Getting better by the day

A Hundred Hands Collective, founded by Mala and Sonia Dhawan, held an exhibition at Fort Kochi recently even as they celebrated their tenth anniversary

Pics: Mala and Sonia Dhawan; the Harmony Quilt

By Shevlin Sebastian 

The band ‘Highway Haze’ was playing classic Hindi hits at the David Hall in Fort Kochi. When the song ‘Dum Maro Dum’ started, people began dancing. The most striking was a man with a red turban. He is Dwaraka, an artist from Rajasthan, one of the oldest participants of A Hundred Hands Collective which was holding its popular annual exhibition recently. 

A variety of textiles, handloom materials, jewellery, artworks, and pottery were on display. Visitors thronged the various stalls, even as the music was going on in full swing. One who looked happy was social entrepreneur Divya Thomas. “Everything was so beautiful,” says Divya. “I bought a lot of gifts for Christmas like handmade coasters and notebooks. The Collective is doing a fantastic job of promoting indigenous art forms, as well as the artists.”   

Looking on with bright smiles were the Bengaluru-based sisters Mala and Sonia Dhawan who founded the Collective. “This is our tenth year,” says Mala. “We began with 20 artists and now there are 120.” 

They have come from all over India -- Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Uttarakhand, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Orissa and Maharashtra.  

This year the theme is ‘Harmony’. “We are celebrating harmony because over the years we got people from all age groups, all religions, and all castes to work together,” says Sonia. And to celebrate this, each artist contributed a small piece to make an 8 feet x 8 feet quilt. 

The unusual thing about this Collective that the sisters do not take a commission. “All the money goes to the artisans,” says Mala. “There are no middlemen. We want to empower them by helping to build their own brands.”

Asked how they started the Collective, Mala says that they had begun by supporting a women's farmer group called Vanastree, which is based in the hill station of Sirsi in Karnataka. “The response was very encouraging,” says Mala. “Soon, individual artists and groups came and met us. I realised there was a need to provide a platform for small artistes to showcase their work. That was the catalyst.”

But the urgent desire of the sisters today is to ensure that the traditional arts do not die. “We are encouraging Generation Next,” says Mala. “Most do their B.Com and join a call centre. We want them to feel proud of their traditional art background.”

The Jaipur-based Mohan Kumar is a Mughal miniature artist. But his son Pavan, who is 27, was initially not interested in the art. “He told us the earnings were poor,” says Sonia. “But when his father began to do well, thanks to the exposure through the Collective, including making regular trips to China, Pavan felt encouraged. And one day, he took the plunge. Today, he has become an artist, and a good one at that.” 

Incidentally, apart from Kochi, they hold exhibitions in Bengaluru, Coimbatore and Mumbai every year. “Many of the artists earn about 30 per of their annual earnings from these collectives,” says Sonia. “And they establish valuable contacts.” 

In Coimbatore, Mala introduced a potter Jasraj to a person who runs a garden. The latter immediately bought 120 terracotta and earthen pots. “He told Jasraj he can buy a full truck, as and when the pots are made,” says  

And over the years, there have been many humorous moments. Once Mala overhead two women speaking. 

One said, “I have my own ATM.” 

The other lady said, “Gosh, please, can you show me where it is.” 

“Sure,” said the first lady, who went to the next room and returned with her husband.