India's traditional handicrafts forge a festive comeback as Diwali gifts

Increasingly, heritage products from India's regional artisans are making a wave as handpicked festival gifts, especially for people who want their presents to tell a story

This Diwali, the sparkle isn’t just in the fairy lights or the glittering gold jewelry. It’s in gifts that tell a story. Families across India are moving away from imported candles, mass-produced crockery, and boxes of chocolates of predictable origin. Instead, they are gravitating toward presents rooted in Indian craft traditions: handwoven stoles, terracotta diyas, bamboo baskets, and Dokra artefacts.

 

The gifting hampers don’t just offer beautiful objects — they carry a deeper purpose: they celebrate the skill, heritage, and authenticity of India’s weaving clusters. As Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently urged: “Gifts should be those made in India, attire should be woven in India, decor should come from Indian-made materials … everything in every need of life should be swadeshi.”  

 

This way, when someone receives one of these hampers, they’re not just getting a product — they’re holding an expression of swadeshi, a pledge to support our artisans, keep weaving traditions alive, and live the philosophy that your everyday life — even in gifting — can reflect India’s journey toward self-reliance.

 

At a time when every mall and online marketplace is brimming with mass-produced items, the real luxury is something handmade — a piece that carries heritage, human touch, and cultural pride. “A handcrafted gift speaks to both the heart and the conscience,” says a Delhi-based marketing professional who, this year, is replacing foreign candles with brass diyas sourced from artisans in Moradabad for her corporate gifting. “It feels authentic, sustainable, and meaningful.”

 

The gift of conscious curations

 

A handcrafted piece carries emotional value far beyond the transactional appeal of a factory-made product. For millennial families and young professionals, it is no longer enough for a gift to be pretty, it must also be purposeful and tell a story. A Banarasi silk stole speaks of generations of weavers in Varanasi. A Patachitra tray embodies Odisha’s centuries-old artistry. A terracotta lamp brings the earthy imprint of rural India into an urban home.

 

Craft revivalist Jaya Jaitly, who has championed India’s handmade sector for decades, contextualises this shift: “It is but natural to give a crafted gift at this time — whether a set of hand-painted diyas, a brass artefact, or a beautiful handloom sari. The handmade reflects India’s culture and heritage skills. These must be embraced instead of foreign-made cut glass bowls or fake antiques.... The handmade is intrinsically part of our festivals and also sustains communities who have long been neglected.”

 

This explains why “conscious gifting” is no longer just a niche trend. With rising awareness of sustainability, urban consumers increasingly value the story behind a product.

 

Craft Meets Contemporary

 

To stay relevant, many brands are reimagining craft for modern lifestyles. Take Aadyam Handwoven, a social initiative of the Aditya Birla Group, which supports craft clusters across India, celebrating weaving traditions like ikat, tanchoi, extra weft and pashmina in their most authentic form. The curation draws from renowned craft regions such as Kashmir, Varanasi, Bhuj, and Pochampally, making every product a tribute to India’s living textile heritage.

 

“There is no parallel to handmade. The human element and the passion and diligence that is conveyed through a handcrafted piece has a special emotional quality that a mass-produced product can never achieve,” says Manish Saksena, business lead at Aadyam. “The mood of the weaver seeps into the textile. A weaver once joked that the fabric turned out stiffer on days he quarrelled with his wife. That is the human element a machine will never capture.”

 

Aadyam gifting hampers span the entire home repertoire — cushions, rugs, table and bed linen — alongside off-the-loom categories such as shawls, stoles, dupattas and sarees, with even a niche line of textile art, priced at an average of Rs 4,999 onwards.

 

Another example is Karmadori, a lifestyle brand focused on handcrafted fashion and home furnishings, co-founded by Supriya Rocha and Partha Sen, which specialises in thematic bedcover sets priced between Rs 5,450–7,500.

 

“Our designs use traditional techniques like block printing, patchwork, and Japanese shibori," says Rocha. "But we reimagine them with contemporary themes—oceans, mountains, tangram-inspired animals, or nautical landscapes. The idea is to keep the craft alive but also make it relevant to urban homes.”

