I have always been mesmerized by North East of India and getting a chance to visit the place and meeting artisans is a dream come true. The local authorities have been super supportive.
Visited Assam and Meghalaya…..and its super beautiful with extremely courteous and disciplined people.
Women from Lyrnai and Tyrshang village, in Jaintia Hills, Meghalaya make potteries using a process unique in the world.
The 2 villages, Lyrnai and Tyrchiang, are popular for their terracotta pottery.
The women of these villages are humble and hard-working. They live a simple lifestyle and are not economically well off, yet they are self-empowered and help each other out. They get together and formed a community, which is also called Self Help Groups. Through these Self-Help Groups, they achieved bigger things. They do not use a mold of any kind. They shape the pottery with their bare hands, cutting, glazing and shaping them with their wooden tools and sun dry it. They wanted to preserve their traditional way, which is only by using wooden tools and their hands throughout the process.
The end product that you get from their artwork is these beautifully hand-made, exquisite black pottery that signifies their love for traditions and the joy and dignity of work.