The Unsung Mentors of India’s Craft Revival — Master Trainers and Cluster Artisans of Madhya Pradesh





While we often celebrate the final product — a beautifully painted Gond scroll, a skillfully carved bamboo lamp, a hand-embroidered cushion — the real magic of India’s craft revival lies with the people behind the process.

In the tribal districts of Dindori, Sidhi, Anuppur, Betul, and Mandla, these people are not influencers or designers. They are master trainers, senior artisans, and grassroots mobilizers — individuals who are not just practicing the craft, but passing it forward to hundreds of others.

Who Are These Mentors?

They are local artisans — often with 15–30 years of experience — who have lived the entire journey: from being unknown and underpaid to becoming community leaders and trainers.

Many are now selected and supported under programs run by DC Handicrafts, MPSCU, and CHCDS, helping them:

  • Train new artisans within their villages

  • Guide clusters in quality control and production planning

  • Communicate with buyers and program teams

  • Keep the craft evolving while preserving its authenticity

They’re not just trainers. They are anchors of local economies.

Training That Goes Beyond Technique

What makes their work remarkable is that they teach more than just skill:

  • Time management: Training artisans to work with deadlines and production schedules

  • Financial discipline: Helping groups understand costing, fair wages, and savings

  • Design thinking: Encouraging small innovations based on market feedback

  • Confidence building: Especially for women and young artisans

In remote areas where internet, exposure, or higher education is rare — these mentors become living institutions.

Stories from the Field

  • In Dindori, a 45-year-old Gond artist has trained 50+ youth in his village, helped them find orders, and is now mentoring the third generation — all while continuing his own practice.

  • In Sidhi, a woman artisan who once stitched at home for ₹50 a day now heads a 20-member embroidery cluster, teaches them design basics, and manages pricing and packaging.

  • In Anuppur, bamboo work was dying out until a former artisan-turned-trainer started free sessions for school dropouts. Today, they make utility items sold at craft fairs nationally.

These stories are not rare anymore. They are the engine of change powering MP’s craft clusters.

The Ripple Effect

With the support of structured programs like DC Handicrafts and CHCDS, these mentors are now:

  • Setting up training centers in panchayats and schools

  • Leading skill development camps for tribals and youth

  • Getting featured at exhibitions and honored as local icons

  • Becoming the bridge between rural talent and urban markets

The beauty of this model? It’s self-sustaining. Every trained artisan has the potential to train ten more. Which means the ecosystem keeps expanding — organically, authentically, and powerfully.

Final Thought

India’s craft revival will not be led only by metros or fashion labels. It will be shaped by quiet leaders in forgotten villages — those who don’t seek credit, but create impact.

They are the teachers of tradition, the mentors of dignity, and the unsung architects of India’s rural creative economy.

Let’s start telling their stories too.

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