At Chhoti Si Asha, the design process doesn’t begin with a product.
It begins with the women — the craft they know, what they’ve grown up around, and where they dream of taking it.
Our basket journey began with Usha. Traditionally, baskets in her community were woven with moonjh grass. But when we started working together, access to moonjh was limited — what we did have was heaps of fabric waste. So we experimented. Using kachra rassi (soft rope spun from shredded fabric waste), Usha and Asha created the first fabric-wrapped baskets. They were beautiful but bulky — laundry baskets, basket sets — not always easy to store.
Post-lockdown, when our newly trained women formed their own collective, Kudrat, we began exploring smaller, more versatile forms. Exposure visits and design explorations sparked the idea of a turtle-shaped basket — inspired by a soft toy we were already making. Kamlesh, Suneeta, and a few others tried their hand. After some attempts, the turtle finally took shape. The joy was palpable.
Soon, a smaller turtle followed. As we read more, we discovered how auspicious turtles are across cultures — symbols of luck, longevity, and grounding. That’s when we knew this design could be a mindful, meaningful gift. To complete it, our artisans added a hand-stitched Kantha card — a blessing carried with every basket.
So, who designed the Turtle Basket?
There isn’t one answer. It was born out of Usha and Asha’s first experiments, Kudrat’s imagination, our shared exposures, and most of all, the women’s desire to keep their craft alive and relevant.
The Turtle Basket is more than a product — it is proof that craft, when nurtured, evolves.
[Handcrafted, Handmade, Turtle Basket, Women empowerment, Community Engagement, Chhoti Si Asha Originals, Festive Season]
