Sandalwood, silk & stuff...

January 9, 2008
Karnataka Soaps & Detergents Limited

The factory is old, rundown, and needs reconstruction. The facility was built in 1917 by the government of Karnataka. Arriving to the factory, it looked like a gated abandoned dead end alley with random rustic buildings. The condition of the factory was worse inside than the outside. Large stacks of sandalwood trees were stacked along the side of the hall way and piles of potato sacks filled with shredded pieces lay in the corner while pigeons and unidentifiable insects fly around the sapping sandalwood bark. Clearly, the working conditions of the plant were not sanitary nor up to quality standards.

The size of the plant matched the number of employees. Our guide told us 34 workers are staffed within three duty shifts. They manufacture sandalwood incense and oil, soap is produced off site.

When we arrived, the guides were not prepared for our group visit and we had to wait until they opened up. During the wait, I thought about the level of inefficiency Indians seem to have when there is a schedule. There seems to be a block converted into “Indian Time” when our class is in a lecture or at a site visit. The cultural norm for Indians to be laid back on time is definitely not what Americans are used to. After a few weeks in India, I have noticed Indians tend to take long breaks out of their schedule to converse or have lunch; whereas, in the US, breaks are considered unpaid time off and a cause of inefficiency. The value of time can vary from loss of money to the principle of disrespect. For me, it was more time for me to get used to waking up eleven and a half hours earlier than usual.

Mysore Silk Factory

Silk is one of the many exotic materials foreigners loom to discover. Today, we didn’t have to do much searching. There was enough silk to give to all of India’s population here. Threads of silk were woven together to make every pattern imaginable. In the mist of more deafening sounds and squealing machinery, spinning colors file through nimble fingered workers onto rolls of silk thread. Step by step, I saw the raw material, dyeing process, and finally the silk patterns. I liked seeing the process effort needed in order to truly appreciate how much time it takes to purchase a simple silk sari or scarf.