RESEARCH STUDY Old City, Ahmedabad FAHILA MANSURI
Fahila Mansuri 17BDC012 Department of Design, Nirma University
CONTENTS About the course
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Acknowledgements
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Introduction
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Communities Kansara Ni Pol Jamalpur Flower Market Rajnagar vegetable Market Rogan Printing Mojari Silver Jewellery Ratan Pol
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Vendors Fruit Market Vegetable Market Kalai Paan Patrada Mukhwaswala
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Guidelines
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Learning
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Bibliography
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ABOUT THE COURSE Nirma University Communication Design Program Bachelor of Design, Department of Design Year II, Semester IV Course Code - DFS 200 Course Title - Summer Internship:Apprenticeship - 6 weeks Course Learning Outcomes (CLO): At the end of the Summer Internship: Apprenticeship of six weeks, the students will. 1. Develop and enhance professional competencies 2. Have exposure to real life environment 3. Understand the importance of industry work environment, market requirement, project deadlines, team work and methodologies in practice, professional work ethics etc.
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Syllabus Unit 1. Apprenticeship in the chosen industry 1.1 Application of design skills learnt in previous semesters 1.2 Development of practical knowledge related to specialisation 1.3 Strengthening work related values 1.4 Developing communication skills 1.5 Developing an understanding of market requirements, client brief etc 1.6 Understanding work environment and design processes/methods used Unit 2. Documentation of experiences 2.1 Organization profile 2.2 Processes/methods observed, work portfolio, experience and knowledge gained 2.3 New skills developed and insights gathered
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS As a second year student of Nirma University, I’m glad that I got a great chance to do internship at The House of MG and gain so much of learning and professional development. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet so many experienced people of different work background.
much about design and guided me through my work. I have to appreciate the guidance given by other supervisor such as the Purchase Manager at The House of MG - Mr Manish Vaidya, Manoj Pandey (custodian) who helped me in my project work as well. And also my fellow intern, Anjni Shah with whom I worked in the research project.
The aim of this internship was to learn professionalism, and how does an individual deals in a design office, how works on a specific project, and to learn more about design in a different way, also The House of MG being a hotel, It was a great opportunity to work and understand the working aspects from different ways.
Further, I would also like to acknowledge with much appreciation the crucial role of the staff of The House of MG who gave the permission to use all required equipments and the necessary materials to complete the assigned project. The experience and knowledge I gained are going to stay with me throughout my journey.
I would like to thank my mentor Prof. Narendra Patel and Prof. Sangeeta Shroof (HOD) for helping me gain the internship at The House of MG, where I worked under an immensely experienced and knowledgeable person Mr. Abhay Mangaldas (Founder and Director of The House of MG) and Priyanka Baliyan (Curator of Ahmedabad Trunk) who invested their full effort in guiding me and helping me bring out the best in me. Also, I would like to thank the Design team of The House of MG – Bansari Ladiya, Bhoomi Gondalia, Dhrupal Vaghela, Moumita Ghosh and Ruhaani Thakore, who taught me so
Also, it wouldn’t be possible without the support of my family, who encouraged me to work and learn new abilities. I perceive this opportunity as a huge stepping stone in my career development. I will strive to use the gained skills and knowledge in the best possible way, and I will continue to work on their improvement, in order to attain desired career objectives.
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INTRODUCTION
The House of MG
The House of MGÂ is a premier boutique heritage hotel in Ahmedabad, the UNESCO declared World Heritage City. One of the oldest buildings in the city, it wonderfully represents the architectural colonial heritage architecture of the early 20th century. Seth Mangaldas Girdhardas was one of the most prolific businessmen of Ahmedabad, a tall order, considering how entrepreneurial and enterprising the people of this city are. He built his house in 1924 and it immediately captured
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the imagination of the city. After many years of neglect, the scion of the MG family, Abhay Mangaldas took it upon himself to retire the house to its former glory, and two other heritage sites along with it. Collectively, they create a rarely unique hotel experience in the first world heritage city of India : Ahmedabad. The hotel has 38 beautifully appointed rooms, offering all modern amenities in a grand but homely ambiance. It is also home to two hugely
popular restaurants – Agashiye and The Green House. A gallery showcasing traditional textiles of India from the Mangaldas family collection, a Tribal heirlooms boutique and a heritage bookstore are the latest additions to the hotel to make the guest experience truly special.
This palatial building was restored with an aim to adaptively reuse the spaces to cater to a modern lifestyle without losing either the historical perspective or the traditional customs of a Gujarati home. Ahmedabad Trunk
Ahmedabad Trunk – The Textile Gallery, Heirloom Shop and Heritage Bookstore The Ahmedabad Trunk Textile Gallery houses a rare treasure of Gujarati textile arts that spans multiple techniques, materials and practices from far reaching corners of Gujarat. Continually augmented, this collection began with textiles acquired by Anjali Mangaldas. The Gallery exhibits are not for sale – rather to be viewed as a sourcebook of textile crafts available in Gujarat, to inspire contemporary design. A comprehensive listing of the textile traditions of Gujarat and practicing communities is available in book form at The House of MG and online. The Heirloom Shop, The shop is an extension to the Textile Gallery. It stocks exquisitely crafted heirlooms of handmade textiles (some similar to those displayed in the gallery) and in wood and metal. Though the products are not classified antiques, they are especially curated for legacy, to appreciate in value over time.
