Telangana's iconic silver filigree handicrafts to make a mark at Anant Ambani-Radhika wedding

The more than 200 silver filigree artisans in Karimnagar in Telangana are on top of the world today as they eagerly wait for a team from Mumbai to visit them.

This is no ordinary buyer who is dropping by but the representatives of Asia's richest person, Mukesh Ambani. The karigars are excited as the visitors are expected to finalise a deal with them to manufacture around 400 silver filigree artefacts to be given away as a gift at the upcoming marriage of Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant.

Silver filigree work involves skillfully twisting a thin silver wire in a special way to create a wide range of products from bangles, earrings and necklaces to idols of gods and replicas of ships and mosques. A small community of goldsmiths has mastered this intricate art form, which they claim dates back 400 years.

Turning point

Although the artisans have supplied their products to corporates, state emporia, hospitals and hotels, they have never had an opportunity to get global exposure on a scale that can be expected at the Ambani wedding.

As this order of 400 artefacts is meant to be given away as gift to the world’s Who’s Who attending the event, the artisans felt that this may well prove to be a turning point for them.

“The skills of our craftsmen were first spotted by Nita Ambani Madam at the time of the Jio Mall inauguration in Mumbai last year. She was satisfied. The Ambani family representatives have expressed an intention to buy about 400 varieties of art pieces. The price and number will be finalised in a day or two,” a beaming Arroju Ashok told The Federal.

Ashok revealed that the artworks were to be given away to global industry tycoons as a return gift for gracing the marriage.

“It is not the worth of the order. It is the recognition accorded to the great tradition kept alive by poor families and the exposure we are going to get is more important,” pointed out the 52-year-old Ashok, whose family has been in the tradition for centuries and who himself embraced the art form at age 17.

Last year, the society he manages did business worth ₹5 crore. The artisans are hopeful that Ambani’s order will open a new chapter in their craft.

Rescuing it from going extinct

Thirty years ago, Ashok and his fellow artisans like Venkatesh and Ashok have revived the silver filigree tradition with great difficulty and saved it from virtual extinction.

“This is time-consuming work. The artisan needs the support of the entire family. But the income it generates is meagre as there was no exposure to the outside world. It almost faced extinction,” he said.

As a consequence, the artisans started leaving in search of alternative employment due to lack of demand for their work. Many secured employment with jewellery merchants.

“It is then we decided to preserve this filigree tradition by forming a society and imparting training to younger people in new designs,” Ashok explained. Luckily, the new forms started getting attention from the public.

Not remunerative

According to Ashok, a family engaged in silver filigree work earns upto ₹20,000-30,000 a month.

“Given the entire family’s labour involved in the production of handicrafts, this amount is not remunerative. Each family has to work for 12-15 hours a day. We need more clientele and more business to improve the living standards of the artisans,” Ashok said.

This is why, he said, an order from the Ambani family assumes a lot of significance for the community.

The Ashok-Venkatesh-Ashok triumvirate, who were responsible for reviving an ancient art form, received national awards in 2010, 2016 and 2018 for their efforts.

Their skills are now getting global recognition, said Ashok, who shared that their art works were judged the second best at an international gold and jewellery festival at Bukhara, Uzbekistan, in May this year.

“It is a collective honour to the 200 families engaged in the filigree tradition in Telangana,” stressed Ashok.

UNESCO recognition

Earlier, in 2008, UNESCO too accorded excellence awards to the society. It is no wonder that Ashok and his friends are eager to sign a deal with the Ambani family. The beauty of their art form will travel further. And as Ashok pointed out, “The very thought that our artefacts will be gifted away at the marriage is exciting for us."