art, UK 221

Collaborators Abhay Kothari and Kathan Kothari – Manthan Educational Programme Society, India Ranna Parikh – Indian Institute of Interior Designers, Ahmedabad Chapter Anjani Khanna – Indian Ceramics Triennale British Council Team Jonathan Kennedy – Director Arts, India Devika Purandare – Head of Arts, North India & Programme Manager Crafting Futures, India Pooja Sen – Manager Arts, North India Katia Stewart – Global Programme Manager for Crafting Futures, the British Council’s Global Programme Terracotta craftspeople of Gundiyali Fakirmamad Nurmamad Kumbhar, Adham Fakirmamad Kumbhar, Khatun Fakirmamad Kumbhar, Fatmaben Fakirmamad Kumbhar, Farida Salim Kumbhar, Shakinabai Daud Kumbhar, Abdulkarim Sidhik Kumbhar, Jullubai Abdul Kumbhar, Sabir Abdul Kumbhar, Ismail Jusab Kumbhar, Shakina Ismail Kumbhar, Aminabai Husen Kumbhai, Aminabai Osman Kumbhar, Osman Husen Kumbhar, Husen Isa Kumbhar, Husen Ismail Tank, Niyamat Husen Tank, Yasin Husain Tank, Alimamad Sidhik Kumbhar, Khatunbai Alimamad Kumbhar, Salemamad Mamad Kumbhar, Saleman Salemamad Kumbhar, Shakinaben Salemamad Kumbhar, Amad Daud Kumbhar, Hamidabai Hasam Kumbhar, Shakurabai Amad Kumbhar, Hasam Amad Kumbhar, Shakur Amad Kumbhar, Osman Daud Kumbhar, Aisabai Daud Kumbhar, Jamilabai Osman Kumbhar, Abbas Daud Kumbhar, Abdulsatar Abbas Kumbhar, Sarifabai Abbas Kumbhar, Alimamad Daud Kumbhar, Anwar Alimamad Kumbhar, Ruksanaben Anwar Kumbhar, Sherbanuben Alimamad Kumbhar, Yasararfat Alimamad Kumbhar, Jamilaben Salim Kumbhar, Late Jillubai Suleman Kumbhar, Salim Suleman Kumbhar, Suleman Daud Kumbhar, Abubakhar Osman Kumbhar.

Alimamad Osman Kumbhar, Jenabai Suleman Kumbhar. Jalabai Osman Kumbhar, Suleman Osman Kumbhar, Sakinabai Alimamad Kumbhar, Ibrahim Ismail Kumbhar, Ismail Mamad Kumbhar, Rukshana Salim Kumbhar, Salma Ibrahim Kumbhar, Khatubai Ismail Kumbhar, Salim Ismail Kumbhar, Hamidabai Satar Kumbhar, Havabai Iliyas Kumbhar, Satar Iliyas Kumbhar, Iliyas Nurmamad Kumbhar, Razak Iliyas Kumbhar, Roshanbanu Razak Kumbhar, Amad Mamad Kumbhar, Asif Mamad Kumbhar, Marjina Amad Kumbhar, Sarabai Mamd Kumbhar, Jusab Amad Kumbhar, Saherabanu Jusab Kumbhar, Sarifaben Kumbhar, Abubakhar Khumbhar, Aminaben Kasam Kumbhar, Kasam Harun Kumbhar, Hanifaben Sallim Kumbhar, Maliben Kumbhar, Salim Kasam Kumbhar, Yakubbhai Kumbhar, Fatmaben Yakub Kumbhar, Husain Yakub Kumbhar, Jamilaben Husain Kumbhar, Kulsumben Sidhik Kumbhar, Sidhik Yakub Kumbhar, Amana Ibrahim Kumbhar, Ibrahim Abdullabhai Kumbhar, Late Abdulla Daud Kumbhar

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Experts for Knowledge Exchange Program Aparna Jaishankar, Storyteller and Founder of ‘kahini- What’s your story?’

