{"id":652,"date":"2019-05-03T12:25:57","date_gmt":"2019-05-03T12:25:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vserver3.auroville.com\/?p=652"},"modified":"2023-02-02T09:33:26","modified_gmt":"2023-02-02T05:03:26","slug":"work-in-auroville-angad-from-mantra-pottery","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/adventure.auroville.com\/index.php\/2019\/05\/03\/work-in-auroville-angad-from-mantra-pottery\/","title":{"rendered":"The Elementary with the Indian Expressive Way: Angad from Mantra Pottery"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

An Interesting Way of Life<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Angad has a long history with Auroville and is one of the few remaining Aurovilians who had the chance to meet the Mother. \u201cI was born in Calcutta and I grew up in the north of India, I am Punjabi. I went to England for my education, and that has shaped me quite a lot. I studied mathematics at University, even though I always enjoyed painting and the arts. My family was very much in line with an academic career, but at the end of my studies, the thought of spending the rest of my life using only my mind in my work, it terrified me. So I experimented with crafts and making different things with my hands. On Friday nights the BBC would broadcast a show where an artist or craftsmen were introduced and one of these shows they showed a potter from Japan. I saw that, and I thought, \u2018That looks like an interesting way of life.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Angad in his studio<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

I had been to Pondicherry before, when I was 19 years old. I had a Darshan with Mother, which changed my life. At the time I didn\u2019t realize it. So I knew there were several potters in Pondy and when I visited I went to see the Golden Bridge Pottery. It reminded me of the documentary I saw and funnily enough Deborah, who ran the pottery, was close to this Japanese potter. They offered to train me and I started 3 days later. I took this decision more with the heart than with the head. It was the time of the hippies, the Flower Power, there was a big seeking for an alternative way of living\u2013so I guess I was on the lookout for that.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He managed; in 2019, Mantra Pottery had its 25th<\/sup> birthday, and the pottery has flourished \u2013 he still has his team with him and he can live off his craft. \u201cI feel very privileged to be part of the potter community in South India. Looking back I blame all of this on the Mother. Her energy made me look for a new career at the end of my studies and brought me back to India and Pondicherry.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Inspiration<\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Angad\u2019s pottery is meant for daily use, and he focuses on cups and plates, bowls and serving dishes. \u201cMy aim is to create something that is used, appreciated, broken and replaced\u2013not a pottery piece that collects dust in a cupboard.\u201d Although that means that he is often making the same thing, it fits well with his sense of what it means to do a job like this: \u201cI repeat the designs a lot\u2013I believe that the repetition brings a humble unconsciousness to its creation. This is the aesthetic way that comes from the Japanese side\u2013the un-self-conscious production makes it a piece of pottery that is made well, with the heart. I never tire of this practice as every time I repeat a design I focus on another aspect, so somehow it is the same but also different and that is, I guess, truly handmade.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His main inspiration is nature, both in its milder and more expressive forms.\u201d I got trained in Japanese aesthetic, which is very elementary and zen. This always clashed with my Indian background. When I left the Golden Bridge Pottery I started my own designs, I got more experimental with mixing the elementary with the expressive Indian way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n