In 1997 Uma and Manoj were the first members of our team at Upasana. Uma started a design studio, when she was dreaming of bringing the Indian textiles into its own in the world. Under the shade of tree in a little hut without a door, the enterprise began, along with a small team of workers. For 2 years the initial team had to grapple with issues such as no electricity or water and monsoon time brought dreams of a roof on the hut and a door that could lock. In those crucial years many innovative lessons were learnt in rainwater harvesting and efficient use of water – a learning that is followed even today!
Looking back, one can see how Auroville has shaped Upasana. During the earlier years when money was harder to generate, benefactors around the community pitched in with support and words of goodwill. Our studio shifted to its current campus area in 1999 and thanks to the passionate efforts of a growing team of designers we were able to break even in 2003. Upasana became financially independent and could start contributing to the Auroville economy. We started with practically nothing but believed that the strength of our dreams will suffice for the lack of resources – the dream to bring out the beauty of the Indian craft and aesthetics, the dream to transcend beyond the borders of conventional design and to live a life in harmony with the environment and the people we were working with – dreams that shape our actions even today.
Along the way, we at Upasana have learned the importance of creating human wealth – the development of a fulfilling and respectable life, for those who work with us and others. Through the years, we have been designing and conducting workshops on human development for Upasana employees, as well as helping them train in additional skills such as learning a new language or just learning how to write!
The Tsunami of 2005 became a major landmark in Upasana’s history. Together, our team realized that we had to be a part of solution, of the soothing balm that was needed after such a tragedy. This brought us into the foray of Socially Responsible Design, with our project Tsunamika, a little cloth doll made by fisherwomen. This is now being exchanged across the world as a symbol of peace. More importantly, Upasana unknowingly had plunged into the process of empowering women. We understood the importance of building confidence amongst the women in the villages and through the project also devised ways to be able to empower them, financially as well as psychologically. Today this has become a crucial element of all our projects in Socially Responsible Design.
A colorful history has brought us to the point where we have been able to transcend the traditional borders of design. Our explorations have taken us far and wide and we have met and made friends with many lovely people from across the world. Our sincere hope for the future is to continue building bridges and charting a course that will take us to new heights of human relations and harmonious living.