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COMMUNITIES The walled city of Ahmedabad was divided into pols. In each of the pols, people from the same community practicing the same occupation came together to live and practice their business there. As the time passed, the pols commercialised and people moved out of the pols. The communities in which there were still a few families who lived in the pols and practiced their ancestral businesses were chosen. Along with my fellow intern, for the communities we covered seven stories : Kansara Ni Pol, Flower Market, Vegetable Market, Rogan Printing, Mojari Making, Silver Jewellery and Ratan Pol. For our research of communities, Manish Bhai (Purchase Manager) helped us with the contacts which became easier for us to find them. We used to go on our research according to the convenient time they allotted us. Our entire research and documentation had been back and fourth. After completing few researches we used to get feedback from our curator or Abhay Sir and then we used to visit the site again to complete the gaps.
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Kansara Ni Pol
Kansara Ni Pol
Situated in the old city of Ahmedabad, Kansara ni Pol is a community of copper vessel makers. In the olden times, copper vessels were used for domestic purposes like storing water and cooking food. It was also used in auspicious occasions like marriages and during festive rituals. The tradition of using copper vessels in these auspicious occasions has been carried to the modern times, but its usage in domestic purposes has been replaced by other materials.
Since the usage of copper vessels is limited to special occasions, need for their production decreased. This caused the community to move to other professions and places.
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Mayaben’s workplace
Raw pots
Maya Paidapi cleans and polishes the raw freshly made copper vessels. She has been working since the last 5 years in Kansara ni Pol, before which she was a homemaker. She works along with her maternal aunt Bharti Ben. The unfinished copper vessels are washed with water and cleaned by rubbing a mixture of Amli (dried mango) and mud. This gives the surface a proper polish and shine.
Amli
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DeepakBhai
Deepak Girishbhai Kansara’s family has been in the copper vessel making business for the past 60 to 70 years. His family is originally from Surendranagar, Sauratstra. Due to inadequate water facilities, they moved to Nadiad. For the past 10-12 years, Deepakbhai chose to continue working as a copper vessel maker i n Ahmedabad.
He set up his workshop in Kansara ni Pol where he does the work of tipvanu, which is forming patterns on finished copper vessels using tools. This work is seasonal as it is confined to the months of March, April and May. Due to these reasons, he owns a small restaurant as a side business.
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Deepakbhai’s workplace
This is Deepakbhai’s workshop where he works with 6-7 labourers. They work for 11 hours everyday and they each finish upto 8-9 Beda (pots) a day. His workshop is in Kansara ni Pol but he does not live there.
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Tools used for making patters on pots
These are the tools (which are called aujar or kharbarto) used for making patterns on the Beda (pots). They are made from unused metal used for making railway tracks, this makes them resistant to wearing down over time. As the new generations are exposed to newer opportunities, they do not prefer to be a part of this craft. This is the reason for no innovations in the tools used.
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While working, they have a specific posture. They sit on low stools and use their hands or a thick metal rod for supporting the Bedu (pots) while the process of Tipvanu. For resting the Bedu, they use their leg for support covered with a cloth. Each of the vessel maker has their fixed dealer who sells the vessels. These vessels are sold in wholesale and their price is fixed in accordance to their weight.
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Jamalpur Flower Market
Jamalpur flower market
The flower market at Jamalpur, Ahmedabad is the only market in Asia which exclusively sells only flowers. This 24 hour market has been around since 1990. This market started off in Fulgali Vistar where people sold flowers on the porches of their houses. There were only a few fixed shops in the gali. As the market flourished, there was an insufficiency of space which caused
a lot of traffic, so the vendors came together and formed an association to raise money. The association approached the Municipality to request a designated space for the market. The committee of the association consists of 7 members. The Municipality allotted the space in Jamalpur for a 99 year lease.
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Though this is a 24 hour market, the maximum business takes place between 3:30 am to 8:30 am. There are 32 shops in the market and they import flowers from all over India, but most of the flowers are bought from within 40 km of Ahmedabad - Naroda to Biaad Gaam, Kheda to Bharuch, Sarkhej to Dholka. They either get the flowers through private cars or the ware of several vendors is brought together in a truck from different villages. Since this market is old and well established, the vendors have long term relations with the farmers. The vendors live within 15 km of the market.
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The rates of the flowers are decided in the morning according to their demand and supply, and so the prices fluctuate. The rates vary a little from shop to shop according to the number of customers in a day. At the end of the day, if the flowers a customer is requesting are sold out, the vendors buys the flowers from a near by shop and sells it to the customer.
As the day passes, the prices also fluctuate according to the quality and quantity of flowers.
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During the wedding season that is from November to February, the rates of the flowers go up as the demand is more. The variety of the flowers also increases. The customers come to the market and buy the flowers and, if needed, they deliver the flowers to their regular customers. The market also provides the facility of transporting the flowers in and out of the market. The people assigned either carry the flowers or load them onto carts. Since, the flowers are perishable goods, to keep them fresh throughout the day, few of the shops use air-conditioned storage or store the flowers
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in buckets filled with water. If required, they store the flowers in a cold storage which is 10 km from the flower market. The flowers which are not sold are collected at the end of the day and are disposed off and the AMC garbage truck collects it the next morning.
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Outside the flower market
Outside the flower market, about 500 families living in the slum areas, buy the flowers from the market and make garlands out of them. They sell these garlands by increasing 10% of the rates. These garlands are sold from 4am to 10 am, this is enough to sustain the family so they do not do any other work. They only buy the flowers as per requirement, so there is no wastage.
