Women Artisans Drive Maharashtra's Century-Old Silver Craft in Hupari

What Happened

In the town of Hupari in Maharashtra's Kolhapur district, women make up a large share of the 25,000-strong artisan workforce driving a ₹1,000-crore silver industry. Records from the Chandi Karkhandar Association show the trade began here in 1904. Women working from home handle delicate tasks like shaping seamless ghungroos, anklets, toe rings, and waistbands using filigree and enamelling techniques, while men manage heavy factory work like melting metal and rolling strips.

Economic Realities

Despite their vital role, many women earn low daily wages between ₹200 and ₹250 due to a lack of organised labour unions. For instance, artisans get ₹400 for completing 2,000 ghungroos. Dinkar Sase, vice-president of the Chandi Karkhandar Association, acknowledges that the industry rests on the shoulders of women, though leadership remains largely male-dominated. The association barred women from membership for seven decades before opening doors to female manufacturers in 2014, and men still handle most commercial front operations and trade travel.

Adapting to Change

New generations are introducing modern aesthetics to the century-old trade. Sharwari Waingade, who studied microbiology in Pune before marrying into a silver-manufacturing family, now designs contemporary oxidised-silver pieces and expands marketing through social media. Meanwhile, local artisans like 76-year-old Kanchan Katkar find lifelong financial self-reliance through the trade, which provides steady work across Hupari and neighbouring villages.

Context

Hupari is widely celebrated as Maharashtra's Silver Capital, supplying traditional ornaments to markets across India and around the globe. The domestic production model relies heavily on home-based women workers who weave craft labour into their daily household chores. As modern consumer preferences shift toward trend-forward designs, the local industry faces the challenge of blending traditional heritage with contemporary market demands.