Let Bengal’s Artisans Tell You Why They Favour Mamata Banerjee

Why has Kanailal Bagchi seen such a wonderful change of fortunes since Mamata came to power?

If one were to wonder who’s benefited the most from Mamata Banerjee’s government, they’d do well to ask Kanailal Bagchi.

Till a few years back, musical instrument maker Bagchi, 50, lived in a small house in his native Nadia, a district in West Bengal that shares its border with Bangladesh. His tiny home had musical instruments scattered all over the floor but he had little to eat. Armed with a skill as superlative as crafting 30 indigenous musical instruments – like the ektara (single wired instrument) and khol, he still didn’t earn enough to feed his five children and wife.

When the new West Bengal government came to power, it declared reviving Bengal’s heritage as one of its priorities.

It searched the length and breadth of the state and came back with artisans like Bagchi, who now sells close to 500 instruments each month. This, in comparison to the 100 he sold monthly in the past.

Why Bagchi’s Change of Fortunes is Heartening

Sitting in the stall at Biswa Bangla – a contemporary marketplace developed by the state to promote homegrown art and crafts – Bagchi is smiling ear to ear. “My musical instruments are selling across the country now. Some of my works have also been sent to a museum and it has fetched me over Rs 2 lakh,” he said.

A child, who enters the stall just then, asks about one of the ektaras lying in the front. Bagchi is only happy to acquiesce. He then tells me,

The ektara and dotara are an indispensable part of Baul sangeet. Today’s kids know nothing about them. But thanks to this initiative, I am crafting musical instruments right here. People come with their children, watch me work, ask questions and later take them home.

Bagchi, who can make 30 kinds of musical instruments like the flute, ektara, dotara, khol, khanjani, dubki, kartal, among others, can play 32 instruments himself. “My father, Anukul Bagchi could play the khol, a kind of drum. I have taught myself to play 32. I wasn’t sure if I wanted my son to continue with the trade, but now I am hopeful,” he says.

He has now started to make handicraft products that are being exported to the US, Italy, Germany and Australia.

I am making wooden frogs that are lucky according to Vaastu. Some craft pieces have even been used to decorate three Durga Pujo pandals in Kolkata this year.

“The Craftspeople of Bengal are Feeling Positive”

Bagchi isn’t the only one who’s happy today.

There are, like him, the craftsmen who make bamboo mats and fans, jute bags and dolls, hand painted mud and wooden vases – who have been invited to set up shop inside Biswa Bangla. “The art of hand painting wooden vases has passed on from mother to daughter in our family for ages. They are selling like hot cakes here,” enthuses Debi from Midnapore.

Craftspeople and artisans from nondescript villages of Banga, Bankura, Midnapore, Hasnabad, etc., are now routinely called in to showcase their products. Interestingly, the premise also has boutiques of world class designers like Sharbari Dutta and Agnimitra Paul among others.

As we share a cup of tea made by Bagchi’s 45-year-old wife, Ullashi, who has moved in to the premise with him, Bagchi voices the new hope of Bengal:

Earlier, people came to Nadia, looked for our residence and then bought the musical instruments. Today, I am selling around 15 pieces a day instead of 5, sitting in the heart of Kolkata. The craftspeople of the state are feeling positive.

(Runa Mukherjee Parikh has written on women, culture, social issues, education and animals, with The Times of India, India Today and IBN Live. When not hounding for stories, she can be found petting dogs, watching sitcoms or travelling. A big believer in ‘animals come before humans’, she is currently struggling to make sense of her Bengali-Gujarati lifestyle in Ahmedabad.)