Ela Mukherjee, Ceramic Artist Jignyaa Vyas, Theatre Actress Keya Vaswani, Co-founder of Storyloom films Kumar Manish, Communication and Social media strategist

Nidhi Kamath, Co-founder of Storyloom films Nisha Vikram, Craft promoter at Craft Canvas Ramesh Hengadi, Warli Artist Rasika Hengadi, Warli Artist Reyaz Badaruddin, Ceramic Artist, Atelier Lalmitti Shreya Alok Gupta, Ceramic Artist, Shreya Alok Snehal Kashikar, Ceramic Artist, Mogra Sumiran Pandya, Co-founder and director, Gaatha Thomas Louis, Ceramic artist, Banana pottery Vasim Samadji, Sales and Marketing Strategist Vikas Gupta, Founder and designer, Chappak Drone Photography team Mayank Singh Sankala, Founder, Accion Land Pvt Ltd Parth Pandya, UAV Expert Other contributors Aasthish G., Amee Desai, Amol Kapadia, Bhargav Katta Rajendra, Bimal Mistry, Bhumika Keshwani, Chinmay Grewal, Chandani Patel, Chirag Jobanputra, Devika Gharge, Haritha Devi, Hardik Khatri, Jay Kumar Vaghela, Kamna Vyas, Krishna Shahstri, Lokesh Ghai, Nikunj Patel, Prabhat Desai, Rajdeep Routh, Rudrapalsinh Solanki, Sagar Shah, Shraddha ben Kothari, Swati Jangir Kothari, Upasana Jain, Yatin Mistry Craft CoLab Fellows : Ekta Gohel, Leena Jain, Monish Siripurapu, Mrinalini Bedi, Pawan Sankhala, Saurav Sharma, Shreya Alok Gupta, Sushma Madappa CEPT Students : Bhowmi Patel, Chinmayee Parikh, Dhvani Kanuga, Isha Hapani, Samriddhi Arora, Jeel Mody, Sakina Tajani, Nikita Natha, Khushi Amin, Maahi Patel, Pratika Kshetrimayum CEPT Research & Development Foundation (CRDF) Suren Vakil – Vice Chairman Shivangie Akhaury – Sr. Manager - HR & Admin Mansi Mehta – Financial Controller Sonal Trajker – Center Accountant Firaq Pleza – Manager Trainings and Workshops

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End Note The extensive six-year long journey with the terracotta craft community of Gundiyali has been a rigorous and enriching ride for the craft community as well as all the collaborators who have been associated with the project at diverse milestones. These engagements have brought the community’s craft practice closer to finding diverse ways to sustain.

The community’s innate resourcefulness and abilities were discovered at a group and an individual level, which enables initiatives from the community. The idea of growth and sustenance always stems from a community, and not from an outsiders’ perspective on intervention, instead it stems from an internal drive for the practice.

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Appendix Project Proposal India is rich in craft communities across diverse geographical contexts.

The project was aimed at bringing new opportunities for the sustainable development of the Craft and Cultural Tourism industry. The project was the first attempt to bring together the idea of craft, tourism and experience together.

This project could act as a significant roadmap for organizations, and craft communities working towards sustainable development in the craft and tourism sectors. The intent was to undertake a pioneering project of creating perhaps the first-ever craft experiential tourism hub based on a systematic research framework. With the Craft Experiential Tourism Toolkit developed by DICRC, this project has the potential to be replicated and scaled up at any craft cluster in the country, most of which are not recognised at all. DICRC has more than ten years of experience in working with craftspeople and craft clusters. The nature of work undertaken varies, ranging from research and documentation, innovation of new craft applications, immersive education and training projects to address problems around infrastructure, gender, design exposure, market exposure etc. The approaches have been interdisciplinary and collaborative which add value to modus operandi of the organisation.

About the Project Craft in the area of tourism had been about passive consumption through the final outcome of the craft practice. Craft experiential tourism, however, is about the ‘active participation’ in the ecosystem. In active participation tourists look to be a part of the regional lifestyle, in this context, part of the craft ecosystem, to build memorable experiences. Curating the different aspects of the craft cluster, forming immersive experiences for the visitors is essential to envisage craft clusters as experiential tourism hubs.

India is dotted with craft clusters. With a core focus on active participation, the craft experiential tourism initiative can drive engagement amongst visitors to benefit, empower, and position the craftspeople along with the outcomes. In order to do so, the craft cluster will have to be elevated to the local, national and international level. There are multitudes of activities that one can do so.

