Gram Art Project, a rural collective based in Paradsinga village on the border of Madhya Pradesh and Nagpur district in Maharashtra, marks 12 years of sustained community-led work. Today, the village has become a source of livelihood and collective strength for nearly 350 members, most of them women, from 14 neighbouring villages across the two states. The collective brings together artists, artisans, farmers, agricultural workers, weavers and students.
A four-member team from Gram Art Project is in Hyderabad for the Natural Dye Handmade Festival, organised by the India Handmade Collective from December 19 to 21 at CCT Spaces, Council of Telangana in Banjara Hills.
Founded in 2013 by artist Shweta Bhattad, a fine arts graduate from Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda, the initiative grew out of her decision to step away from a conventional art career. Motivated by the need to connect art with lived realities, Shweta and a group of collaborators began organising art residencies that combined creative practice with discussions on women’s issues, child welfare and farming-related concerns.
Shweta Bhattad explains the alternative ways of farming, living and earning livelihood out of it to government school students of the village. The girls belong to families of farming or have a farm labour background.
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Special Arrangement
“We wanted to address real issues while building skills that support both personal and professional growth,” she says.
For a green environment
Sustainable clothing, seed jewellery, seed creatures and seed library and product development of foraged materials in collaboration with Dhimar community, who are jungle dwellers and foragers, seed paper making, acoustic boards and papers out of crop waste. and seed bands and other products of indigenous cotton yarn
The art residencies brought together diverse voices from the community. Using art and performance as tools, participants addressed issues such as open defecation, the lack of safe play spaces, and the need for open dialogue. “The aim was to gradually shift beliefs, create opportunities for ourselves, make informed lifestyle choices, and encourage changes in behaviour and mindset as an ongoing process,” she explains.
Helping each other
Screen printing using indigo
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Special Arrangement
With a focus on building internal skills, the collective began with cotton farming and multi-cropping, learning through shared labour and support. Although women form a large part of the rural agricultural workforce, they rarely benefit from crop yields due to limited control. Seed-saving became a turning point, allowing members to reclaim agency while adding natural colour to raw cotton fibres used to make rakhis.
The process also sparked difficult conversations. “Some women questioned the idea of rakhi itself,” says Swetha. “They would say, ‘I run the house. Why do I need protection?’”
Tailoring unit
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Special Arrangement
Over time, initiatives such as Cotton Stainers, Jungle Jammat and Beejpaatra helped members become local change-makers, embedding sustainability into daily life. What began as seed banks with 20 women across two villages has grown to 350 women from 14 villages. While full-time employment remains a challenge, members now have work for nearly eight months a year.
Organic colour making from roots, leaves, steams, flowers and seeds
| Photo Credit:
Special Arrangement
Kambal Ghar, a three-year-old programme, focuses on children’s creative learning. Working with government schools and their own community space, the team encourages children to make paper, clay, natural dyes, tools, performances and stories using materials around them.
For Gram Art Project, art is not a profession alone but a way of living. From seed paper and jewellery to crop-waste acoustic boards, land art and live performances, all work is grounded in social and ecological responsibility. “We’re expressing village life as it is—how it shapes us, and how we shape it,” says Shweta.
Published – December 19, 2025 05:07 pm IST