An earnest effort to revive indigenous art and crafts

At Sankalp Art Village (SAV) at Pedagadi, about 46 kilometres from Visakhapatnam, the air is filled with the periodic chirrup of birds and the click-clack of the spinning wheel. Under a thatched shelter, a pair of deft hands spin out yarns from the wheel while at another corner a woman boils myrobalan (haritaki) to prepare the natural dyes for the yarns. The hum of the wheel is interspersed with a sound of a distant chisel at work coming from within a compound wall nearby. Here, coconut shells are being transformed into cups and wooden toys being given shape. This small Andhra Pradesh-based production centre of naturally dyed handloom, wooden toys and products is slowly making its way into international markets and major cities across India. The self-sustainable unit supports seven families of artisans in its Pedagadi facility and 15 families of weavers in Palakollu where its handloom unit is based.