Day 5 - Visit to Aavaran in Udaipur

We took a 1.5 hour bus ride from the hotel to Aavaran’s main factory to understand the history, work and challenges faced by this social enterprise. When we first entered the compound, fabrics were laid on the ground to dry after dyeing. We were led into a room that housed some of their products. We later learnt that the rugs we were all sitting on were made from scrap fabric, contributing to the ‘zero waste’ philosophy that Aavaran subscribes to.

We were given a presentation by Ms. Alka Sharma (the founder of Aavaran) and her team to introduce the production process of the fabric and the development of the organisation thus far.

Afterwards, we were given a tour around the factory to see how they carry out the block printing process from the initial raw fabric to the finishing and sewing of the products. All of us were awed by the amount of effort put into each step of the process, each playing its small part in forming the final product.

We felt that Aavaran as a social enterprise gave us a new perspective on how community development is carried out in the context of India. Compared to non-governmental organisations that we visited, we believe that social enterprises have the dilemma of choosing to maximise their profits or to redirect their revenue for the further development of the target people group. However, we appreciated that Ms. Alka was very willing to answer our questions and to share with us how the artisans are paid according to their work.

The initial plan was to patronise the retail outlet after lunch but instead, we ended up buying products from the stock available at their main factory. This was because we were advised not to visit the outlet due to religious tensions and protests in that area. We were very grateful that the staff at the factory were patient with us as we rummaged through their storeroom.

Through this, some of us were reminded of the importance of understanding the sensitivity between different cultural groups, be it religious, ethnic or otherwise.

During the evening, we had the liberty to explore the area around our hotel and to experience the local culture in a more intimate way. We looked through the quaint little shops that sold a variety of things, like pashmina shawls, jewelry, trinkets and even leather goods.

One thing that was interesting was the assignment that we were given: to purchase an item that was less than 10 rupees, and to find its local name and significance in the culture. After sharing our items during our debrief, we realised how much we could explore a culture through its objects, food items or necessities alone.