Small town capitalism in Western India : artisans, merchants and the making of the informal economy, 1870-1960 / Douglas E. Haynes.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Haynes, Douglas E.

Series:

Cambridge studies in Indian history and society

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Artisans--India--History.

Artisans.

Cottage industries--India--History.

Cottage industries.

Textile industry--India--History.

Textile industry.

Capitalism--India--History.

Capitalism.

Economic conditions.

History.

India--Economic conditions--19th century.

India.

India--Economic conditions--20th century.

Physical Description:

xv, 344 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2012.

Summary:

This book charts the history of artisan production and marketing in the Bombay Presidency from 1870 to 1960. Although the textile, mills of western India's biggest cities have been the subject of many rich studies, the role of artisan producers located in the region's small towns has been virtually ignored. Based on extensive archival research as well as numerous interviews with participants in the handloom and powerloom industries, this book explores the role of weavers, merchants, consumers, and labourers in the making of what the author calls "small town capitalism." By focusing on the politics of negotiation and resistance in local workshops, the book challenges conventional narratives of industrial change. The book provides the first in depth work on the origins of powerloom manufacture in South Asia. It affords unique insights into the social and economic experience of small town artisans as well as the informal economy of late colonial and early post-independence India. Book jacket.

Contents:

The historical and global contexts of artisan production

Consumers, merchants and markets

Artisanal towns

The organization of production

Small town capitalism and the living standards of artisans

The colonial state and the handloom weaver

The paradox of the long 1930s

Weaver capitalists and the politics of the workshop, 1940-60.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780521193337

0521193338

OCLC:

740281663