Overview

The Handloom Industry of Begampur in Transition: Technology, Disjuncture and Development provides an ethnographic description of the handloom industry of the Begampur region, which is situated in the Hooghly district in the Indian state of West Bengal. While explaining the process of transformation within the handloom industry of Bengampur region, Abhradip Banerjee explains the uneasy relationship between technology, disjuncture, and development that has been making an impact upon the lives of this particular group of artisans for over two decades. The novelty of this book lies in the particular approach adopted by the author which allowed him to perceive and analyze the process of transition within the handloom weaving tradition of Begampur region from a more inclusive perspective, miles away from the pitfall of gross “technological determinism”. Viewing the handloom industry of Begampur as a form of “sociotechnical system” allowed him to gauge, analyze, and incorporate several important but neglected dimensions of this transformation, which otherwise mostly went missing in many historiographic or empirical accounts regarding the process of industrialization /deindustrialization and class formation in India.

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9781666960587

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Reviews

This volume critically depicts how the weavers/artisans of Begumpuri Saree, a traditional craft of Bengal, negotiate with changing socio-cultural dimensions, technological innovations, marketing and market forces. The volume will add a new body of knowledge in Anthropology, and would be engaging to those who are interested in the study of craft, craftsmanship, their economy and culture. --Subha Ray, University of Calcutta

Author Information

Abhradip Banerjee is assistant professor of anthropology in the Higher Education Department, government of West Bengal.

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