Winter, heyday for cork craftsmen in Lalmonirhat

Winter is a busy time for cork craftsmen due to the great demand for decorative items made of cork as the number of weddings and religious functions, especially of Hindus, increase during this season.

In the district, 50 to 60 cork craftsmen aided by some 200 assistants make wedding tiaras, first-feeding tiaras, idols of gods and goddesses, especially Bisohori, toys and decorative items.

“We make cork made commodities round the year and we are busiest during the winter,” said Ramanuj Barman, 46, a craftsman at Sadhutari village in Sadar upazila.

“We get advance payment from wholesalers for supplying them cork items, especially wedding and first-feeding tiaras. We sell each tiara for Tk 100 to Tk 150 to wholesalers and get around Tk 50 as profit per item.

“I was trained to make cork items by my late father Bhupendranath Sadhu in my childhood,” he said.

Ramanuj's elder brother Nirutpal Barman, 54, said, “I sell cork made commodities worth around Tk 2 lakh per year. We buy cork from distant villages now, but some years ago we could get it easily.”

Mohan Kumar Mohanto, 47, of Uttarsaptana village said they are sometimes hired for decorating stages for wedding parties and religious functions with cork items.

“It is mandatory for Hindus to use tiara during weddings and first-feeding functions, so we make those items of different qualities and prices,” he said.

Binod Chandra Roy, 48, a retailer of cork made items at Uttara road in the town, said they sell a tiara for Tk 250 to Tk 400 and other items at different prices. “The sale of tiara increases ten times during winter as there are many weddings,” he added.

Atul Chandra Roy, 63, a Hindu community leader at Mahishkhocha village of Aditmari upazila, said they use cork made items during weddings, first-feeding functions and other religious functions as it is an ancestral custom. “Cork commodities are cheap but they look nice and costly,” he said.