Day 250 of Indian places making you smile – The village of creative artisans Pipli
Our first stop just 40 kms away was at the Pipili appliqué village. As the name suggested this was the place that could be considered as the origin of the colourful appliqué work done by the local community called the Darjis. We stopped at a row of small shops that displayed the amazing handicraft of the artisans…bags, wall hangings, umbrellas, lampshades etc. The simple folk actually hand-make these products in their houses in the rear and sell them in the shops in the front of the road. The riot of colour used in every item truly made me feel blessed to be part of a country with such a diverse range of handicrafts! We did our bit to encourage these locals by shopping for some handmade stuff. And my dad was thrilled at the amazing low prices…these products would surely cost double at any handicraft exhibition in Mumbai!
Our next visit was to another local artisan’s house. We walked through his house, past his wife and his wailing children in his simple kitchen, to the back room. What we saw was pure raw talent displayed in front of us. A huge collection of exquisite paintings called patachitra which literally means cloth pictures. The use of vibrant colours and distinctive lines on painted scrolls depicted many tribal, folk and mythological themes of the region. Although I was not a huge lover of the arts, I just had to purchase something as a token of encouragement. I was wondering why the local paintings and handicrafts of Orissa have not received the world-famous status that they surely deserved. Maybe the people themselves are too naive to know how valuable their work would be in the international markets!
So which Indian place made you smile today?
Please share your experience of Indian places that made you smile
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