Titan has started a Porgai Artisan Association Centre in Sittlingi valley of Dharmapuri district ‘to develop self-sufficiency among women artisans from the Lambadi tribe’.

The tribe practices the traditional Lambadi hand embroidery. The company’s support to the group is extended to three years of holistic partnering in a customised approach based on the group’s requirements.

The interventions include design and product development, skill development, training of new artisans, support for marketing and online retailing, participating in fairs and exhibitions.

Titan has also helped in setting up a facility where women could work, train, exhibit and store their products, a company release said. “We believe that it is important to encourage the growth of Indian arts and crafts.

The handicraft industry reflects the social, cultural and economic life of the country and it is necessary for such small scale industry to develop and grown,” the company’s managing director Bhaskar Bhat said.

“We are proud to support the Porgai Artisan Association for the revival of this unique tradition of embroidery that would otherwise have been lost. We are delighted to celebrate these women who are now able to renew those practices,” he added.

The Lambadis are a tribe who migrated from north of India several hundreds of years ago and Porgai means pride in their dialect.

Dr. Lalitha Regi of Tribal Health Initiative (THI) helped women groups revive their traditional craft of Lambadi embroidery and make every Porgai masterpiece by hand.

“The setting up of the centre for women artisans has given them the opportunity to enhance their capabilities.

Titan’s support for this community has provided these women confidence through the practice of their traditional craft,” Regi added.