The Story Thus Far..

I believe all of us are a compendium of stories that we live through on a daily basis. I was privileged enough to be born in a household where education was very important and though my father had a transferrable job, sacrifices were made to ensure that I have a stable schooling. I formally trained as a Software Engineer and led a corporate life for nearly a decade.

I always found the process of creating something new to be very exciting and landed on weekend pottery classes as a way to satiate this desire. This was in 2009. As is usually the case, more is never enough for creative urges and in 2013, I gave up my corporate job to pursue ceramic art and pottery full time.

At KalaGhoda Art Festival 2019, Mumbai

I was so consumed by this pursuit that I did not mind doing, breaking, redoing pieces over and over again. I found a level of commitment within myself that I did not realize, existed. I traveled the country participating in group shows, being a part of exhibitions and running stalls at pottery markets.

Along the way I have met and made so many friends, and mentors. Interacting with other potters and learning from them, and reading up on this multi-millennia old artform (which is surprisingly well documented), led me to explore the world of textures, colors and forms. However, what was elusive was the incorporation of the magical balance of a well-made artefact that, for me, continues to define the holy-grail of this artform. It was time to dive deeper into this aspect of this addictive pursuit.

At GBP, Pondicherry - with Deborah Smith and Ray Meeker

In 2022, I ended up at the Golden Bridge Pottery at Pondicherry. Spending a better part of the year at Pondicherry in the company of so many talented individuals and being exposed to the oh-so-wonderful environs did set me up on a path to improve my own skills as an artist. The biggest takeaway was that while it is difficult to control the variables of pottery and ceramic builds, it is not an excuse for accepting imperfections. While the outcomes may not be consistent, the process to get there can be practiced upon. Once consistency in techniques is achieved, it opens up the world to experiment with. As with all experiments, some will pass and some will fail. But such is life and I continue to be a work-in-progress.