CHENNAI: Creativity is no longer valued as a skill’, ‘Art and arts are lovely but not essential’, ‘Is art really necessary in this time and age?’ Several such statements and questions that were being thrown around over the past few years were put to rest during the lockdown, when the gifts of the arts and the artists sheltered us, kept a major population of the world sane during the darkest of times and healed our collective trauma.
As a resultant effect, more people began caring for it, acknowledged its identity and many even became strong advocates of the creative industry. However, the massive impact of the pandemic on the creative economy has been one that needs extreme measures to recuperate.
The health of the sector, according to a report, ‘Taking the Temperature’, by the British Council in association with The Federation of India Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) and Art X, projected how, MSMEs, which have taken a beating due to the lockdown, make up 88 per cent of the creative sector.
Of these businesses, 32 per cent faced a loss of roughly 50 per cent of their annual income in the first quarter.
Around 53 per cent of the events and entertainment management sector saw 90 per cent of their events cancelled; 41 per cent of the creative sector stopped functioning during the lockdown and 61 per cent of organisations established between four and 10 years ago have stopped functioning, while 88 per cent of the sector feared social distancing impacting the creative economy over the longterm.
In Chennai, the December Margazhi Music season, a central event that boosts the city’s cultural and tourism economy every year, too, has taken a hit.
While the faces of the festival and those with the resources have taken the virtual route to showcase their works, the allied industries have been forced to operate despite the shortcomings, for sustenance - making it nearly impossible for them to ensure profit margins.
Makers of Margazhi
The costume and jewellery businesses, which comprise a major slice of the ‘makers of Margazhi’ pie, have had to tide through the past several months with stifled business. Praveena Sivakumar, an entrepreneur who opened her dance costume and jewellery business, Natya Alankrita Costume, in December 2019 had to temporarily shut shop in March, owing to the pandemic.
"Being a new business, it was a nightmare. However, I was still getting a few orders from regular customers. We used to share the images via Whatsapp and based on the requirement, the customers used to come and collect the product. But, the requirements have changed from grand classical dance costumes to cotton saris for dance practice," explains the mother of two, who ventured into the business to bridge the gap between lack of quality and affordable rentals for classical dance costumes and jewellery in the city.
"Since all the events and performances are happening on digital platforms, not many want to spend on the accessories or the costumes. A simple jhumka and chain and a cotton sari or dhoti are what performers seem to wear. Earlier, velcro saris, too, used to sell like hotcakes but, now, amid the lockdown, several artistes have taken the time to learn to drape the dance sari themselves. So the sales have dropped by 90 per cent," she added.
"I usually had to spend a lot to hire costumes for my children. But, the costume lacked the quality. Sometimes, it used to be smelly too and this concerned me. In the process, I was introduced to several parents with similar issues. So, I invested a few lakhs and started a small boutique at home. Within the first month, through word-of-mouth, I was able to acquaint myself with a good clientele. The products were even sent to the US and Malaysia. Now, everything has come to a standstill. I am adapting to the minimalist requirements of the artistes for virtual performances," adds the Virugambakkam resident.
Glimmers of hope
At the five-decade-odd-old Shanthi Tailors in Mylapore, the three-fan thavanis, vibrant costumes, Kancheepuram and Dharmavaram silk saris and many other pouches of jewellery have been patiently sitting on the shelves, waiting to be bought.
"During the lockdown, the culture and tourism industry faced a complete shutdown. We fall under both. For four months during the lockdown, we had nil business and between July and August, we had less than two to three per cent business. With auditoriums shut, schools, colleges, private firms and the government not holding any events, it has been a truly hard time. With a second wave of the pandemic hitting several countries and with the remaining under a lockdown, international orders too have dropped," details Siva Kumar of Shanthi Tailors. But, there’s some hope.
"Earlier last week, we had people calling from abroad, making enquiries. However, these requirements are not immediate and will be only for July-August 2021. It will take a minimum of one year for our business to bounce back to at least 50 per cent," he estimates.
