Wheel is spinning with pots and diyas

Potters have just started their work for approaching festivals by making specially designed pots called ‘Garba’ to be used in playing Garba dance by the Gujarati women in Adilabad of Telangana during Durgadevi Navarathrulu next month. The potters continue their work of making earthen lamps for Diwali.  

There is considerable number of migrated Gujarati families settled in the Adilabad town and they celebrate Garba during Durgadevi Navarathrulu.

Gujarati women perform traditional puajs to the Garba pots considering them as sacred and Garba dance around the Garba pots kept in the centre.  It is done for the nine days after which the Garba pot is immersed in river.

Kannam Ramulu of Kumarpet colony in Adilabad was busy in making Garba pots on order for Gujarati women. The pot makers start work with the Garba pots which are called ghatams locally and continue with making earthen lamps (diyas) for Diwali.

He said his forefather and father did the same work for generations but the legacy will soon come to an end. His sons and other family members are taking up other occupations.  

Ramulu said specially designed Garba pots have a Swastik and Om etched on them and painted in specific colors of red and green and added that he has been making earthen items on order for different occasions for the last 25 years’. Ramulu said he will make 10,000 earthen lamps for Diwali this year’.

  

Ramulu’s wife Posani regretted over dwindling demand for earthen pots and gurigi (small size pots) as women prefer plastic and steel items to give as gift (Vainam) during special occasions like ‘Nomulu’ or ‘Vrathalu’. Also they were facing shortage of black soil due to urbanization and forced to purchase a tractor black soil for Rs 2,000.

Shanthabai Jaiswal, 86, neighbor of the Ramulu observed that it was difficult for the potters (Kummari) community people to survive just by making pots and its related work as it brings very little money.

x