As part of this project, we have chosen a Terracotta craft cluster of Gundiyali, Kutch, Gujarat. DICRC, CEPT University has been engaged with this cluster since 2014. This project would become a torchbearer for the many more craft experiential tourism projects across India.

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Key activities undertaken: Craft experiential tourism has not been widely practiced nor applied systematically at many craft clusters in India. Direct engagement and associations with craft community and practices is essential. In order to develop and initiate this process we intend to do the following five sets of activities: • Initiating dialogue with the community of Gundiyali craft cluster • Collecting oral narratives and stories from the cluster • Conducting Knowledge Exchange Programmes* • Conceptualizing and executing a virtual craft walk in Gundiyali* • Disseminating project activities Initiating dialogue with the community of Gundiyali craft cluster A comprehensive overview of the Gundiyali terracotta craft cluster will help identify opportunities and challenges for the craft community and experiential tourists. The purpose is to get deeper knowledge about community through understanding their lifestyle, craft practice, societal structure, cultural and historical evolution over the years, the tangible elements in the physical context, etc in reference through this project. At this stage, the idea is to engage with various people, from the leaders in the community, craftspeople, to traders in the nearby areas associated with craft or tourism, which includes brands, emporiums, and food - stay - travel services and expose them to our project.

The idea is to engage with locals, including women and children from other communities who may or may not be directly associated with the craft, but help in the larger picture of the venture design. The purpose is to familiarize and sensitize the community towards the larger idea of converting a village into craft experiential hub. This is the phase of introduction of the key craft families who will be working along with the national and international artists and professionals, DICRC would:= • Organise an introductory meeting with the community to initiate the dialogue about the project.

• Discuss about project vision, key activities planned over the year with the craft community.

• Conduct an interactive online session with all national and international team members and the craft community to begin the project.

Collecting oral narratives and stories from the cluster Narratives allow building associations with the community. Once a dialogue has been initiated with the people at Gundiyali, systematic oral history documentation will be carried out that will include information about the culture, society, community, festivals, faith, food, rituals, philosophy, and livelihood.

Immersive understanding of the people of Gundiyali will aid in curating the interventions and experiences with the community. It further guides in creating a holistic plan of action created in collaboration with the community, bringing forth feasible possibilities. The narratives will play an important role for capacity building in the later phase of Craft Walk.

• Map oral narratives and stories from the craft community.

• Collate, organise and translate the oral narratives associated to the craftspeople and their families.

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Produce resource material for all the stakeholders and for international craft residency.

International Craft Exchange Residency (Original) Cancelled due to the Covid-19 global pandemic The proposal is to hold an experimental three-week international artists’ residency concluding with a series of public realm exhibitions/installations in Gundiyali town, Kutch. A multidisciplinary event that draws cultural tourists to the town, elevates the value of pottery produced locally, enhances livelihoods, brings diverse voices into curatorial and craft design processes and fosters a creative dialogue between artists/artisans/craftspeople/designers. It also will be a platform nurturing collaborations between established artists and emerging artists, A collaboration between cultures/ generations/ local and international and develop innovative new works and new ways of working.

• Conduct an initial field visit to Gundiyali to initiate the conversation about International Craft Exchange Residency • Set up the session of the entire team of artists for the international residency with the craft community • Make interdisciplinary cultural productions as part of the international craft exchange residency • Interact with various other local craft communities for the festival of craft • Conclude the residency with an event celebrating clay and crafts • Produce resource material about the residency and its key outcomes.

Conducting Knowledge Exchange Programmes The Covid-19 impact The global pandemic emerged right before the international residency was planned, there was a need to gauge what can be done to engage in an international exchange without a physical residency. A digital Knowledge exchange Programme(KEP)was conceptualized to provide monetary support to the craft community during uncertain times, with a training programme that facilitates exchange of knowledge across local, national and international borders. Here are some of the activities planned: • Brainstorming ideas and structuring the programme • Open calls and coordination with the community for registration • Networking and collaborating with speakers to curate content for each theme • Preparing a digital channel for exchange • Creating the content, scripts, and videos • Editing and translating videos to share knowledge • One - on - one discussions with participants and facilitating ideation for design challenges to broaden perspectives • Assessing and analysing impact of the programme

