Therukootu actors entertain the childrenAuroville’s second Endangered Craft
Mela took place in February, and it was a lively event. For one week, the Youth
Centre was transformed into a hive of activity, with 50 craftspeople sharing
their skills and 250 excited children being inducted into the pleasure of
making objects with their hands.Observers, such as this roving reporter, were
free to wander around the many covered spaces to watch students working with artisans
who had come from far and wide for the mela (festival). From the girls learning
to crochet bags from banana fibre, to the teens painting fabrics in Kalamkari
designs, the sense of exploration and creativity was high. The metalwork forge
and the leatherwork tables were crowded with students who appeared to thrive on
the sound of constant banging, as they brought a new creation to life. Some
children flocked around the large pottery wheel, while others wove baskets,
learnt to spin rope, or watched a demonstration of clay...
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