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The materials that they use to make the garlands are sold in the vicinity of the market itself. Before the market shifted to Jamalpur, about 15-20 families sold garlands in Fulgali Vistar. As the market flourished, the families grew to the present number of 500 families and it is still growing. In some of the families, the children are getting education and moving to other businesses. One of the vendors stated that “bhanela kaam ave� (education is important), but in some, education is not given much importance and the children join the flower business.
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Fulgali vistar
In the present day, there are still 4 shops in the Fulgali Vistar. They did not shift to the Jamalpur market because they did not want the old Fulgali to die out. The shops are 80-100 years old and were owned by the fore fathers of the present vendors. The vendors used to live above their shops but they moved out after the riots in 1969.
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The Modi community used to live near the shops but majority of the shops were owned by the Muslim community. The existing shops open at 7:00 in the morning and close at 8:00 at night. The shops bring the flowers from the Jamalpur market together in a rickshaw at 6:00 in the morning. The rates are same in all the shops but vary a little according to the time of the day. They sell loose flowers as well as garlands.
For storage of the flowers, they sprinkle water over the displayed flowers and the rest, they keep in ice-boxes. One of the shops also sells clothes as a side business. They expect the newer generations to join in the business as well.
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The vendors in the Jamalpur market are from different communities but most the shops are owned by people from the Muslim community. The farmers who supply the flowers are mainly from the Thakore community. One of the vendors said that “ekta ka udharan hai� (example of unity).
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The market that started with just a few shops and people selling flowers from their houses has now grown into a flourishing market, which also sustains the 500 families outside the market. They have symbiotic relationship and together this forms an entire community of people vending flowers.
Anil Bhai brings the flowers everyday from the Jamalpur market to The House of MG. Every morning at 9 am he changes the rose petals and re decorates it. He also makes flower chari (bouquet) for the guests who vists the hotel to welcome them.
Anilbhai
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Use of flowers at The House of MG
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Chari making
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Rajnagar Vegetable Market
Rajnagar vegetable market
The Rajnagar vegetable market at Khamasa, Ahmedabad was set up in 1942. It started off as a wholesale market but presently, it has become a semi-wholesale market. It includes 200 shops which open at 5:00 in the morning and close at 7:00 in the evening, and on Sundays at 3:00 in the afternoon. The shops do not sell all the vegetables but have a fixed set of vegetables, like some shops sell onion and potato only, some sell only tomatoes and
likewise. They buy the vegetables in wholesale from APMC (Agricultural produce market committee) market in Jamalpur, which includes 80 shops. The vendors either go to the market in the morning or at night, according to when the trucks of vegetable arrive from different places in India. Some of the vendors order through calls rather than going to the market. They bring the vegetables from the Jamalpur market in loading rickshaws or pedal rickshaw.
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The Rajnagar market is managed and owned by the APMC and the shops are rented by the vendors. Most of the vendors live in Raipur, Shahpur, Kalupur and Narol and belong to the Prajapati community from Rajasthan.
Transportation
The rates of individual vegetables vary a little from shop to shop but overall the rates remain the same. The customers come to the market and buy the vegetables and, if needed, they deliver the vegetables if they are ordered in a large quantity.
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The market also provides the facility of transporting the vegetables in and out of the market. The people assigned either carry the vegetables or load them onto carts.
The vegetables which start to rot are collected at the end of the day and are disposed off and collected by the AMC garbage truck between 5:00 to 7:00 in the evening. Some of the vegetables which is are not entirely rotten are sold to owners of low-price Dhabas (restaurants).
In the market the vendors belong to different religions and regions but yet it functions as a community.
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Rogan Printing Rogan printing is a 300 year old art of printing patterns on cloth using rogan paste. Situated in the old city of Ahmedabad, Kadva Sheri was a Muslim community of Rogan printers. This community has been practicing this craft since the past 300 years and so their surnames are ‘Rangrez’. They were originally from Rajasthan and seeing the business opportunity in Ahmedabad, they shifted to Ahmedabad about 100 years ago. Before this community shifted to Kadva Sheri, it was a community of Kadva Patels, hence the name. This craft was practiced on the porches of the houses in the Sheri. Both men and women were involved in the process. Some of the printers, also had workshops elsewhere. Since the process was mechanised, the value of hand-printed cloth decreased. This caused the community to move to other professions, mainly screen printing, 30 years ago.
Kadva Sheri
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Hanifbhai
Hanif Rangrez’s family is the only family in the community who still practice this craft. He does Rogan printing along with 1 karigar (helper) and because it is not enough to sustain the family, he does tie and dye and shibori on handmade paper and cloth. The only customers are designers and design students.
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Workplace of Hanifbhai
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Tools used for printing
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Their workshop is on their terrace in Kadva Sheri. The printing is done using a special thick paste made from mixing rogan (varnish), chalk mitti and turpentine. It can be printed on any fabric or paper. The tool used is a block of wood with a handle which fits into a metal mould with design carved on its base, this tool is called a rogan block. The paste is filled in the mould and wooden block is put on it. This is placed on the fabric and then the wooden block is pressed to make the design. Once the design is printed on the entire fabric, velvet flock, gold powder or sliver powder is sprinkled on the print and brushed off in a particular manner. It sticks to the paste and the rest of it comes off.
The velvet flock comes in different colours and is used for smooth effect on the design. The gold and silver powder give a metallic effect and sometimes, real gold and silver is also used. When the gold and silver powders are used, the fabric needs to be washed after spreading to properly remove the excess powder. The prints are slightly embossed on the fabric. This takes minimum 24 hrs to dry and if the weather is not sunny, it takes upto 3 days.
