Because crafts spell a lore — of its people, place, climate, soil, water, and so much more. There are many that thrive, a big thanks to its practitioners, but there are many, the world over, that silently beat a retreat in the face of stark poverty, more so in India. There’s mechanisation, cheap fakes, poor quality of raw materials, changing weather conditions, fewer practitioners as GenNext has moved on to greener pastures… how do they survive? Then there is the story of the middle man. The via media who buys from the crafts person at a cheap rate but sells it at a premium. Good for the craft, but what about them who manage the fields by the day and weave, hammer, spin, paint, make dyes from root, plants and more?