Madhusudhan Tanti wonders who will buy the Kotpad saree he wove for Rs.300, when a polyester saree sells for Rs.90.
In his forties, this weaver from Dongriguda village in Kotpad tehsil of Odisha's Koraput district, has been weaving the famed Kotpad sarees for many decades. The Kotpad saree has intricate motifs and is woven with cotton threads in vibrant shades of black, red and brown.
“Weaving is our family occupation. My grandfather wove, my father wove and now my son is weaving,” says Madhusudan who also does multiple other jobs to support his eight-member family.
This film, A Weave in Time was made in 2014 and explores Madhusudan’s inherited craft and his difficulties in sustaining it.