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Rogan print
They bring the ingredients from Rajasthan and Mumbai. The tools used for the printing are from Rajasthan and the same tools are used since the practice started as they are not manufactured anymore in todays time. What used to be community of Rogan printers is now just a family. This art is not passed on to the newer generations, due to the mechanisation of the process, leading to a decrease in the value of hand-printed cloth.
Brushing off the powder
Haniqbhai’s family is a part of the living heritage of Ahmedabad.
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Sprinkling gold powder
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Rogan print
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Mojari
Mojari Bazaar, Madhavpura
Mojari is traditional handcrafted footwear. Situated in the Madhavpura, Ahmedabad, the Mojdi Bazaar was a community of mochis (which includes Sisodiya, Solanki, Baid) who made handcrafted mojaris. They were originally from Rajasthan but due to chappanyo akaal, a famine in the 1856, they shifted to Ahmedabad. Since then, they have been practicing this craft of making mojaris in Ahmedabad.
They used to make and sell the mojaris in their shops and their houses were above their shops. At that time, all the families in the bazaar used to make the mojaris, as the time passed this craft was not passed on to the newer generations. At present, they only sell ready made mojaris, which they buy from Jaipur, Agra, Mumbai, Jodhpur and Kohlapur. There are 25 shops in the bazaar.
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Ashokbhai (right) working with his Karigar
Ashokbhai Gajjar’s family is the only family in the bazaar who still practice this craft. The shop is run by his father and elder brother, whereas Ashokbhai along with 2 karigars (helpers) make and sell customised mojaris.
They work from 10:00 in the morning to 8:00 at night and if they have more work they also work till midnight. They buy the materials used for making the mojaris according to the requirement from Gheekata, Ahmedabad and the tools from Agra, Delhi and Ahmedabad. Along with making the mojari, they also do the work of leather covering.
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Workplace of Ashokbhai
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The mojaris are made from all kinds of fabrics like denim, canvas, velvet, raw silk and many others.
Ashokbhai Gajjar
Each pair takes at least 4 hrs to make. They take the customer’s measurements and their preference for the design, they also provide options for the design.
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The material is put over the canvas and astar (cloth) is stitched under it. Then the sole is cut and stuck with Fevicol 707. This take 10-15 mins to dry. The shape of the mojari is given using different wooden moulds.
Tools used for making Mojaris
Even though, the other families in the community do not pass on the craft to the newer generations, Ashokbhai promises to pass on the craft so that the essence of the community lives on.
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Silver Jewellery Luhar ni Pol, Ahmedabad was a residential pol since the past 200 years. This was a Jain community. As the time passed, the area around the pol began to commercialise and so the rates of the houses in the pol increased. This caused the people to sell the houses and move out. Since the past 30 years, this pol has become a community of jewellery makers and sellers. The shops are owned majorly by the Marwadi and Soni community. There are 150 shops in the pol. When the shops were opened 30 years ago, they used to make silver, copper and gold jewellery themselves and also sold readymade jewellery. Presently, only a few shops make the jewellery while the others chose to sell only readymade jewellery. Some of the shops only sell specific pieces of jewellery like mangalsutra, payal, Bhagwan na mugat and the like.
Luhar Ni Pol
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Sunil Panchal
Payal
One of the shops is owned by Sunil Panchal who makes chandi na payal (silver anklet). He runs the shop along with three other family members.
They make 150 payal everyday which are exported to Delhi, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, Hyderabad and Punjab.
The shop opens at 9:00 in the morning and closes at 7:00 in the evening. He is the only shopkeeper who lives above his shop.
In Gujarat, customers prefer good quality silver so the ratio of silver and copper is 80:20 or 90:10. In other states, customers prefer less expensive payal so the ratio is 60:40.
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Silver wires
The silver comes in form of wires which is then wound into springs at Sunilbhai’s shop. The springs are then cut into rings. The rings are arranged by aligning the cuts together which are then glued using a mixture of Zinc, silver, copper, Khar and navsar chemical. The solution is called raavti. To strengthen the glue it is heated using a burner and this is called gunthad. This takes approx 15 minutes to cool. The rings are either made into chains or sent as it is to karigars for ado chadiyo (inserting beads into payal).
These payal are called ballpinjar payal. The tools used for this are called samaani, sansi and kapdi which come in different sizes. He brings the taar (wire) from a factory in Naroda. It is delivered to them every three days. The beads for the payal are bought from Rajkot. They have fixed vendors for this.
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Making rings from spring
Silver spring
Even though, the other families in the community have moved out, Sunilbhai continues to live in Luhar ni Pol, so that the essence of the community lives on.
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Silver rings
Tools used for making payal
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Ratan Pol
Ratan Pol
Situated in Manekchowk, Ahmedabad, Ratan Pol is a community of Shah and Patel. This pol has kapda (cloth) bazaar which is 100 years old. There were 800-1000 shops and the shop owners lived in pols within 1 km of
the bazaar. As the time passed, the area was commercialised and the number of shops increased to 2000 shops. The shops sell materials for sarees, shirts and pants, readymade dresses and cloth pieces.
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The shops are both retail and wholesale. The shop keepers buy the material for clothes from all over India. The shops in the bazaar open at 10:30 in the morning and close at 8:30 at night and on Sunday at 6:00 in the evening. Unlike bazaars in Rajkot, they do not take breaks in the afternoon.
