Bringing Design Perspective in Handloom Cooperatives of Odisha: A Case Study

Abstract

Handloom is the oldest known form of making cloth by hand. It represents a very early stage of cloth production. Handloom is now the source of livelihood to several millions of artisans and their families all over the world. Handloom products are not merely merepieces of decoration but also they symbolize the cultural ethos and the aspiration of generations of people to preserve the best part of their culture and civilization. The handloom industry of Odisha is quite famous for its age-old tie and dye work. The present situation of handloom weaving calls for in depth exploration to bring design perspective in their approach. Handloom weavers, in their ndividual capacity, being small unorganized, and scattered, are unable to secure even the bare minimum work needed by them on fair and reasonable terms. This called for organizational support, which could bring them all the advantages of the economies of scale; and protection from middlemen. It is primarily for this reason that weaver‟s co-operative societies had been organized in the country. Co-operatives however face problems from time to time and govt. has assisted them by introducing schemes and new supportive policies. While proper management has gained a great degree of acceptance as a problem-solving tool in this sector, design is never seen as an important element in the development & viability of handloom co-operatives. A better understanding of the problems and their solutions may be achieved through a design-oriented approach when clubbed with the existing interest in management and marketing approaches. This case emphasizes design as a major input which could help the co-operative structure to achieve its potential. Design should be integrated into the development perspectives adopted by the Handloom Co-operatives of Odisha.