[Video Story] Is China-patna pushing Channapatna toys out?

Tuesday June 23, 2015 , 1 min Read

When someone says indigenous and toys in the same breath, the picture that comes to mind is that of the beautifully lacquered wooden toys from Channapatna. The genesis of this art form began many centuries ago when Tipu Sultan invited Persian artists to teach the art of toy making to local artisans. That is how Channapatna gets its name, the Gombegala Ooru (toy-town) of Karnataka.

This traditional craft is protected as Geographical Indication (GI) under the World Trade Organization(WTO). In the past couple of years, the art form did lose its sheen because of lack of innovation and cheaper Chinese made replicas invading the market. SocialStory spoke to different players to gain an insight into how the market is playing out for them and what the future holds.