Tibetan sweater sellers in Mumbai struggle to keep their tradition alive

Each November as the temperatures start to dip in Mumbai a small community of Tibetan sweater sellers arrives from northern Karnataka bringing warmth resilience and a fading piece of tradition Once these sellers transformed the cityrsquos streets from Thane to Churchgate into bustling markets showcasing vibrant sweaters in intricate patterns But this year only about thirty sellers will make the journey a stark drop from the five hundred who once lined Mumbairsquos sidewalks each winter reflecting a troubling reality for these refugees clinging to an uncertain livelihoodTenzin Methok Tibetan sweater sellerldquoThe Tibetan sweater sellers first came to Mumbai in the early 1970srdquo says Tenzin Tsundue a Tibetan activist who lived in Mumbai from 1997 to 2002 ldquoBefore this they were primarily farmers looking for alternative sources of incomerdquo Since then the sellers have brought not only warmth but also glimpses of Tibetan culture to Mumbai Years ago each sweater was handmade by Tibetan women each stitch woven with careTenzin Methok a secondgeneration seller recalls ldquoOur mothers used to handknit the sweaters we sold But hand knitting is labourintensive and timeconsuming Unfortunately our customers in Mumbai did not value this craft and we couldnrsquot keep up with market pricesrdquo ldquoNow they acquire sweaters from Ludhiana and other places in Punjab as loans selling them at a markup price for three months to sustain their families for the rest of the yearrdquo says Laurence Panjabi a campaigner for the Tibetan Refugee Sweater Seller Association TRSSA in MumbaiThe AllIndian Coordinator of the Tibetan Refugee Sweater Seller Association Tashi DekyiWith each passing year the season becomes harder to navigate and for the Tibetan sweater sellers climate change has only added to their burdens ldquoMumbai virtually doesnrsquot have a winter anymorerdquo says Kelsang Lhamo a Tibetan sweater seller who has been coming to Mumbai every winter for the past 44 years ldquoClimate change has pushed winters back by almost two months and this is another reason for the decline in our businessrdquo she says Customers who once flocked to their stalls now question whether they need warm clothing in the cityrsquos prolonged summer weather Sellers who once anticipated eager buyers now face unpredictable weather that undercuts their seasonal trade Securing permission to sell has become another pressing challengeldquoEvery year two members of the TRSSA come to Mumbai before the season starts to get written permission from the BMC and policerdquo explains Tsering Lhamo the TRSSA Mumbai representative for 2024 ldquoIt is only after we get both permissions that wersquore legally allowed to start selling our sweatersrdquo Yet delays and obstacles are frequent ldquoLast year we had to run around for a month before we got permission We only started selling on December 6 a month laterdquo Tsering addsJamyang Choedon left Kelsang Lhamo and Tsering LhamoThese setbacks cost the sellers a substantial share of their annual income ldquoLast year we barely made a profit because we lost a month trying to get the BMCrsquos approval and we couldnrsquot pay the traders in Punjabrdquo says Jamyang Choedon another seller whose rented home in Parel East doubles as sweater storage ldquoThankfully wersquove done business with them for many years so there is mutual understanding They didnrsquot push us to pay them backrdquoEach year they borrow Rs 2 to Rs 3 lakh rupees in stock paying back after their three months of sales Even in a profitable season they face mounting expenses Local competition is another battle ldquoVendors from North India particularly Uttar Pradesh sell similar products at cheaper ratesrdquo says Tsering ldquoThey sell yearround while we are here only for three months We canrsquot ask them to stop just because we want to sell our sweatersrdquoTashi Dekyi a member of the Tibetan Parliament in Exile and the AllIndian Coordinator of the TRSSA says ldquoSince ecommerce has picked up significantly in the last for a couple of years Mumbaikars prefer to buy woollens online which is more convenient and sometimes even cheaper for themrdquo Methok adds ldquoMumbai is expensive and we have many necessary expenses Transport costs rent in Mumbairsquos chawls and storage for sweaters all add up Without a good business season itrsquos difficult to survive hererdquo Unlike other major cities Mumbai has no dedicated market space for Tibetan sellersldquoApproximately 4500 Tibetans are operating sweaterselling businesses across 250 locations in Indiardquo says Tashi ldquoMumbai is the only major city that doesnrsquot have a dedicated market for Tibetan refugees during these three monthsrdquo says Jamyang ldquoCities like Kolkata Nagpur Jaipur Nashik and Ahmedabad have spaces called Tibetan markets where we can sell our goodsrdquoPoint 6e of the Tibetan Rehabilitation Policy of 2014 urges state governments to grant Tibetan refugees special land for bazaars yet Mumbai sellers still rely on temporary permissions from the BMC and police ldquoThere was a saying among our frequent buyersrdquo Kelsang recalls ldquonow that the Tibetans have come winter has arrived in MumbairdquoPanjabi reminisces ldquoMany years ago as an undergraduate at Jai Hind College I used to buy sweaters from outside CSMT station The Tibetan sellers were always there making winter feel realrdquoYet even as these sellers carry on many worry that this could be among their last seasons in Mumbai ldquoI am filled with remorse when I say that our business has no futurerdquo sighs Methok ldquoClimate change is one reason but we also seem to be the last generation doing this business Our parents were uneducated farmers from Tibet who found a way to survive and many of us followed suitrdquo ldquoOur children are educated and have high aspirations All my children are pursuing higher education and doing well I donrsquot expect them to carry forward our legacy as sweater sellersrdquo adds TseringFor these resilient sellers each season feels like a hardwon victory a bittersweet stand against time and change They return to Mumbai year after year bringing with them the warmth of a winter thatrsquos woven with memories of home heritage and quiet enduranceThough their numbers fade and their future remains uncertain the Tibetan sweater sellers remainmdasha steadfast sign of winterrsquos touch For the people of Mumbai the presence each November still signals in its quiet way that winter has somehow arrived