CULTURE AND ECONOMICS

By Shrishti Singh, Kalindi College

Since ancient times, the Indian lifestyle has been known to be enriched with the numerous economic activities of its people. There are various small activities in India that have their origins in the social, religious, and cultural proximity of the country. Religious activities may include the fees of a priest in conducting ceremonies while social activities may be festivals and ceremonies. These economic activities are all interwoven in intricate yet beautiful self- reliant areas of the Indian villages.

Numerous socio-cultural traditions in India led to the formation of handicraft industries that have worldwide markets now. The market that Indians had before the invasion of the British was spread in all corners due to its rich artistry. This market temporarily stopped after the British invasion, but the post-independence government steadily tried to revamp that culture.

A survey was conducted that showed that in 1995-96 alone, this cultural sector produced about Rs. 26,213 crore worth of products. The ornament industry has grown so much that it is now able to provide livelihood to hundreds of Indian men and women goldsmiths.

Apart from this, the demand and value of Indian paintings has also been observed to appreciate over time. The Warli Art, The Madhubani Art and many more are made on a large scale and imprinted on various products that are sold domestically and internationally as well. These are displayed in various craft bazaars, exhibitions and museums. They are the source of income for a lot of poor craftsman that have helped keep this exquisite art alive for generations.

Similarly, the religious activities of Indians gave birth to many microeconomic activities. An estimated 15 crore domestic pilgrims in India trigger the sale of hundreds of village artifacts. Many religious artifacts across the country have become famous for their aesthetic and decorative value.

The artisans who made ‘patta chitra’ and applique work for the religious functions in the Jagannath temple of Puri, enhanced their skill to make these two artefacts internationally famous. One of the priests there, mentioned that a 40 square feet good ‘patta chitra’ can cost anywhere between 20 to 50 lakhs in the global market.

In the past India constituted items of trade along with spices on handloom products. In the 1700s, India's share of world income was almost equal to that of Europe's share. The downfall of the Indian market began during the British raj when the British began demolishing many Indian craft traditions aggressively, in order to market their own factory products

Now language is a great part of culture. Regional languages and religions that are in minority have established themselves as global communities. Some of the examples may be Tamils in Malaysia and the Sikhs in Canada. Such communities and connections provide them with access to education and well paying jobs all over the world. However, abroad settlements lead to an economic drain for the country. The outflow of students to abroad has been increasing at an immense rate but that's a different topic altogether. These communities have now established their own structures, some of which have even become international such as the Global Tamil Forum and the World Sikh Organization.

Image Source: jimidisu.com

Even though India continues to be in disagreement with China over their historical borders, we cannot forget that it still shares many local languages and Buddhist religious minorities with China as well as other neighbours in the Northeast, such as Myanmar. It has also been said that issues regarding the Tibetan exile community and Rohingya that are considered a liability could even become an asset of shared cultural capital if treated differently.

Moreover it is true that India has not invested enough in its cultural promotions. We can only understand the prolonged economic stagnation of India by taking into account variables such as social norms, culture, beliefs and fabric of social interaction. An understanding of the role of culture and collective beliefs can help in the design of better policy as culture and social norms keep evolving and seldom remain static.

The creative economy has become a powerful transformative force in the world today. Not only is the potential for development vast in this field, much of it hasn’t even been discovered yet. This is what makes it one of the most rapidly growing sectors of the world economy both in terms of income generation as well as job creation and export earnings. But this is not all there is to it. A much larger proportion of the world’s creative resources are now being invested in the culture-specific industries which have as ‘real’ and considerable outputs as any other industry in the world. Human creativity and innovation are the key drivers of these industries both at the individual level and group level. They can be termed as the true wealth of nations in the 21st century. In a sense, culture has changed the way people understand the world and see their value in it to affirm their human rights and forge productive relationships.