Magic in Mud 

Terracotta products have charmed all and sundry, be it as gifts or for decorating your house, they are reasonable and look very contemporary in today's times. From the raw material to the finished product, the process involves a lot of hard work and
concentration. Creating masterpieces in Terracotta is Mrs. Kanta Anand, who is relatively unknown in Delhi but makes exciting new collections in Terracotta. She ventured into this art in 1994, and now retails from her house by the name of Rangoli Creations. According to Mrs. Anand, "I haven't done any specialized training or course in this field. It all started as a hobby, after my daughter's wedding. I used to be free like all housewives and had nothing to do in my spare time. I wanted to do something worthwhile and spend my time doing something fruitful. Also I don't have a habit to sit idle, so I started this in 1994 on a very small scale. I first bought some pots, painted and designed them."

Seeing the encouraging response she got, her creations were a big hit among her family and circle of friends. They appreciated her work and this inspired her to take it up as a serious venture. She got a lot of word of mouth publicity, which encouraged her to participate in some of the major exhibitions in Delhi.

She was interviewed by Doordarshan and she got more publicity. From then many people started buying a lot of stuff from her. She has even exhibited her stuff in the yearly Blind School Diwali mela, which is famous for its unique products. It's been a ritual with her that she puts up her stall at the Mela every year without fail. She has a whole set of dedicated clients and some of her pieces have even gone to Dubai. Customers come from far off places, especially to purchase her products.

As she has her set of committed clients she feels that she doesn't need to retail it or give it to some store, she is happy taking part in Diwali Melas and exhibitions. Her product range includes Ganeshas (which are her specialty), stands, lamps and garden items. Also there is whole range of Diwali and items like boxes, diyas, pots and containers. The raw material comes from Rajasthan and she has her workshop here with her labour doing the work.

At first she was doing the whole process herself, but now she has taught her workers how to go about it. The process basically includes finishing, painting and woodwork. The raw material at first is very rough, it is finished and then painted. Mrs. Anand herself does the designing and she can also make products on order.

She feels, "I have a wide range of products in my workshop. When customers have something specific in mind, I gladly make it for them. People want a particular type of Ganesh and so on. Also many want it with the planter, it all depends on their need, so I make it on order. I keep a variety of pieces for the customers to make a selection or maybe enhance and give me an idea as to what they want the finished product to look like."

She has no plans of expansion right now, as she is satisfied the way her hobby has nurtured into such an endeavor. Presently she has no intentions to open hobby classes or teach it to anyone. As a parting shot she says, "If anyone wants to know about the whole process I don't mind explaining it to them. It's just a passion, which took shape and I'm doing well. I can't predict anything about the future, but I'll surely follow my interest."

Well, our best wishes to you for the amazing collection of Terracotta products on offer.

- Text and pics by Jyoti Narang