Silken Tangles: Sidlaghatta - Silk and its people

Raw silk production of about 10-14 tons daily, 45-65 tons of silk transaction everyday, and a unique zari production with a market across India -- these things should make Sidlaghatta, a taluk in the Kolar district of Karnataka, the best place to make and sell silk. But even though it is the top producer of silk in Karnataka, the silk trade here has critical economic problems.

Vineetha Athrey's documentary deals with some of these issues involved in silk reeling in Sidlaghatta. The film also explores the financial aid available to these reelers, and the investment-related problems they face. The film also touches upon the health problems of silk reelers.

• Category

  News & Politics

[susrth]

wearing silk may be "ELegant"..but its inhumane

[Vineetha Athrey]

True Susrth, but that's a long debate. Much like the leather industry. Whether or not we like it individually, there will be tons of people who are 'for' it. My point is, it's a reality. So our focus must be to find ways of enhancing the quality of their lives and helping them get better returns!

[Katie Carlson]

Very interesting!  Could they sell their products on-line directly to buyers in other countries? They may get higher prices for their silk. Surely someone could set up a website for the sellers?

[Vineetha Athrey]

Hey, that's a great idea! I explored that too. But this is not a tech-savvy crowd at all. And in small towns trust-issues are significant. Most of them have been doing it for generations now so they feel they could trust the local mkt more than an unknown source