In tandem with nature. That is how one would describe the tribal ways. Taking the cue further, Pradip Patel alias Pintoo (32), and his friend Bharat Patel (30), have now come up with a wrist-watch that runs anti-clockwise. How does that connect with being in sync with nature?
“Because nature works from right to left. Even the Earth rotates around the sun in an anti-clockwise direction. We first saw such a mechanism at our friend, Vijaybhai Chaudhary’s house. It was an old clock and running in perfect condition in an anti-clockwise direction. When I asked about it, he told me that nature’s cycles and movements work from right to left,” share the tribal duo, both residents of Dolvan village in Tapi district.
Determined to replicate the same in a wrist watch, they got down to work. “Bharat works in a wrist watch repair unit and his expertise was immensely helpful. A bit of research and putting together all our funds made it possible to arrive upon the first such piece,” recalls an elated Pintoo.
Tribals, known for all their rituals being from right to left, even their cultural dances, found an instant connect with the watch. The duo has modelled some 1,000 watches so far, since they began two years ago. However, on Tuesday, Congress MLA from Vansda, Anant Patel, officially launched the watch at the Circuit house in Navsari.
Their production line will be put on display and sale at the Adivasi Ekta Parishad, the three-day event for tribals to be held in Chhota Udepur’s Kavant from January 13 to January 15.
MLA Patel also announced that members of tribal community will now be taught to manufacture the watch. A retail sale network is being mapped across 14 districts in Gujarat in the coming days.
Patel adds: “For variety, we experimented with new models. All three hands run anti-clockwise on dials that have a tribal image or simply a Jay Adivasi slogan. This tribal watch runs in harmony with nature.”
So far, seven different models of these wrist watches have been manufactured and the price ranges between Rs 700 to Rs 1,000.
However, Patel says they need funds to expand the production of watches. “We bagged an order for 5,000 watches but do not have the required funds,” shares Pintoo, explaining that a huge portion of the expense is towards button cell to run quartz machines.
MLA Patel says they have assured help and have directed the duo to employ more members from the tribal community.
“At present, the watch was launched in Navsari district. Soon, we plan to unveil the same from Umargam to Ambaji covering all tribal districts. We will appoint distributors in each place, who in turn, will hire tribals for manufacturing the same. The upcoming three-day Adivasi Ekta Parishad will also host a design contest to picturise possible dials such as Jal-Jungle-Zameen and Birsa Munda,” added the leader.
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