Amazon India, announced their plans to host a Karigar Mela on its platform. The e-commerce giant has partnered with Tribes India, which will feature a dedicated storefront for traditional tribal and local Indian handicrafts artists. As a part of this initiative, customers will be able to access and shop a selection of over 1.2 lakh unique traditional tribal, local Indian handicrafts and handloom selection on the platform, according to a statement by the company.
Some of the unique art forms that will be available in the product listed for purchase as a part of Karigar Mela includes: Bidri, Dhokra, Ikkat, Patachitra, blue art pottery etc.
Under this initiative, 12 lakh artisans and weavers associated with sellers will be benefited by 100% Sell on Amazon (SoA) fee waiver offered for 2 weeks from August 30, 2021, to September 12, 2021.
Arjun Munda, Hon’ble Minister of Tribal Affairs, Government of India commented on this matter “The tribal artisan and weaver community are at the nucleus of the Indian economy. It is also one of the segments that have been most severely hit due to the ongoing pandemic. The launch of Karigar Mela will play an important role in helping artisans and weavers revive their livelihoods and accelerate their growth during these challenging times”.
The minister also stated “I also appreciate the long-term partnership of TRIFED and Amazon to empower artisans and weavers from across India and help in increasing visibility for local products by bringing the offerings to the forefront. Such initiatives will help in driving deeper sentiment of ‘vocal for local’ among Indian consumers and help in boosting Prime Minister’s vision to be an Aatmanirbhar Bharat”.
Amit Agarwal, Global Senior VP and Country Head, Amazon India commented on this partnership “India’s rich cultural heritage is held together by the tribal artisan and weaver community, whose creations are a source of livelihood for millions of families. To help generate online demand for artisans and weavers’ products while supporting them with working capital as they look to bounce back from the recent disruptions, we have launched the ‘Karigar Mela’ storefront”.
He also added “With the festive season coming up, we believe that such initiatives will empower indigenous craftspeople, weavers and tribal artisans and help the rich legacy of Indian art and craft to thrive, We will continue to collaborate with government and non-government organizations to enable Indian artisans and weavers across the country to accelerate their growth through e-commerce. TRIFED and Tribes India are a family of 5 lakh tribal master craftsmen and women who produce a rich volume of handicraft and handloom products in India. Our partnership with Amazon as part of the MoU signed has enabled us to take Made in India tribal products to customers across the country and the world. With Amazon introducing the Karigar Mela initiative towards the revival of this segment, tribal artisan sellers will benefit from a dedicated store as it will bring customer attention to their unique and differentiated products while providing them with a host of relaxations and benefits of selling online”.
