India Highlights

India is a vast country of great diversity, a strong cultural identity, and a fascinating history. Possibly no other country has its religions so intertwined with every aspect of life. Home to a large number of the world’s economically poor, it has an amazing array of traditional crafts skills and consequently is a major source of crafts products for Traidcraft.

We begin our journey in Delhi with visits to Tara Projects and Manjeen and their crafts workshops in and around the capital before visiting the Taj Mahal and the spectacular Red Fort at Agra. In the southern state of Kerala we visit NAPCL, Traidcraft’s supplier of the stem ginger which goes into their gorgeous cookies. We also take the opportunity to explore the old port of Cochin, a strategic centre for spice trade for centuries and enjoy the beautiful canals and lagoons of the backwaters by hand-poled narrow boat. Our tour comes to an end in West Bengal with craft workers at Sasha. Set against the Hooghly River and a backdrop of strong colonial architecture, the strong Bengali culture makes Kolkatta a great place to explore - it is rightly described by some as a city with a soul.

Photos: Malcolm Owen, Michael & Hilary Evans, Dave Bennett, Rajendra Shaw