Ratan Handicraft

You’ll find us out in Village Kriparampur. It’s under the Sukhdevpur police station area. Being out here in the village means Ratan Handicraft is a bit quieter than the shops in the city. We work with our hands mostly. We don’t have those big machines that do everything for you. It’s slower that way, but we think it turns out better. Everyone in the family knows how to do a bit of everything. We use materials we can find nearby and sometimes we get things brought in from the town. It’s a simple setup. We have a shed where we keep the wood and the tools. In the afternoons, when it's hot, we sit in the shade and keep working. Life moves at a different pace in Kriparampur. We don’t worry too much about the latest trends or what people are saying on the internet. We just make the handicrafts like we were taught. Sometimes people from the city come by to see what we’re making. It’s always a bit of a surprise when they show up. We don't have a sign out front or anything. Everyone just knows which house is ours. We’ve lived here all our lives. The work is steady and it keeps the kitchen fire burning. That’s all we really need at the end of the day. We hope to keep it going for our kids.