 

Sen adds a technology twist: “We even use AI to evaluate millions of colour and pattern combinations before finalising designs. At the same time, we use upcycled patola silk sarees to ensure sustainability.”

 

This fusion of craft and innovation ensures that the handmade sector doesn’t remain frozen in time but evolves to appeal to younger buyers.

 

What sets these premium handicraft brands apart is their ability to blend heritage with modernity while retaining exclusivity. They emphasise not just the product but the story behind it — the provenance, artisan lineage, and centuries-old techniques woven into every piece. Instead of mass production, many operate in limited or bespoke runs, ensuring high craftsmanship, uniqueness, and a sense of rarity. Traditional weaves, block prints, and motifs are reinterpreted in contemporary silhouettes, colours, and categories such as home décor and lifestyle accessories, making them relevant to today’s urban consumer.

 

Several of these labels also work closely with artisan clusters or operate fair-trade platforms, ensuring that the value chain benefits craft communities directly. Given the time, skill, and branding investments involved, these products naturally command a premium, with thoughtful design, superior packaging, and storytelling adding value well beyond the base craft.

 

Corporate India also seems to have joined in the movement. Handcrafted hampers have become the new currency of goodwill in boardrooms. Large organisations see it as a way to showcase Indian heritage while aligning with environmental and social governance (ESG) goals.

 

The Artisans’ Moment

 

For India’s artisans, Diwali is make-or-break. Many report that the festive season contributes up to 40% of their annual income. “Every diya bought is not just a product sold, but a livelihood sustained,” says a terracotta artisan from West Bengal. “Our families wait for this season all year long.”

 

Craft fairs, online platforms, and even Instagram stores have become lifelines. During the pandemic years, many artisans suffered severe income loss. The resurgence of interest in handmade gifting is, therefore, more than a lifestyle choice, it’s an economic revival.

 

Paying extra for exclusivity

 

Unlike mass-produced goods, handcrafted products carry a price premium. A set of hand-painted terracotta diyas may cost Rs 300–Rs 500, while artisanal wellness hampers begin at Rs 1,500. Handwoven dupattas and sarees can go up to Rs 50,000 depending on the weave and detailing.

 

But buyers aren’t complaining. In fact, the willingness to pay more is seen as an investment in authenticity. “When I buy a handloom product, I know my money is helping sustain a weaver’s skill,” says a Bengaluru-based professional. “That gives me far greater satisfaction than gifting an imported candle which the recipient may not even remember.”

 

More Than a Gift

 

Ultimately, handcrafted gifting is not just a festive trend—it is a cultural investment. Each warp and weft, each carved motif, carries centuries of knowledge passed down through generations. Supporting these products sustains artisans while enriching our homes with beauty and meaning.

 

Diwali is called the festival of lights, but perhaps its true essence lies in spreading light beyond our homes. When you light a terracotta diya or wrap someone in a Banarasi stole,  it’s more than a gift: It’s a celebration of India’s living heritage, a pledge to keep it alive, and a way to let the festival illuminate the lives of those who craft them.  Premium Handicraft Price Chart 

Category	Typical Price Range	Notes / Factors Affecting Price
Small Décor / Trinkets (e.g. small brass figurines, papier-mâché boxes, mini curios)	1,000 – 8,000	Complexity of design, metal purity, hand-painting, finishing
Wall Art / Medium Sculptures (wood carving, metal wall panels, brass plaques)	5,000 – 25,000	Size, detailing, surface treatment, brand premium
Handwoven Textiles (Stoles, Scarves, Dupattas)	3,000 – 20,000+	Type of weave (ikat, extra-weft, pashmina, brocade), yarn quality, brand
Home Linen & Furnishing (table linen, cushion covers, small rugs)	5,000 – 35,000+	Fabric, handwork (embroidery, weaving), thread count, scale
Large Fabrics / Sarees / Throws / Shawls	15,000 – 75,000+	Weave complexity, silk content, artisan labour, brand markup
Luxury Décor & Sculptural Pieces (large brass idols, statement artefacts)	25,000 – 1,50,000+	Weight of metal, casting complexity, finishing, art / brand value
Curated Hampers / Premium Gift Sets	10,000 – 1,00,000+	Number of items, packaging, inclusion of multiple crafts, brand curation