Pottery Town

Bangalore has a small age-old settlement in the Cantonment area of potters who make and sell pots of all shapes and sizes, colours and designs. Pottery Town is a place where you can shop for everything from clay water pots to planters, tiny diyas, and massive Ganeshas. The place oozes out the rustic charm of the bygone days.

There are porches in the narrow lanes lined with small houses on either side. The streets are busy with buyers and sellers - both art lovers and creators of art pieces. You can get a glimpse of the fresh-off-the-wheel creations like pots, standing in the sun for drying.

I got a colourful sight of the place as it was Ganesh Festival and people were thronging in to buy the many avatars of the elephant God apart from kullads, palm-sized diyas, and miniature pots and pans arranged before every shop.

Pottery town is over 100 years old buzzing with 40-50 shops in the heart of Benson town, where potter’s wheels spins out biryani pots and lassi glasses by dozens to make a living, when the festive season is over. Tandoors are the most in demand round the year and mostly purchased in bulk by hotels and catering services. Each Tandoor is sold for Rs 1,500 to 2,500.

One of the artisan, G Ramesh has earned a diploma in modern pottery so that he could make the special clay and terracotta utensils that have found a place in Bengaluru’s high-end kitchens.Ramesh is now famous in Pottery Town for his terracotta water bottles which keep the water cool and can be carried with ease. Instead of the traditional wheel, he uses a modern pottery machine to make these. Each bottle costs Rs 100-120 in Pottery Town and Rs 300-500 in Commercial Street, Shivaji Nagar and shops in Koramangala and MG Road. I picked up few clay flower vases for my painting workshop and will visit again to buy a small tandoor to make my favorite dish- chicken biryani. Food cooked in pots is not only tasty but healthy too. Let's encourage our traditional way cooking.

Jaihind.