This is part two of a three-part series undertaken by Visual Storyboard initiative of Centre for New Economics Studies (CNES), Jindal School of Liberal Arts, O.P. Jindal Global University. Read the first part here. Visual Storyboards’ work can be accessed here. For this project, please find all video essays published here. Read part 1 here.
In India, several handicrafts have relinquished their originality due to rampant commercialisation. Consequently, many well-respected artisans are made to overwork yet underpaid. One such handicraft is the art of papier mâché.
The traditional papier-mâché pieces of art from Kashmir are well-known worldwide. The art form, with a long and rich cultural history, was once a hallmark of the market for luxury items. Owing to years of natural catastrophes, violent conflicts, and a pandemic, the tradition of papier mâché is struggling to stay afloat in a world of automated and westernised demands.
The Centre for New Economics Studies’ (CNES) Visual Storyboard Team, O.P. Jindal Global University, spent a few months speaking with the artists involved in papier mâché work to understand their perception of the dying art and their efforts to preserve it. The findings revealed a community of exhausted artisans working hard to support themselves, with little to no help from the state and the Union government to help them survive.
In the early 2010s, the future of papier mâché was promising.
Artisans were respected, papier mâché designs largely consisted of traditional motifs, and as a bonus, the government provided a loan to these artisans to aid their production costs. This loan enabled the artisans to set up their factories or karkhanas to improve production and encourage the youth to enter the industry. Simultaneously, the automation of the production of Pashmina shawls around these years led to a shift of women’s labour towards the papier mâché industry.
Although their work was referred to as “unskilled” due to lack of knowledge, the industry has seen a continuous rising trend in the women’s labour force. In addition to this, the youth’s involvement also seemed to increase owing to the introduction of term courses in colleges. So, people from all age groups and across genders were part of the production process.
The papier mâché industry was flourishing to the point where the exporters witnessed an annual turnover of as high as Rs 5 crore. Unfortunately, all of this took a turn for the worse with the 2014 floods.
In 2014, Kashmir experienced massive floods that stranded thousands of people inside their submerged houses. The floods killed more than 300 people and rendered people with nearly no resources. The cost to the economy stood at more than Rs 100 crore.
Over time, everything came back to normal, however, the papier mâché industry did not. The artisans lost finished goods and raw materials. They could no longer support the newly established ‘karkhanas’.
As Aadil Hussain* explains, “Artisans were provided a subsidised loan of Rs 1 lakh in 2010 to support the revival of this craft. With the help of the loan, I established my own papier mâché workshop. However, in 2014, my workshop suffered complete destruction due to the floods. Unfortunately, due to the absence of insurance coverage and the burden of high interest rates, I couldn’t repay this loan.”
After the floods, there was no support from the government’s end to help the artisans get back on their feet; rather, there was a sudden rise in the interest rates on the loans taken before the floods. This further led to more problems for the artisans. Thus, the lack of resources and loss of finished goods set the papier mâché industry back to the point where they could no longer pay interest on the previously taken loans or sustain a livelihood with the minimal income they managed to earn. All of this forced many artisans to leave the papier mâché industry and move to safer, better-earning jobs.
Nasir Shah*, a papier mâché exporter for nearly 30 years, said, “The lack of insurance coverage for the artists resulted in substantial losses during the floods. Consequently, many papier mâché artists had to explore alternative means of livelihood. Some turned to selling vegetables, while others found employment as ATM guards or security personnel at various tourist parks. As a result, only around 20% of the artists remain associated with this craft.”
Adding to this catastrophe, political instability and violent contentions in the state during the period between 2016 and 2019 caused a further decline in the craft as the influx of tourists and their demands plunged. The final nail in the coffin came in the form of the COVID-19 pandemic, when tourism and exports declined.
As quoted by one of the exporters we interviewed, the annual turnover of the export line of Kashmir fell from Rs 15,000 crore to Rs 6,000 crore, all due to the conflict in the state and the pandemic-induced lockdowns. Such a large fall in exports further deteriorated the market conditions, making it harder for the art to survive.
