Where the sounds of bangles ring

Imam Husen Gudunavar writes about the glass bangle makers of Murgod, who brave extreme conditions to make ornaments.

It was raining heavily when we stepped inside a glass bangle manufacturing unit at Belagavi’s Murgod. We were all drenched. Surprisingly, it took just five minutes for our clothes to dry. We were soon warm, and then the heat became unbearable. We could not stand there for long and slipped out to get some fresh air.

Yet, hundreds of families in Murgod brave this extreme heat from fiery hot furnaces (bhatti) to earn a living and keep the art of making glass bangles alive. Today, there is the added stress of scarcity of labourers and a slump in the market. 

“Some 15 to 20 years ago, there were only two bangle-making units in Kittur. But the numbers increased to six after the trade began looking profitable. This naturally increased the production of bangles. However, tastes have changed and the demand for glass bangles has plummeted,” says Mehboob Attar of Chennammanna Kittur. He is struggling to keep his unit going and is unable to find skilled labourers, he adds.

But Shekhappa Baligar, another bangle maker, has a more optimistic outlook. He says glass bangles might have lost the sheen that they had earlier, but there is still a market for them, and artisans can easily make ends meet.

Even today, bangles catch the fancy of Indian women and to cater to the demand, bangles of various colours, designs and materials have thronged the market. This includes those from the glass capital of India — Firozabad. 

When it comes to weddings and other traditional ceremonies, especially in north Karnataka, people still prefer wearing unsegmented solid glass bangles, particularly green ones. This has helped the glass bangle industry stay alive.

Bangles being made in Chennammanna Kittur.

Murgod lies two miles from Halki Cross, along the route from Belagavi to Bagalkot, and is popularly called a village of bangles. The village is known for producing solid glass bangles and houses 15 units. Even villages and towns nearby like the historical Chennammanna Kittur and Savadatti in Belagavi district and Aravatagi and Kumbarakoppa in Dharwad district have small units.

Over the years, the profession has seen the entry of families from various communities. 

Glass bangle pieces being placed in the furnace to be melted down.

From furnace to wrist

Most of these bangle manufacturing units operate from small sheds or tiled-roof houses. In the limited space available, they set up square-shaped platforms made of mud. These platforms can hold around six wood-fired ovens. A pot is kept in each of these ovens where pieces of glass are melted. Some workers who sit around these small furnaces pull out molten glass using an iron rod and transfer it onto a cone-shaped tool. The molten glass is then rolled into a bangle by hand.

These skilled hands prepare bangles of various sizes and colours and sell them at Rs 20 to 30 per dozen.

“Making bangles needs quick work, as every second is important. We have to be attentive, right from taking out the molten glass to rolling it into a cylindrical shape. Even if we delay it by a few seconds, the molten glass becomes useless,” Mehboob explains.

“Every day at 5 am, I light the furnace using two-and-a-half quintals of firewood. The workers arrive after three to four hours. But working in extreme heat in closed rooms is not an easy task. Many have also had health issues due to this,” says Ramesh Kajagar of Murgod, as he wipes sweat off his brow and turns towards the furnace.

Glass bangle pieces are used to make new glass bangles. The bangle makers buy this from Miraj, Pune, Karad and Satara in Maharashtra at Rs 220 per quintal. Makers produce around 280 to 300 bangles per quintal of raw material. They transport these bangles to sellers in Belagavi, Dharwad, Haveri, Davangere and other cities in Karnataka and Maharashtra.

The major market for these bangles is at fairs like the Ulavi fair (in Uttara Kannada), where thousands of devotees gather. Women generally prefer to buy glass bangles here.

“Glass bangle making is officially a cottage industry, but we do not get any government facilities that other cottage industries get. Officials usually ask for several documents but we do not have the knowledge to fill out paperwork,” says Kajagar. 

Every bangle-making unit has around 13 labourers. Two people sit around each of the six ovens. Each pair works for nearly eight hours every day to prepare around 3,000 bangles and earn Rs 1,000 per day. This takes the total bangles produced in each manufacturing unit each day to around 18,000 bangles. 

“Our turnover is around Rs 30 lakh per year. After paying the labourers’ wages, investing in raw materials, firewood and other expenses, we are left with some profit,” says Mehboob.

“We do not deny the hardships involved in working in glass bangle making. But we are not literate and have to earn a living from the skill we know,” said Kashim Pendari, a worker in Murgod.

(Translated by Divyashri Mudakavi)