Home ›› 03 Sep 2021 ›› Nation
Fifty years old Rafiqul Islam, a physically challenged Taal Pakha (hand fan) artisan who opted for this craft years ago despite his disability, has been struggling to support his four-membered family amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
“I receive cash assistance of Tk 2,250 every four months in a year from the government under the Disabled Allowance programme, which merely lasts a week. Along with my wife, I used to earn a handsome sum by making Taal Pakha, but now I have no work,” he told The Business Post.
Amid the government imposed lockdown to curb the spread of the virus, at least 500 artisans of 200 families of Kahalu upazila in Bogura, have become jobless in the last 1.5 years.
The industry – which used to earn Tk 4 crore a year – has almost been shut down as sales have sharply fallen, confirmed Paikar Union Chairman Md Mithu Chowdhury.
He said artisans from Arola, Atalpara, Yogirbhaban villages of Paikar union of Kahalu upazila collect its main component palmyra leaves from different upazilas of Rajshahi, Naogaon, from Bengali month Agrahayan (November–December). They used to start weaving these hand fans from Phalgun to Bhadra (February to September), which is also the peak time for sales.
A palmyra leaf is first cut to give it a rounded shape with its main stem sticking out, so it can be used as the fan’s handle. Delicate stalks carved out of bamboo strips and dipped in paint are then sewn on both sides of the leaf’s outer edge. Finally, colourful motifs are hand-painted on the fan, said artisan Rafiqul explaining the method of making Taal Pakha.
They make four types of hand fans; Ghurni, Pocket, Hartan, and Dati. The manufacturing cost for each Ghurni hand fan is Tk 5, and it sells Tk 9 in wholesale, Pocket hand fans get sold for Tk 6 against a manufacturing cost of Tk 3, Dati hand fans are sold for Tk 15 against a manufacturing cost of Tk 9, and Hartan hand fans are sold for Tk 10, to which the artisan spends Tk 5 to produce.
Kahalu Banik Samity President Jahangir Alam said the artisans used to earn between Tk 50,000 to Tk 2,00,000 each season, Tk 1 to 4 crore a year.
Demand for these hand fans skyrockets in Bengali festivals, such as Pohela Baishakh, Pohela Phalgun and during the wedding season.
Trucks loaded with hand fans used to leave these villages before the pandemic, said Abdul Based, resident of Arola’s Atalpara.
An elderly couple, Mojibar Rahman, 70, and his wife, Monowara Begum, 60, residents of Arola’s Uttarpara village, who were left by their children and used to earn their livelihood by making hand fans, told The Business Post that they used to earn Tk10,000 to Tk 12,000 each season before the Covid-19 hit the country but now they are facing financial hardship.
“We could not even make a sale worth Tk 2,000 this season. I do not know how we will survive,” said Mojibar.
Jamal Hossain, 35, another resident of the area, said he could not sell his produced hand fans amid the pandemic, and it got ruined.
“As I could not earn much from weaving hand fans, I became an auto-rickshaw driver to feed my family,” said Jamal.
“After receiving an order from Sirajganj, I have stocked 5,000 palmyra leaves and 3,000 hand fans. For the lockdown, I could not transport these to them, and now it got ruined,” said artisan Haradhan Chandra of Yogirbhaban, adding that he incurred a loss of Tk2,00,000 for that reason.
Artisans, Saleha, Jahanara, Moklesar, with other artisans of the area, said artisans from many different sectors had received cash assistance, incentives, loans from the government. However, hand fan artisans lost their capital amid the pandemic, and now they cannot continue their businesses due to financial crisis, they said.
Addressing the issues, Kahalu Upazila Nirbahi Officer Masudur Rahman assured that he would contact the area’s artisans and listen to their woes.
“After a thorough inspection, I will surely talk to the Deputy Commissioner of the district to arrange government aid for them,” added the UNO.
