Craft and Capital: Investing in India's Handmade Economy
VIEW EVENT DETAILSTuesday, 5th March, 6:30pm onwards

Craft-based enterprises within the creative economy, which occupy a significant proportion of the total number of small and medium sized businesses (MSMEs) in India, face several operational challenges due to lack of adequate finance. And although a majority of craft enterprises suffered during COVID-19 in 2020, evidence suggests that craft economies have been faced with financial and infrastructural constraints long before the pandemic. A World Bank report from 2018 points to the mismatch between craft-based MSMEs’ demand for viable finance and limited credit flow, with unfulfilled demand pegged at a whopping USD 397 billion. In 2023, 200 Million Artisans’ Business of Handmade report estimates that approximately 78% Handmade and Craft-Based MSMEs (HCMs) struggle with access to working capital. Within this, gender adds another layer of disadvantage: more than half of the women-led HCMs surveyed are not even aware of the range of financing options available to them, compared to one-third of enterprises led by men. 62% of women-led HCMs, for example, find it difficult to talk to investors, compared to 48% men-led HCMs.
The report makes a crucial point: it reaffirms the need for capital in sustaining the craft economy in the long run, and the potential of this economy to offer substantial return on investments. Capital, if adequately harnessed towards the ‘handmade’ economy, has the power to not only contribute meaningfully to India’s GDP, but also strengthen the country’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, develop innovation, support employment and foster women-led businesses.
To bring the first season of In Practice: New Vocabularies in Craft to a close, our final session focuses on this very question – the question of capital. “The right financing at the right time, right place, and right terms can help the Creative Manufacturing and Handmade (CMH) sector catalyse 200 million livelihoods”, the report points out. But what constitutes “right” financing? How can the barriers between investors and artisanal communities be bridged in an inclusive, accessible and sustainable way? Is it possible to imagine new modes of financing that allow craft economies to grow more productively? How beneficial are existing corporate models of funding and distribution in supporting the sector? Are their examples of collaborative ventures that have been successful? And specifically, what problems do women artisans face in accessing capital and domestic and international marketplaces?
Our panelists, Priya Krishnamoorthy, the founder of 200 Million Artisans; Manish Saksena, lead consultant for Aadyam Handwoven at the Aditya Birla Group; and Manorath Dhillon, CEO at Okhai, bring to this conversation their expertise of many years in building sustainable ecosystems within the handicrafts sector. The conversation will be moderated by Rashmi Dhanwani, Founder-Director of The Art X Company. Through the session, we hope to collectively explore the complex relationship between craft and capital; the challenges and opportunities that exist in the handmade sector; and the groundbreaking potential of a robust craft economy in India.
In 2022, ‘In Practice: New Vocabularies in Craft’ was conceived as an initiative towards building contextual know-how about the crafts and vernacular arts in India and the broader South Asian region. In each session, we engaged with experts and stakeholders to explore the ways in which the crafts sector has evolved, the contemporary contexts in which craft exists, and the need for renewed focus on craft.
SPEAKERS

Priya Krishnamoorthy is an award-winning broadcast journalist, arts manager and impact strategist passionate about bringing creativity and culture in conversation with sustainable development. As a Fulbright Fellow and advocate in the creative and cultural industries, Priya brings 18+ years of experience across diverse areas of expertise. Her work is squarely rooted in building collaborative ecosystems within and for the creative / cultural economy with a strong focus on inclusive entrepreneurship.
Priya is the Founder and Chief Catalyst of 200 Million Artisans (200M), an impact first, ecosystem enabler bridging gaps in knowledge, networks and capital for craft-led, impact enterprises via collaborative projects and platforms with the goal to bolster inclusive and green production to accelerate Sustainable Development Goal - 12. Their ultimate mission is to create conditions that empower India's craft-led enterprises to drive dignified employment opportunities, promote gender inclusion, and foster sustainable practices for collective wellbeing.
Since their inception in 2020, 200M has initiated two platforms. They have a dedicated platform to drive research and insights - Business of Handmade. Last year, they also initiated the Kula Conclave, a first of its kind networking forum curated to bridge the inclusive finance gap for India's creative, cultural and craft-led enterprises. They have already started work on the 2nd edition of Kula with a focus on inclusive innovation.

Manish Saksena is a lifestyle specialist with 26 years of experience in design, product, management, marketing, store design, visual merchandising and backend in the retail industry. As varied as being a part of the entry of International Brands to creating successful homegrown brands, Manish brings with him a wealth of core consumer experience.
From leading the growth, expansion and profitability of the iconic brand Tommy Hilfiger in India as COO for its India operations, he made his foray into the ecommerce environment with LimeRoad.com & Amazon while pursuing his passion to engage with weavers in different craft clusters to create sarees.
Today he enjoys his role as a consultant, the nuances and excellences of Brick & Mortar retail with Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein at one end and leading the CSR initiative for the Weavers of Pochampally, Benaras & Bhuj under the aegis of Aditya Birla Group. He is actively involved with various craft bodies such as Crafts Council of India / Under the Mango Tree & Craft Catapult: Startup Oasis IIMA.
With strong roots in St. Stephens College, New Delhi and London School of Fashion, he has worked in different genres and scopes with Madura Garments as Creative Director, with Landmark Group as Head of Buying and successfully launched the first organized ethnic wear brand W.

Manorath Dhillon is a Multidisciplinary Designer, Artist and Entrepreneur. She came on board Okhai to fulfill her passion of working in a social business. She helped build Okhai’s design philosophies and drove social innovation through craft development and design transformation to facilitate sustainable growth.
Having previously worked in the Indian Craft Sector her journey with Okhai began with a purpose of using ‘design for good’, to make an impact which led her to a volunteer project with the organization. Manorath is a seasoned professional and a passionate advocate for social change through design and sustainability. As an entrepreneur she deeply believes in pushing boundaries, challenging conventional norms and using the power of creativity for a deep and transformative impact on communities.
She is an alumnus of the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, and Instituto Europeo Di Design.

Rashmi Dhanwani, an arts entrepreneur, strategist and researcher, has founded two organisation – the Art X Company, a strategic consultancy for the cultural sector focused on strategy, audience development and sector research, and ArtBramha Consulting LLP, which delivers research, content and web development services to festivals and cultural organisations in India and South Asia. Rashmi has also founded Arts Culture Resources India, a network and platform for cultural professionals in India and South Asia, and www.festivalsfromindia.com, a portal showcasing all arts and culture festivals in India and a platform for festival professionals to learn, network and upskill themselves.
Prior to founding Art X, Rashmi has worked with National Centre for the Performing Arts Mumbai, Breakthrough in Delhi, the newspaper Daily News and Analysis (DNA); Kalaghoda Arts Festival, and The Goa Project. She holds a Masters in Cultural and Creative Industries from King’s College London. She has also been a recipient of the ARThink South Asia Fellowship (2011-12), a participant fellow at ‘The Academy—a program of Carnegie Hall, The Juilliard School and the Weill Music Institute’, a scholarship grantee of the JN Tata Trust and Charles Wallace India Trust, and a 2017 Global Fellow of the International Society for Performing Arts (ISPA), New York, and an International Arts Leadership Fellow at Australia Council’s Arts Leaders Program 2022-23.
Venue Partner

Event Details
Tao Art Gallery, Dr. Annie Besant Road, Worli, Mumbai 400018