NAVIGATING GOVERNANCE, PRODUCTION ECOLOGY AND CULTURAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN TRIBAL CRAFT TOURISM: INSIGHTS FROM BLACK POTTERY ARTISANS OF MEGHALAYA, INDIA
Abstract
This study examines Jaintia black pottery (Khiew-Ranei) in Larnai village, Meghalaya, as a governance-mediated craft tourism system rather than merely a cultural product. Using a qualitative case study design, data were collected through field observation and semi-structured interviews with potters, elders, youth, and members of the Dorbar Shnong (customary village council). The analysis focuses on production ecology, ritual obligation, livelihood dynamics, and institutional regulation.
Findings show that black pottery operates within structurally bounded production conditions shaped by climate dependency, extraction depth, and labour intensity. The craft functions simultaneously as a ritual obligation and a livelihood source, with artisans reporting average annual earnings of approximately ₹1 lakh, though income remains variable due to rising input costs and seasonal demand. The Dorbar Shnong mediates tourism participation through pricing norms, visitor limits, conflict resolution, and collective fund management, translating sustainability principles into enforceable practice. Authenticity is actively regulated through institutionally defined visitor pathways rather than left to market negotiation.
Building on these findings, the study proposes the CPLS-E framework, which conceptualizes craft tourism as an integrated system linking Community, Production, Livelihood, Sustainability, and Enterprise under customary governance. By positioning enterprise as institutionally conditioned rather than growth-driven, the study contributes a governance-centered perspective to tribal tourism, cultural entrepreneurship, and sustainable development debates in ecologically fragile mountain contexts.
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