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Outside all the shops, one employee sits to attract customers by calling out to them. At the entrance of the pol, there are smaller shops selling coconut water, food, sugarcane juice, tea, water, weighing machines and mobile covers.
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VENDORS The vendors are chosen looking at their relation with The House of MG and also the value the product will add to the purpose of the research. The main purpose to cover the vendor stories was to showcase that the hotel is not only situated in an old city but also holds onto the essence of the heritage feel by being connected to the different vendors around the old city Along with my fellow intern, for the vendors we covered six stories : Fruit Market, Vegetable market, Kalaiwala, Paan, Patrada, Mukhwaswala. For our research of communities, Manish Bhai (Purchase Manager) helped us with the contacts which became easier for us to find them. We used to go on our research according to the convenient time they allotted us. Our entire research and documentation had been back and fourth. After completing few researches we used to get feedback from our curator or Abhay Sir and then we used to visit the site again to complete the gaps.
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Fruit Market
Fruit Market
The fruit market in Manekchowk, started in 1942.
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Khetaji
Khetaji Motiji has a three shops in this market since the last 35 years and supplies fruits to Agashiye, House of MG. The then-manager of Agashiye, Govindbhai Patel got in contact with him when the restaurant opened 20 years ago and he has been supplying fruits to the restaurant since. He opens the shop at 5:00 in the morning and closes at 9:00 in the night. The shop is run by 4 people.
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Khetaji buys the fruits in wholesale from Vijaymil Market in Naroda. His son, Hasmukhbhai, goes to the market every morning and selects the fruits himself. He does not buy the fruits from a fixed supplier in the market, but he checks the quality of fruits and buys them from different suppliers according to the requirement.
The suppliers send the ordered fruits in a loading rickshaw to Khetaji’s shop. Once the fruits arrive at the shop, he checks their quality again and grades them,according to their finish, look and how ripe they are, into ek (one) number, bey (two) number and tron (three) number, ek number being the finest quality. According to the grading, he decides the rates of the fruits. He supplied fruits to many hotels and restaurants in the beginning but gradually stopped doing so due to issues with payment. Now, he supplies only to a few hotels, including Agashiye, where he does not face problems with the payment.
Hasmukhbhai
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Delivery of fruits at The House of MG
The fruits are sent to Agashiye, everyday between 8:00 to 9:00 in the morning in a pedal rickshaw, according to the order placed the previous night. They send only ek number quality fruits to Agashiye. If the quality of fruits is not up to the mark, Agashiye sends the fruits back to him and he accepts the returns, as he believes that he should adhere to the quality of fruits he promised.
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The fruits which start to rot in Khetaji’s shop are either thrown away or given to the needy. They remove the rotten part and cut the rest into small pieces and sell them. The relation between Khetaji and House of MG has lasted this long due to the quality of fruits delivered by him.
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Vegetable Market
Rajnagar Market
The Rajanagar market in Khamasa, Ahmedabad is a 77 year old market consisting of 200 shops. Vegetables are supplied to The House of MG by three vendors in this market — Ganeshbhai Prajapati supplies masala that includes mint
leaves, coriander, ginger, chilli, Jesaji Prajapati supplies green vegetables and Prakashbhai Prajapati supplies tomatoes.
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Ganeshbhai and Jesaji’s shop
The shop beside Ganeshbhai’s shop is owned by Jesaji. He has been supplying green vegetables to The House of MG for the past 13 years, since he opened his shop. Ganeshbhai
Ganeshbhai has been supplying vegetables (masala) to The House of MG since the past 10 years, since he opened his shop in the market. The son of the previous owner of the shop, Dineshchandra Chunnilal, was an engineer who had worked with Abhay Mangaldas and so he had been supplying vegetables to The House of MG. When Ganeshbhai took over his shop, he started supplying the vegetables. He sells only masala and no other vegetables in his shop, which he runs along with three other people.
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Like Ganeshbhai, the previous owner of the shop supplied the vegetables to The House of MG and so through his contact Jesaji now supplies them. He sells only green vegetables in his shop, which he runs along with four other people.
Jesaji
The two shop owners are related but they believe that “sabandh sabandh ni jagyaye ane kaam kaam ni jagyaye” i.e. the business and relation separate. (They have an understanding and so they do not sell the type of vegetable the other sells and if the customer requires the vegetable, they buy it from each other.) Their shops opens at 5:30 in the morning and closes at 7:00 in the evening. They buy the vegetables in wholesale from APMC (Agricultural produce market committee) market in Jamalpur. They go to the market in the morning and buy the vegetables according
to the quality and grade requirements. Their vegetables are sent from the Jamalpur market in loading rickshaws or pedal rickshaw. They bring all qualities of vegetables — A, B and C grade, A grade being the best quality, but they send only A grade quality vegetables to The House of MG. They believe that since The House of MG uses the best quality vegetables they serve “ghar jevu khavanu” i.e. food that is like a home-cooked meal.
