Background
Amar Kutir was founded as a place of refuge for political prisoners who were recently released from jail. Susen Mukhopadhyay, a young revolutionary freedom fighter, was inspired by Rabindranath Tagore’s newly initiated rural reconstruction plan that was being carried out in Santiniketan. He was also influenced by Gandhi, and combined the ideas of these two legendary figures to build a commune that pursued such activities as block printing, hand loom weaving, and leather work.
Rabindranath Tagore promoted self-sustainability and rural development. He envisioned a cooperative society steeped in sustainable agriculture, horticulture, and animal husbandry along with rural artisan handicrafts. Amar Kutir seeks to promote and expand this vision.
Currently, Amar Kutir’s primary objectives are to promote self-help groups develop thrift savings and link microfinance to handicraft development , and to enhance self-employment opportunities in order to alleviate poverty. Self-help groups were created in India in order to combat poverty by making credit accessible to people struggling with poverty. Based on the principles of community, empowerment, and democracy, this scheme puts the rural person’s quality of life into his/her hands. A minimum of 6 people, predominantly rural women, comprise the self-help group, where each member contributes monthly dues, which are accumulated and can be used for loans to an individual in the group or to provide insurance.
Rabindranath Tagore integrated art and craft into a respectable form. At one time, society exalted fine artists yet held a condescending attitude towards craftspeople. Tagore tried to break down this barrier, and educated people on the importance of folk arts by stressing that even popular folk expressions could reach a higher level. He believed in combining form and function. Because of Tagore’s inflluence, caste barriers were also broken. Brahmins took up leatherwork, which was previously unheard of. As crafts were freed from their traditional shackles, Tagore also carried his message beyond India to the outside world. He, in turn, brought back ideas from the rest of the world and “Indianized” their forms. Throughout Tagore’s teachings, balance and harmony are stressed, and he advocated keeping in tune with nature.
Marketing and the Future
Design development and marketing are stressed to increase the economic capacity of its members. The society markets its own products as well as acts as a means of dissemination and commercial display of quality objects brought in by freelance/individual craftspeople throughout the region. Thus, indirectly, the organization accommodates more than 1000 craftspeople besides regularly employing a crew of permanent workers.
In addition, Amar Kutir Society for Rural Development funds from its own profits programs in health, education, and the environment in order to strengthen society in a holistic way. Two areas of interest for expansion include forestation and establishing medical clinics.
Amar Kutir was founded as a place of refuge for political prisoners who were recently released from jail. Susen Mukhopadhyay, a young revolutionary freedom fighter, was inspired by Rabindranath Tagore’s newly initiated rural reconstruction plan that was being carried out in Santiniketan. He was also influenced by Gandhi, and combined the ideas of these two legendary figures to build a commune that pursued such activities as block printing, hand loom weaving, and leather work.
Rabindranath Tagore promoted self-sustainability and rural development. He envisioned a cooperative society steeped in sustainable agriculture, horticulture, and animal husbandry along with rural artisan handicrafts. Amar Kutir seeks to promote and expand this vision.
Currently, Amar Kutir’s primary objectives are to promote self-help groups develop thrift savings and link microfinance to handicraft development , and to enhance self-employment opportunities in order to alleviate poverty. Self-help groups were created in India in order to combat poverty by making credit accessible to people struggling with poverty. Based on the principles of community, empowerment, and democracy, this scheme puts the rural person’s quality of life into his/her hands. A minimum of 6 people, predominantly rural women, comprise the self-help group, where each member contributes monthly dues, which are accumulated and can be used for loans to an individual in the group or to provide insurance.
Rabindranath Tagore integrated art and craft into a respectable form. At one time, society exalted fine artists yet held a condescending attitude towards craftspeople. Tagore tried to break down this barrier, and educated people on the importance of folk arts by stressing that even popular folk expressions could reach a higher level. He believed in combining form and function. Because of Tagore’s inflluence, caste barriers were also broken. Brahmins took up leatherwork, which was previously unheard of. As crafts were freed from their traditional shackles, Tagore also carried his message beyond India to the outside world. He, in turn, brought back ideas from the rest of the world and “Indianized” their forms. Throughout Tagore’s teachings, balance and harmony are stressed, and he advocated keeping in tune with nature.
Marketing and the Future
Design development and marketing are stressed to increase the economic capacity of its members. The society markets its own products as well as acts as a means of dissemination and commercial display of quality objects brought in by freelance/individual craftspeople throughout the region. Thus, indirectly, the organization accommodates more than 1000 craftspeople besides regularly employing a crew of permanent workers.
In addition, Amar Kutir Society for Rural Development funds from its own profits programs in health, education, and the environment in order to strengthen society in a holistic way. Two areas of interest for expansion include forestation and establishing medical clinics.
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