But Fareed Kalanjiam of Kalanjiam Brothers, a store set up in 1955, and, perhaps, the oldest in the city to sell authentic temple jewellery for dance performances, has a different story. The store on NSC Bose Road, which once engaged clients including former chief ministers - the late J Jayalalithaa and MG Ramachandran, has now been silenced by the pandemic.
"We have not even been receiving any enquiries. We are aware that the pandemic has affected the entire world and everyone is out of cash. But, when a store that has always been busy has hardly any walk-ins, it hits your morale. We are looking at the horizon with hope," shares Fareed.
They have been making do with wedding-related business. "We have people walk in to buy temple jewellery pieces for weddings and other imitation jewellery for other functions. But, since our main business is dance jewellery, we miss the interactions we have with our regular clientele.
When an artiste steps in and chalks their requirements, we can gauge their taste and sensibilities. Now, there is a dearth of that creative push. More than a business, this is an innovative field. We, too, are creatives stuck in a rut now,” rues the owner, who has been tapping on his savings to pay his bills and the salaries of six employees. “Earlier, on average, we used to make sales of Rs 15-20 lakh per month. Now, it is less than a lakh,” he notes.
A risky business
Ramees Yasar of Mehbooba Dance Collection, the secondgeneration owner of the threedecade- old business, notes that the lack of the grand annual music and dance festivals in Mahabalipuram and Chidambaram, and the closure of schools, too, have impacted sales.
"Navarathri, Shivarathri, Margazhi - these used to be some of the major times when orders used to pour in, especially from performing dance schools. This time, owing to the drop in the number of students enrolling in dance schools, teachers have become mindful of their expenditure and investments.
With parents not wanting to shell extra money on 'extra activities', they pull their children out of the classes to make ends meet. So, those who are running these dance schools, too, have been left in a lurk. For the rest, it raises the question of safety - 'what if we organise a performance and a child contracts the infection?' is a question in the minds of the teachers," he shares.
For Sankaran Thambi and Lakshmi Raj, two-small-time tailors in the city who usually take close to 60-100 orders during the music and dance season, their earnings have dropped from Rs 80,000 to Rs 1 lakh during the December month to a mere Rs 8,000 this year.
"We usually have several NRIs flying down during this month. And when the big stores stop taking orders, they come to us. They pay us generously when the costume-stitching orders are last-minute and taxing. With the money earned, we manage our expenditure till February-March. This time, our earnings will be enough only until January. We are taking basic stitching requests, but even this has been sparse. I am considering selling my tailoring machine and taking up a job in a nearby supermarket," says Lakshmi, who is struggling to stay afloat.
Legacies on pause
The rhythmic sounds of the sewing machines at DS Aiyyelu Dance Costumes, which has been in existence since the 1950s, too, have come to a halt, it seems. It’s only a pause, tells its second-generation owner Sivakumar.
"When my father started the business and ran it for decades before handing it over to me, he also passed on his strength and courage. During his times, he has witnessed several cataclysmic events but never turned his back on the business. To give the perfect cuts and fits to his customers were his passion. I have taken a leaf out of his book of learnings to help me through these trying times…I have never seen business dip this low in all these years. But despite the hardship, I am looking at this as a learning time. We get a minimum of 250-300 orders every month and during Margazhi our hands are full. This time, the orders have dwindled but we want to prepare ourselves for 2021," he shares.
With several arangetrams cancelled this year, these master artisans are hopeful that the next year will see a boom in the number of cultural events, reviving their businesses. "If there is a low in the graph, a spike is nothing but natural. Moreover, the lockdown has given many the time to take to the arts. So, there are chances of us seeing more performances next year. It could be a momentous year for the cultural economy," says Praveena, hopeful.
Yaser, Fareed, and Sivakumar concur. "We are in the cultural capital of the country and I am positive that our businesses will bounce back better than before," adds Sivakumar.
Hope lies ahead
There is a common hope among these mass artisans that business will pick up next year with a boom
in the number of cultural events. Some have already received advance orders.