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tomatoes which come from Nasik, Maharashtra. He brings the tomatoes from the APMC Market to his shop in a tempo rickshaw. His shop opens at 5:00 in the morning and closes at 1:00 in the afternoon. He has also given a key of the shop to the tempo rickshaw driver so that if he is not present, the driver can drop off his ware in the shop. He borrows the crates from his suppliers and returns them once they are empty. Prakashbhai
Prakashbhai has been supplying tomatoes to The House of MG since the past 8 years, before which his elder brother used to supply the tomatoes. He used to supply the tomatoes since Agashiye opened but he passed away and so Prakashbhai took over the task. He only sells tomatoes at his shop by order and does not sell them in retail. He used to supply 300-400 kg of tomatoes to Abhay Mangaldas’s house for making purées for exporting outside and so when Agashiye opened he supplied to the restaurant as well. He buys the tomatoes in wholesale from APMC Market in Jamalpur. He goes to the market everyday, when the trucks arrive at the AMPC Market with the tomatoes from all over India, and selects the tomatoes himself. Each truck contains 10 different qualities of tomatoes and buys mixed quality according to the requirement of the customers. He sends the best quality
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Prakashbhai’s shop
All three vendors send the vegetables to Agashiye together, everyday between 8:00 to 9:00 in the morning in a pedal rickshaw, according to the order placed the previous night. Initially, the purchase manager at The House of MG, Manishbhai, used to go to the market himself for the purchase but now with the advancement in technology, the order is sent through WhatsApp. Manishbhai still goes to the market twice a week for quality check. The vegetables which start to rot are collected at the end of the day and are disposed off and collected by the AMC garbage truck between 5:00 to 7:00 in the evening. Some of the vegetables which is are not entirely rotten are sold to owners of low-price Dhabas (restaurants).
Transportation
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Mahalaxmi Market
The Mahalaxmi market in Paldi, Ahmedabad is a 12 year old market consisting of 62 vegetable shops and 11 fruit shops. In the place of the market, there was a bungalow before. The owner of the bungalow then decided to break down the bungalow and make the market complex. Most of the vendors in the market are from Rajasthan.
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Asitbhai Patel owns a shop in the market where he vends potatoes, onions and garlic and, in summer, he also sells katri (dried potato chips). He has a retail store and he also delivers vegetables to a few hotels but he does not provide home-delivery. He has been supplying these vegetables to The House of MG for the past 10 years. The account officer at The House of MG, Dhirenbhai, recommended him because of the good quality of vegetables he supplies.
His shop opens at 6:00 in the morning and closes between 7:00 and 8:00 at night. He runs the shop along with two other people. Even though his shop is in a different market than the others, they know each other. This is because the vegetable community is a tight knit.
Asitbhai
He buys the vegetables in wholesale from APMC market in Jamalpur. He goes to the market at 8:00 in the morning and buys the vegetables according to their quality. The vegetables of all the shops are brought from the Jamalpur market in tempo rickshaws. The potatoes are from Nasik and Khatiyawad and the garlic is from Madhya Pradesh.
Asitbhai’s shop
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Transportation
Transportation
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Delivery of vegetables at The House of MG
He sends the vegetables to Agashiye, every alternate day between 8:00 to 9:00 in the morning in a pedal rickshaw, according to the order placed on call. The vegetables which start to rot are collected at the end of the day and are disposed off and collected by the AMC garbage truck in the morning. The relation between these vendors and House of MG has last this long due to the quality of vegetables delivered by them.
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Kalai
Kalai is the process of coating tin in the inner surface of brass and copper vessel which are used for cooking. The process is called Kalai as tin is known as kalai in Hindi.
When food is cooked in vessels coated with kalai, the metal gets mixed into the food in very small amount which is considered healthy. It is good for the lungs and prevents lung diseases. It also makes the food taste better compared to when it is cooked in other vessels.
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Riyaz Rangrez
Riyaz Rangrez’s family has been in this business since the past 200 years. He is originally from Rajasthan but he lives in Danilimbda, Jamalpur. His shop is in Jamalpur, since 55 years, where he does the work of kalai and sells copper and brass vessels and antique showpieces as well. He opens the shop at 11:00 in the morning and closes at 8:00 at night. Apart from this he also goes to hotels for doing kalai, during which his father manages the shop. In his shop there are 5 labourers and including his family members there are 10 people working in the shop.
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The rates are according to the labour charge and the amount of material used. He buys the kalai metal from National shop in Kalupur in bulk according to the requirement. He does not go to the market but orders the kalai on call. The kalai is imported from Russia. The metal comes in form of slabs. They bring these slabs on two-wheelers or in auto rickshaws.
The process of kalai starts with melting the slab of kalai in water on a gas stove to make it into coils. As soon as the the stove is turned off, the kalai solidifies. The vessel which needs to be coated is cleaned with a mixture of caustic soda and water to remove all the oil, stickiness and dirt from the vessel. It is further cleaned with mud and acid.
Immediately after this, a piece of coil is added to the vessel and it melts instantly due to the heat. This liquified metal is spread in the vessel using a bale of cotton. The metal sticks to the surface right away. The vessel is then directly put in water. The kalai they use is 100% pure.
Navsar chemical is added to the vessel to ,ensure that it is clean and the coating happens properly, and it is then heated, more chemical is put in the vessel and cleaned with a bale of cotton.
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Uncleaned vessels
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Navsar Chemical
Kalai
Cleaning vessel in hot water
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Veseel after Kalai
Riyazbhai has been doing kalai on the vessels of Agashiye since the past 15 years, before whom one of his labourer’s relative had a contract with The House of MG. Along with kalai, he has been supplying brass showpieces to Ahmedabad Trunk since the past 25 years. He comes to Agashiye every three-four months and does the kalai on brass vessels used for cooking and serving, copper jugs used to store juice and buttermilk.
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The relation between Riyazbhai and House of MG has last this long due to the good service provided by him.
