...women who make these hangings learn the craft very quickly and take pleasure in adding their own creative touches to each small toy ...

Under the British Raj, English missionaries introduced stuffed toy making in India. From the typical western rag doll, the designs were indianised with beads and bright colors. It is a simple craft and has been used by many development agencies to set up income generation schemes quickly. Its main advantage is that it does not need much equipment or space.

In the late 1990s there was a jump in demand for these toys especially in the Christmas decorations segment. The product is essentially made of small stuffed animals strung together with ceramic beads to make hangings and key chains. The work process is divided into several stages of cutting, sewing, stuffing, decorating and assembling. The cutting, sewing and assembly are normally done centrally in one place, while the stuffing and decorating work is taken home by the craftswomen. Each stage is handled by a different person. This makes it easy for a person with less skills to start working immediately on an easier job. Also some people have a special knack for a particular thing for e.g.. painting the tiny faces. This makes the work very satisfying to each person while assuring a uniform quality.

Several groups were set up to meet this demand and helped each other with the training and other details. These groups were mostly set up by people associated with Sasha, who wanted to find some income source for women in their localities. Both the craft and the concept of working together is new to most of them and they are still trying to reach an equilibrium. The main task ahead of them is to formalize this craft so that they are able to find a more stable market and to build up their skills so that they can adapt to changing trends and designs.