THESE PICTURES WERE TAKEN DURING A CRAFT CLUSTER IN BIKNA, WEST BENGAL. THE ARTISANS PRACTIce A CRAFT CALLED DOKRA OR DOKHRA, which IS non–ferrous metal casting using the lost-wax casting technique. This sort of metal casting has been used in India for over 4,000 years.
THE THREE DAYS VISIT WAS LADEN WITH EXPERIENCES, PERSPECTIVES AND FRAMES THAT ARE GOING TO STAY WITH ME FOR A LONG TIME. THIS PROJECT IS DEDICATED TO BIKNA, ITS PEOPLE AND THE DOKRA CRAFT.
The old lady with an umbrella in the vast field created something straight out of a book.
Coexistence
A woman beating coal into smaller pieces, to be used in heating Dokra pieces. The women of the village equally contribute to the making of pieces.
Women run the household alongside working with their families or individually, on the craft.
A couple making thin wax strings that are used to create details on a piece. It, metaphorically, describes a relationship.
Lost and forgotten
A crossing of generations.
A man in the field
Afternoons in Bikna
A home
