Arhandicraft
Arhandicraft
Arhandicraft export service was started in 1984 in South India. It is a partnership with several unites, one of which provides an export service for all the other independent producers. There are about 280 people involved in Arhandicraft. Many of the producers are women who rely totally on handicraft production for their livelihoods. They are producing mostly lampshades and hammocks and they also run a boutique in Pondy, displaying all the work of the local craftsmen.
Besides marketing handcrafts from hundreds of "low caste" producers around Pondicherry, Arhandicraft facilitates training to allow them to become progressively involved in the management and decision-making processes of their own enterprises.
Arhandicraft also runs a school offering free education to the most vulnerable children of the surrounding Tamil villages. Today over 250 children are getting an education, which would otherwise be unavailable to them.