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Paan
SalimBhai
Salim Mohammed has been supplying paan for the past 40-50 years to paan gallas and restaurants. His family is originally from Madras. He lives in Behrampura and delivers paan to his customers. He supplies four kinds of paan — Kalkatti, Banasari, Bangla and Kapoori.
They all have different tastes. He has been supplying Kapoori paan to The House of MG for the past (20-30 years). Kapoori pan is used because it is light for digestion and is not too spicy.
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Before Salimbhai, The House of MG used to buy paan every morning in cash. Once there was a shortage of paan and Salimbhai’s contact was given to bring the paan at short notice. Since then, Salimbhai has been supplying paan to The House of MG. He buys the paan from Sarangpur Darwaza. He goes there everyday in the morning or evening to buy the paan. He keeps the paan in a bamboo basket covered with cloth, on which he arranges
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the paan in a certain pattern so prevent them from drying or falling out. He covers the paan with the dry grass. He stores all the paan in one basket which he brings on a scooter.
The relation between Salimbhai and House of MG has lasted this long due to the quality of paan delivered by him.
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Patrada
Workplace of Jayeshbhai
Patrada is a traditional disposable plate made from dried leaves, stitched with sali (thin wooden stick) and padia is a traditional disposable bowl made in the same way. These are handmade from Khato Asitro leaves.
Jayeshbhai Bhatt owns a shop in Chandra Ol from where he supplies patrada and padiya. He lives right above his shop. As a side business he also sells ‘Bhagwan na vastra’ (The clothes offered for God’s idol).
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Jayeshbhai
He orders the patrada from Balasore, Odisha. He orders the entire year’s stock in August, which is the month in which they are made. If he orders them in any other month, their quality is not up to the mark. The patrada are brought from Balasore in a truck which delivers the patradas as to his shop itself. The patradas are only sent once Jayeshbhai makes the full payment. The pack of 900 patradas is called ‘bandho’. Chandra OL
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Jayeshbhai at his workplace
He hires labourers according to the orders received. He pays them on the daily basis and does not have any fixed workers. During the season when there is high demand he hires 10-15 labourers. When they are not working for Jayeshbhai, they go back to their villages to farm.
The patradas needs to be kept in a closed room with proper packing . If it is exposed to sun, it turns red and ‘khari pade’ (breaks Into small pieces). And if it comes in the contact with water, it becomes loose.
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Patrada Back
Patrada Front
Jayeshbhai’s family has been in this business since the past 50 years and he supplies patrada to The House of MG.
The size of the patradas is 16 inches but The House of MG requires the size of 10 inches, so Jayeshbhai cuts them into that size and delivers them.
The then-manager of Agashiye, Govindbhai Patel got in contact with him when the restaurant opened 20 years ago and he has been supplying to the restaurant since. He sends the patradas every month and during the season i.e Novermber, December, January, he sends them 3-4 times a month, as per requirement. The order is placed on call and Jayeshbhai delivers the required amount on two wheeler whiten 10-15 minutes.
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The patradas are used at the Agashiye Hotel, The House of MG in the thalis (plate) for serving food.
Thali at The Agashiye Credits : The House of MG
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Mukhwaswala Smita Jasani and Dipak Jasani
Mukhwas is an after-meal snack or digestive aid widely used as a mouth freshener. Smita Jasani is the founder of Flavours, premium quality, home made mukhwas. She runs the business along with her husband, Dipak Jasani, who is an electrical engineer. They make over 30 varieties of mukhwas and package it from their home itself.
They supply mukhwas to Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Surat, Hyderabad, Bhuj and Kolkata. They also supply to customers in US and UK. Even though they supply to many places, the marketing done is through word of mouth and exhibitions.
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They sell in wholesale and in retail in packs of minimum 100 g and have also started selling on online platforms. The shelf life of the mukhwas, once opened, is 6 months as it “hawai jai� (becomes less crunchy).
Smitaben started making Rajwadi and Kapoori paan in 2007 at her house in Mumbai. She distributed it to her relatives during Rakhsabandhan. Having liked it, they placed orders for more and recommended her to their other relatives and friends. That is how she started the business. She then started making dry mukhwas and experimented with different mixtures and
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made several varieties. These included unique mukhwas for diabetic patients which was sugar free, mukhwas for acidity which was in powder form so that elderly could also eat it. She also started making healthy options like mukhwas with oats, dry fruits and seeds. One of their neighbours also made mukhwas and when she found the different varieties Smitaben made she replicated the recipes.
So as a business strategy, she made the acidity mukhwas in powder form so that the recipe could not be replicated. Also as a strategy, they do not supply to more than one shop in an area. They shifted to Ahmedabad in 2015 to stay with their son and daughter-in-law. After shifting, Dipakbhai also joined Smitaben in the business full time and they registered the company. They used to make and package mukhwas themselves but as the business increased they hired two more people to help them with the process.
The mukhwas is still made by Smitaben but the mixing and packaging is done by the helpers. This gave Dipakbhai an opportunity to find retail stores who could sell their mukhwas. They make mukhwas everyday. They mix 10-15 ingredients to each of the mukhwas and make minimum 5 kg of mukhwas at once for proper mixing. They make a little extra than required so that they can deliver to urgent orders.
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They supply the mukhwas, in labelled packaging, through courier services in Ahmedabad and to other cities, through a bus service. They supply mukhwas in loose packets to the local shops. They also make gift hampers during festivals.
increased they get the some ingredients roasted outside at a fixed place in a big tawa. As the business grew, they needed more space so they shifted to another house and the old one is fully dedicated to the business.
