Cottage Industries

Our workshop is located inside the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. It’s a quiet place, quite different from the noisy streets further out. Cottage Industries has been part of this community for a long time. We mostly work with our hands here. The building is old but sturdy. We have large windows that let in the morning light, which is good for the kind of work we do. There are about six of us who come in every morning. We start early when it’s still cool outside. The floor is made of stone and stays cold even in the summer. We make things the old way, without many big machines. It takes more time but that’s how we’ve always done it. Sometimes visitors come by to see what we are making, and we show them around the workbenches. It’s not a formal tour or anything. We just keep working while they look. There’s a smell of raw materials in the air, maybe some incense from the main building nearby. We don't have a website or anything like that. If you want to see what we have, you just have to come to the ashram and find us. It’s a peaceful way to spend the day. We take a break for lunch together in the canteen. Then it's back to the benches until the sun starts to go down and we lock up the heavy wooden doors. It’s a simple life for everyone involved and we are happy with how things are done.