look | A curated exhibition of traditional Indian vessels at Patre, Bengaluru

Antique Utensils in Patra | Photo Credit: Meera Naidu

it is teardrop shaped Sandesher Chanch, Chaitali Dutta, an architect from Kolkata, inherited it from her mother-in-law, which she got from her mother. In black clay with embossed designs, molds were used to make Message Imprinted with intricate floral designs. Datta doesn’t sweeten Bengali milk at home, but she has kept these beautiful pieces of Bangladesh as a legacy she will someday pass on to her daughter.

teardrop-shaped sandy beak | photo credit: chaitali dutta

“That’s why we’re curating pots Exhibition,” says Chandra Jain of the Crafts Council of Karnataka. “There are many of us like Chaitali who still treasure or use kitchen pieces from the olden times. pots Will showcase vessels sourced from private collectors, antique dealers and of course personal kitchens. To me, these are works of art. They carry a lot of nostalgia and craftsmanship within them.”

Chandra Jain of the Crafts Council of Karnataka | photo credit: Mrinal Jain

There will be a three-day exhibition in Bengaluru, opening on March 17 calcetti Or stoneware pots, wooden spice boxes, pestles and mortars, bamboo strainers, coconut graters, walnut crackers, and more. It took more than eight months to prepare it.

Jain got in touch with several museums and spread the word among his contacts and members of the Crafts Council, who generously lent their vessels from Assam, Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal and Odisha. at multiple of 100 pieces pots Also borrowed from Janpad Lok, a folk museum in the city.

A wooden container from Kerala | photo credit: Mrinal Jain

stackable brass box
, photo credit: Mrinal Jain

copper vessel | photo credit: Mrinal Jain

a metaphor for the world

“I remember growing up in Lucknow and wondering why the brass plate in the house was called flower plate, Now I know it was because they were as delicate as flowers. The alloy of copper and tin made them brittle and they would break if we dropped them! I also learned that bronze was a great metal for cooking and eating as it did not react with the acids in our food,” recalls Jain.

It’s these little bits of wisdom and anecdotes pots serve its visitors. “If you pause to consider it, there is so much history, community, wisdom and nostalgia in these traditional tools. See how Kabir, Guru Nanak and so many Sufi poet-saints used pots and pans as metaphors for life. Used,” she says. They nurture, bond, and are beautifully crafted.

An ornate copper vessel | Photo Credit: Meera Naidu

Brass pot with an intricate pattern | Photo Credit: Meera Naidu

They are also living traditions – telling incredible stories about how our ancestors lived, cooked healthy food and kept fit. “We have pieces in curation that go back centuries. There are water bottles that people carry on their journeys on horseback, urn Or water pots, large pots in which food was cooked for large families or during community events,” says Jain. pots It has also been envisioned as a way to reintroduce old crafts that are in danger of dying out. “So many young people have told me how the pandemic has given them pause to reflect on the beautiful things they have in their homes. It got him thinking about eating eco, seasonal and local. pots An amalgamation of all those ideas.

oval hamandista
, photo credit: chaitali dutta

Meanwhile, Chaitali digs up another old heritage, an oval hamandista Or the mortar and pestle that turns black with age. she uses it to crush basil Leaves and black pepper to treat persistent cough. “To think that my great-grandmother used it for the same thing 100 years ago is heartwarming,” she says.

Patre is at the Karnataka Chitrakala Parishad from March 17-19.

The writer is a freelance journalist based in Coimbatore.