The reason for the premium quality of mukhwas is the quality of ingredients they use, the cleanliness of the workplace and also that they roast the ingredients 2-3 times for good taste.
They work from 9:00 in the morning to 7:00 in the evening and their helpers work till 5:00 in the evening. If needed, Smitaben and Dipakbhai work till late and on Sundays to deliver the orders. They make mukhwas throughout the year but their business is slow during summer.
Initially, they used to roast the ingredients at home in a microwave but as the quantity
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They get the 80% of the ingredients from Mumbai because of the premium quality. They buy dhana ni dal and other basic ingredients from Madhupura market, Ahmedabad. They do not buy materials from Ahmedabad as the quality is less to decrease the price. Initially, Dipakbhai used to go to buy the ingredients himself but now he has a fixed rickshawala who brings it for him. They usually do not have any wastage but if they have any they throw it away. Smitaben and Dipakbhai have been supplying mukhwas to The House of MG since the past 4 years.
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They supply 12-13 varieties of mukhwas which are displayed in the retail store of Ahmedabad Trunk and also served in Agashiye. They had come for dinner at the Greenhouse and they inquired whether the restaurant had a requirement for mukhwas. They had a word about this with Manishbhai and then met with Abhay Mangaldas who appreciated the quality and ordered the mukhwas. They receive an order twice a month and when it is off season, once a month. The order is sent in 3-4 days in a fixed rickshaw.
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The House of MG believes in quantity food products and so they order mukhwas from Smitaben and Dipakbhai. They have maintained the taste of the mukhwas throughout the years because of the specific recipe followed by them. Their motto is that “je ape ghare nathi khata, bija ne nathi khavdanvta”(what we do not eat at home, we do not feed to others).
Packadging
The mukhwas is displayed in the retail store of Ahmedabad Trunk and also served in Agashiye.
Ahmedabad Trunk
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Cart at The Green House cafe
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GUIDELINES The aim of the research is to showcase the true heritage and traditional nature of The House of MG. It shows that it acknowledges the local communities and supports them by buying crafts and products from them rather than importing it from elsewhere. In context to the vendors, it showcases the quality of products used by The House of MG throughout the years from vendors within the old city. In essence, it exhibits that the hotel is heritage inside and out. Along with that, the stories also add a layer to the experience. For our entire research we had set a certain pattern which we followed through out to make it easier for us. We made a questionnaire for both communities and vendors. Our flow of content is content through the research. To make the research and the photo series look like one family, we decided to click specific shots for both communities and vendors.
After getting feedback from Abhay Sir and Priyanka about the photo series, we came to conclusion to edit the pictures in B/W. As it creates more depth to the story and all the photo series can look like one. To make the Instagram stories more interactive, we decided to click boomerangs. So that the audience get more engaged in the content. Anjni and I were asked to make a presentation to our internship mentor Priyanka Baliyan for the same. In the presentation we included the gist of our research along with few photographs. We also proposed few ideas for the final output which was supposed to go on the social media page of The House of MG. Such as : • Photo series along with captions • Single picture with description • Photo series and description • Photo and gist • B/W photo series After finalising, for the Instagram posts and stories, we created a specific layout according to the brand identity of The House of MG.
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Communities
Vendors
The walled city of Ahmedabad was divided into pols. In each of the pols, people from the same community practicing the same occupation came together to live and practice their business there. As the time passed, the pols commercialised and people moved out of the pols. The communities in which there were still a few families who lived in the pols and practiced their ancestral businesses were chosen.
The vendors are chosen looking at their relation with The House of MG and also the value the product will add to the purpose of the research.
Points covered in the research : • History of the community • Present scenario of the community • History of the particular family • Process of making • Raw materials and transportation • Facilities provided • Waste management at their market • Link of the communities with their respective pols • Interesting stories
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• Points covered in the research • History of the market • Present scenario of the market • History of the vendor • Relation with The House of MG • How they came in contact with The House of MG • Process of making • Raw materials and transportation • Rates and grading of quality • Waste management at their shop/market Interesting stories
Flow of content Communities
Vendors
History
History
I
I
Present scenario of community
Introduction to the vendor
I
I
Introduction to the family
Process of making
I
I
Process/work
Raw materials and transportation
I
I
Raw materials and transportation
Waste Management
I
I
Waste Management
Link to The House of MG
I
I
Link to Pol
Conclusion
I Conclusion
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LEARNING This internship was a great opportunity of learning experience. I have gained new knowledge, skills and more confidence. I achieved several of my learning goals. I got insight into professional practice. I learned the different facets of working in a Hotel as I got to understand how different departments work as a whole. Working in a Hotel with a design team was a completely new experience for me. It had been helpful and useful to me for understanding design in a professional way. I got to learn about how a design team works in a professional space, how one controls the entire place by dividing work into different departments. I always use to face difficulty in communicating, that was one of the skills I wanted to develop here. Therefore I was reserved in communication at the beginning, but in the course of weeks it went better. I can think of the use of the experience from the work I had done. I experienced that hard work is the key to every good work. There is still a lot to discover and to improve . The internship was also good to find out what my strengths and weaknesses are. At last this internship has given me new insights and motivation for my near future.
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Fellow intern Anjni Shah
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BIBLIOGRAPHY https://houseofmg.com/ https://www.ahmedabadtrunk.in/
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