The impact of commercialisation on the paper mache industry
With hardly any help from the government, the artisans have been forced to depend on bulk export orders to support their livelihood, and even then, they are hardly able to manage to make ends meet. Saad Naqash*, 37, said, “Changes in the craft of papier mâché have been significant, driven by consumer demands. As a result, the traditional design of papier mâché has undergone a complete transformation.”
Currently, the production of the art is largely in accordance with the requirements of buyers abroad, that is, the traditional designs (which consist of motifs) have started disappearing from the mainstream market. “Nowadays,” Saad* continues, “the focus is on mass production, leading to the creation of papier mâché products in bulk quantities, sometimes reaching thousands. However, this shift towards quantity over quality has had an impact on the overall craftsmanship and authenticity of papier mâché.”
The commercialisation and heavy focus on completing bulk orders have led to a newer generation of artists who are less patient and less respectful of the art. What was once considered art has shifted merely to “products” as the industry witnessed a decline in its originality and quality.
Mirza Ghulam Hyder, a national awardee for his art, expressed his displeasure by saying, “The products are mainly used for advertisements in foreign countries. People have now started using various kinds of material such as earthen pots which are not papier mâché. I feel very sad when I look at how the government is ruining this craft by preparing new generations in various training centres, which is not real papier mâché work. They are defaming this craft.”
Although the commercialisation of papier mâché has provided artists with new but modest income streams, it comes at the cost of the original art form that demands time and patience – qualities often lacking in the younger generation.
The role of intermediaries
The continued commercialisation and international demand for the craft from the West inevitably required the local artisans to depend on middlemen as a medium of bulk export. This is primarily because the artisans lack the resources to export the products directly. As a result, they have to rely heavily on exporters to help them earn a living.
There are conflicting opinions on how these exporters contribute to keeping papier mâché alive. While some artisans believe that they get a fair price from the exporters for their products, others do not. Instead, others believe that the competition between the exporters causes a rise in the prices of raw materials for production. So, while the selling price remains the same and as the cost price increases, it is the artisans who must face the music and endure the difference, resulting in less earnings.
Muqsood Ahmad Ganie sheds more light on this situation by comparing the costs of raw papier mâché balls, “the makers of raw material are in a position to bargain for a better price because only a limited number of individuals are now available who can make bases of papier mâché products. For example, the cost of raw papier mâché balls for chith wala (made of raw material) belonging to the Sunni community has increased from Rs 8 to Rs 19 from 2019 to 2023 but the cost for us who give the final touch to these products has decreased.”
“Artists like us are not getting their due recognition and amount. Another example here, last year the labour cost per box was Rs 15 and the cost of camel colour tubes was Rs 6, but now the cost of the same colour is Rs 30 and the labour cost of the box is the same.”
Exporters believe that while government officials claim to have helped the overworked artisans, the reality is quite the opposite. First of all, small artisans find no relaxation in taxes, namely GST. They have to pay extra money for the raw materials, which further drives up the cost price while they receive no return on the taxes due to the lack of a GST number. Even with higher expenses, the selling price for the products remains the same, leaving less profit margin for both the artisans and the exporters.
On the other side, the exporters face difficulties due to inconsistent transport charges and stoppage at customs – both of which can easily be solved by government intervention.
A larger area of concern is the disparity between the earnings of the artisans and those of exporters. Not only do the artisans believe that exporters give them low wages for the products, but they also give this minimal wage in instalments, making it harder for the artisans to survive. There seems to be no intervention from the government’s end to aid the underpaid artisans, and as a result, a monopolistic situation has come up where artists remain with limited options for selling their products.
*Names of all respondents have been changed to protect their identity and maintain anonymity. The authors would like to especially thank Rekha Pachauri and Meera Shirodkar for their assistance with fieldwork, interviews and the audio-video documentation of the study. Without their support, this study would not have been possible. All photographs are credited to them and Ishfaq Ahmad Wani.
Deepanshu Mohan is Professor of Economics and Director, Centre for New Economics Studies (CNES), Jindal School of Liberal Arts and Humanities, O.P. Jindal Global University. Ishfaq Ahmad Wani is a Contributing Research Analyst with CNES Visual Storyboards. Tavleen Kaur and Hima Trisha are Senior Research Analysts and CNES Visual Storyboards team leads. Yashovardhan Chaturvedi and Anousha Singh are Research Analysts with CNES.