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Conceptualising and executing Craft Walk in Gundiyali (Original) Modified due to the Covid-19 global pandemic A craft walk is planned as an immersive curated experience that keeps the craft practice at the centre of the dialogue, discussing about the community

- the culture, history, lifestyle, practice, etc. It would allow tourists to have a guided tour while getting a chance to interact with the craftspeople in their environments in a structured yet open-ended manner. Through this craft walk, the idea will be to situate craft walks within a larger tourism trend of heritage walks/walking tours. This will strengthen the capacity of the craft community and especially young craftspeople to conduct the walk. They will become the community walk leaders representing the village. The planned activities for this stage are: • Visit the craft cluster to develop a plan for craft walk.

• Identify the key points for the tourist and also wayfinding/signages.

• Train and build the capacity of local craftspeople to become craft walk guides.

• Conduct a preliminary craft walk for team members and craft community.

• Conduct a craft walk for international design professionals as part of the international IMIAD Workshop.

• Conduct craft walks for design professionals and architects.

• Conduct craft walks for an open audience.

Conceptualising and executing a virtual Craft Walk for Gundiyali The Covid-19 impact A craft walk is planned as an immersive curated experience that keeps the craft practice at the centre of the dialogue, discussing about the community - the culture, history, lifestyle, practice, etc. While due to the pandemic, since real-life interactions were not feasible, a guided virtual tour was proposed.

• Identify the key points of interest • Use the resource materials, the drone photogrammetry image, placeholder map and stories to create a virtual craft walk.

• Conduct a virtual craft walk for international design professionals as part of the international IMIAD Workshop.

• Conduct virtual craft walks for design professionals and architects.

• Conduct virtual craft walks for an open audience.

Disseminating project outcomes (Original) Modified due to the Covid-19 global pandemic This project is imagined as a starting point of various long term relationships with the craftspeople, communities, organisations, professionals etc. The exhibitions are planned as a series of events where the intention is to disseminate the body of work done during the project and initiate long term collaborations. These outputs would be connected to various craft production organisations and practices to generate revenue for the various craftspeople in the longer run. The exhibitions proposed were imagined to spark conversations about how the community can be benefited with the idea of craft tourism, and how long term collaborations can impact the craft practice. Three major exhibitions are planned for this: • One as the culmination of the International Craft Exchange Residency where the participation is expected from the local villages and towns around Gundiyali along with national and international tourists.

• The second exhibition would be part of the existing gallery display at the

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museums in Ahmedabad where a larger set of tourists can also visit the outcomes of the project.

The third exhibition would be part of the British Ceramics Biennial 2020 Summer programme in the UK, positioning this craft village on the global map.

A website showcasing all the work done within the terracotta craft village of Gundiyali would be developed for the project dissemination that would remain as a digital resource beyond boundaries of region and time.

Disseminating project outcomes The Covid-19 impact This project was imagined as a starting point for various long term relationships with the craftspeople, communities, organisations, professionals etc. The virtual exhibition was planned to disseminate the body of work done during the project and initiate long term collaboration. This would also connect craftspeople to various craft production organisations and practices to generate revenue for the community in the longer run. The exhibition was imagined to spark conversations about how the community can be benefited with the idea of craft tourism, and how long term collaborations can impact the craft practice.

• The virtual exhibition would position Gundiyali as a craft village on the global map, and would be targeted to tourists and practitioners locally and internationally.

• A website showcasing all the work done within the terracotta craft village of Gundiyali would be developed for the project dissemination that would remain as a digital resource beyond boundaries of region and time.

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This publication is an outcome of activities conducted as part of the “Celebrating Clay: Generating new forms of cultural production for craft experiential tourism” Project. This project was organised and conducted by Design Innovation and Craft Resource Centre(DICRC), CRDF, CEPT University, India in partnership with The Clay Foundation, UK and British Ceramic Biennale, UK. The project collaborators included Manthan Educational Programme Society (MEPS), Institute of Indian Interior Designers (IIID) Ahmedabad Chapter and Indian Ceramics Triennale (ICT). This project was supported by the ‘Crafting Futures : India - UK Collaboration scheme’ by the British Council (under British High Commission) , UK.

For more information visit :

www.celebratinggundiyali.com