Critical Jugaad: A (Post) Critical Investigation into Marginal Making Practices from Beyond the Anglo-European Sphere

The practice of making as a viable, sustainable and social means of production is paramount in the subsistence and survival of maker ecologies, especially those of the global south. The nascent maker ecologies of the western societies are predominantly rooted in the desire to create an exclusionary identity from that of the mainstream neo-liberal economy and aim to create a cultural capital rooted in the need for self-actualization along with the desire to mobilise a progressive future. However, the aspect of western notion of making, although coming from a good position, does not fully capture the intentions and imperatives behind the maker ecologies from the Global South in its entirety. The author posits that making practices of the Global South are not only manifested in their craft industry, but also in the everyday practice of make-do in face of adversity commonly referred by the term Jugaad– a Hindi word expressing the act of making-do and getting by in conditions of scarcity of resources.