Chandan Singh Banjara, Age-36,Chakdeopur
Sultan is tailor who lives in Chanderi. A Class V dropout, he recently joined the Chanderiyaan family. Here is what he has to say about his new experience. “I used to work as a tailor at a shop with three other artisans. I cut cloth and stitched kurtas, pyjamas, pants and shirts for men. However, it was after I joined project Chanderiyaan that I realised I could make many more things. Here, I’ve learnt to make Chanderi silk kurtas for both men and women. And I am even stitching cotton hand bags!” he says.
“We are all living for wages here, that’s what gets us our bread and butter but what makes me especially happy is that I am finally able to share my knowledge (old and new) with others, who can use it to improve their livelihood. I am sharing my knowledge with women, and teaching them to stitch salwar suits, saree blouses, pants and shirts to enable them to contribute to their family income. This gives me immense joy. At the same time, I’ve learnt a lot too. Hand bags aren’t the only new things that I’m making. Ustad Arshad has taught me to stich formal suits for men and sherwanis,” he adds.
Project Chanderiyaan was launched in Chanderi in 2009 with an aim to digitally empower handloom weavers in the cluster and improve their monthly household incomes by eliminating information divide, reducing gaps between the weavers and the end consumers, and increasing access to latest tools and technology.
Related posts
