Kendrapara, Odisha
A burst of colour and the rustle of papers greets visitors to Posei village. People sit surrounded by colourful paper and shola pith, crafting miniature boats that will take to the water on November 8, which is Kartik Purnima (a full moon day). Kartik Purnima is also celebrated as Dev Deepawali, or the festival of the light of the gods. Locally, the festival is known as Boita Bandana.
The entire family of Sarat Rana, an artisan from Posei village in Kendrapara district of Odisha, makes paper boats for the Kartik Purnima festival, which is a traditional craft. There are about 40 artisan families in this village, most of whom make these boats for Kartik Purnima.
“Earlier we made boats using the bark of banana trees, but now we make them with paper,” Sarat Rana told Gaon Connection. “I will also teach my 10-year-old son how to make them in case he doesn’t get a job,” the 36-year-old artisan said.
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According to Tapan Pati, historian and former principal of Kendrapara Autonomous College, the making of the boats has a history to it.
“During the auspicious month of Kartik, when the wind flow is steady, it was considered safe to undertake maritime expeditions,” Pati told Gaon Connection.
“Traders from Odisha would set out to sea on boats to Java, Sumatra, Bali of Indonesia, and several Middle East countries on Kartik Purnima. And, the day is still observed by the rich and poor of the state by sailing these miniature boats in rivers, ponds and the sea,” he explained.
Every year artisans in the village burn the midnight oil to meet the demand for paper boats. “My husband, two children and I have been working for two weeks making boats,” Kuniprava Rana, a 43-year-old artisan from Posei village, told Gaon Connection.
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A couple making paper boats in their house.
The cost of the boats range anything between Rs 20 to Rs 2,000. And, that is dismally low to take care of livelihoods, say the artisans.
“We have very limited work. We make kites during Makar Sankranti festival and paper boats for Kartik Purnima, and that is all,” Bihuti Rana, another artisan from Posei told Gaon Connection. There is no demand for the rest of the year. “At best, a paper-artisan family earns anything between Rs 10,000 and Rs 30,000 during Karthik Purnima,” the 45-year-old Bihuti said.
“People have started appreciating our art. But I think it will take time before we get real recognition,” said Narayan Rana, another artisan.
