Khoj Sabai Craft

Ranjita Dhal is the founder of Khoj Sabai Crafts, a women-led craft collective based in Odisha, India. She oversees training, design development, production, and community coordination, working closely with artisans across nearby villages. Khoj Sabai Crafts focuses on handmade products created using sabai grass, a durable natural fibre indigenous to the Mayurbhanj district. Each piece is woven using traditional techniques, often combining sabai grass rope with date leaves to create baskets, mats, boxes, handbags, furniture, and contemporary decor, produced in small batches and bulk orders alike. Her journey with sabai grass began over a decade ago, when she trained herself in the craft before teaching other women in surrounding villages. Today, around 300 women actively practice this craft, including members of her own family. Ranjita continues to innovate by adapting weaving to customer preferences. Through Khoj Sabai Crafts, she sustains rural livelihoods and preserves knowledge through craftsmanship.