The block-making community in Pethapur, however, is an ever-dwindling one. According to Trivedi (1961), the block-making community was more tightly-knit and had a cooperative that was responsible for the pricing and procurement of raw materials for the artisans in the village. The community at present, however, is fractured.

In a bid to stay competitive, the artisans have driven prices to a point where the craft is economically untenable. A block that might require 40 hours of work typically fetches only about Rs. 3000 - 4000, which is hardly fair pay for such demanding work. Artisans have now broken off into separate directions and now work in their workspace with any practicing family members instead of working collectively like in the past.

Each family or artisan has established partnerships with printers from across the country. For example, Govindbhai works exclusively with Bagh's printers in Madhya Pradesh, and Dahyabhai and Chetanbhai work with Musabhai Khatri of Kutch. This limits not only their economic opportunities but also the range of designs they work on. Craftsmen are essentially working as skill-for-hire who make blocks as the printers who either provide artisans with their own designs or select from designs created by the artisans in the past. This has led to a stagnation in terms of the creation of new designs and evolving existing designs.

Sharing new opportunities and working under a collective banner could perhaps offer a new lease of life to the craft, but there appears to be a mistrust amongst the artisans. This can be seen in accusations of theft of tools on other artisans or in cases such as those of one artisan being dismissive of another's skills, in which the former is dismissive of the skills of the latter. Perhaps if these differences could be overcome and the artisans worked together, a new cooperative or school for artisans could be set up that would ensure that this craft survives another few generations. All of this, however, would require an entrepreneurial mindset and collective effort.


Block printing in the workshop of Musabhai Khatri of Kutch with blocks made by Chetanbhai and Dahyabhai.