Trans-Giri craftsmen in Sirmaur make tools the old-fashioned manner and are paid in grains

Blacksmiths in the Sirmaur district’s Trans-Giri region are preserving their traditions by forging tools using “Aarans,” an ancient method, at an age when modern machines and technology rule the world.

Even with the availability of sophisticated gear, many chores are still performed by people in the state’s rural districts using traditional methods. One such method that is ingrained in the local way of life is the making of tools out of “Aarans.”

The trade of blacksmithing has been handed down through the centuries in the Trans-Giri regions, where artisans use age-old techniques rather than contemporary machinery. This strategy may need more labor, but it protects the long-standing custom that the locals value much.

This technique is special since it is reciprocal. The blacksmiths, referred to as “Lohars” in the community, forge tools for their landowners in exchange for a certain amount of grains that is given to them every six months to ensure their subsistence.

Even though they don’t own any land for agriculture, the blacksmiths are essential to the village’s economy. In communities with “Aaran” structures, they manufacture and fix agricultural implements to meet the demands of the farming community.

The craft’s central feature, the “Aaran,” is where iron is shaped and heated. Electric blowers have now taken the place of the traditional bellows fashioned from sheep or goat skins that were used to air the “Aaran.”

The blacksmiths expertly mold the hot iron into a variety of implements using powerful hammers. Many communities in the Trans-Giri region still go on with this age-old custom, signifying the tenacity of tradition in the face of change.

It is important to remember that this kind of workmanship usually requires coal as fuel and is done throughout the winter. The craftsmen prefer to work in the winter months since it’s more difficult to work near fires in the summer.