Filigree artisans of Orissa need protection

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Filigree artisans of Orissa need protection

By Debasis Tripathy from Cuttack

 

Orissa will no more feel proud of its wonderful filigree works, which

is in the verge of destruction leading many families towards the dark

whole of misfortune. It may not be believable but true. Cuttack , the

one of the most prominent places of the state is not only important

as a business point but also a center for art and culture. For its

world famous silver works, it has been termed as "Silver city". The

silver filigree ornaments etc. produced by the artists of Cuttack not

only appreciated by the Indians but also by foreigners too.

Unfortunately this Unique art of Orissa is going to become the matter

of history due to lack of government support, non existence of co-

operatives, poor entreprenureship, professional rivalries and the

industrial finished products, which force the skilled silversmiths to

close their business.

 

According to sources there are about 500 families of silversmiths

popularly known as raupyakars in Cuttack are engaged in the work of

making gold and silver filigree ornaments since 30's . They prepare

different ornaments and models from the valuable metals directly, and

sell them to the merchants. This has been their lifeline, but now

these raupyakars move pillar to post for survival being triggered by

the administrative callousness, and so many other factors. Neither

they are united nor there exist any co-operative, they are being

exploited by the big fishes and the dalals. "It is not that the

demand for silver ornaments or filigree works has fallen down over

the years. Neither the cost of silver has gone out of reach nor the

cost of gold. But the exploitation by the middlemen and the bereft of

market push us towards the brink of penury"—says Shri Kartik Maharana

(60), an old raupyakar of Alisha Bazar. Absence of co-operative

society, and capital adds more pin to their coffins. Due to lack of

it, middlemen provide raw materials to these raupyakars and take away

the finished products at a very lower price and sale them at

exorbitant prices in the showrooms even abroad. Hence the lion shair

of the market goes to the pocket of this dalals where as the bowl of

the poor artisans remain empty. "The Bhatias (dalals) are sucking our

blood and our wages depend on the payments decided by them. They have

became our masters" – says Asit Karmakar of Binod Bihari. Why are you

not contacting with the merchants directly ? when asked, Shri

Karmakar says we do not have capital to meet the contracts of the

merchants and the banks are not coming forward to finance us.

 

On the other hand the government is so conscious about the issue that

it has no information regarding the exact number of the artisans

working in this line. Though there is a post of Registrar of

industries under the department of industries for this alleges Shri

Ravindra Mohanty, a sociologist working on this project.