How Ganesh Chaturthi is empowering traditional potters in a Chennai village

The two-bedroom house of 32-year-old Savithiri Dayalan in Periyapalayam village, 50 km from Chennai in Tamil Nadu, is filled with thousands of clay idols of Lord Ganesha. For the last three months, along with her parents and 13-year-old son, Savithiri has been busy readying close to 7,000 clay idols of Ganesha to be sold within four days of the Ganesh Chaturthi festival.

Savithiri, the fourth-generation artist from a traditional potter’s family, is among scores of women in Periyapalayam village who design clay idols to meet the demand of devotees in the Chennai metro. Apart from traditional Ganesha idols, Savithiri designs Ganesha with themes. To celebrate the victory of Indian sportspersons in the Olympics and Paralympics this year, Savithiri designed a Ganesha with an Olympic medal instead of a plate filled with laddu.

As traditional idol production is over, her Olympic Ganesha is taking its final shape in the workshop, dampened with clay and water.

“I wanted to honour the sportsperson through my art. I saw the medal design online and tried to recreate it in clay,” said Savithiri, while placing the medal on the idol.

Inside her house, huge packages are ready to be loaded into the parcel van. Except for the kitchen, Ganesh idols are found all over the house. Small model idols are sitting pretty on the sofa, which is placed on top of a cot. The smell of clay fills the air in her house.

Just outside the house is a small workshed, where she has placed the clay mixing machine, drying area, water tanks, and colouring area.

Like Savithiri, many clay artists in Periyapalayam make Ganesha idols in different forms, ranging from cricket Ganesha, corona Ganesha, dancing Ganesha, reading Ganesha, football Ganesha, and many other types based on demand.

According to the Tamil Nadu Potters Federation, close to four lakh persons have been identified as traditional potters engaged in various kinds of pottery including idol-making, utensil making, decorative pot making and other art products using clay. Interestingly, majority of them are engaged in pottery for over three generations.

“My father learned the art from his grandfather and passed it on to me. There were times when my father had to sweat all day to prepare 50 idols; these days I make close to 200 a day using moulds, and all the idols come out with perfect features. I make idols ranging from half a foot to two feet in size,” says Savithiri, pointing to different sizes of Ganesha idols made by her.

She had her first taken lessons in pottery as a teenager from her father. Over the years, she has practised precision and applied creativity to design idols in different forms.

Savithiri insists that she would never take up orders over 10,000 because she doesn’t want to compromise on quality. The entire process of mixing the clay, making the idol, drying and painting it takes at least 20 days.

“I have to design the idol, ensure it is coloured, dried again, and packaged well. I take caution in loading idols into the parcel van. Since people worship the idol, I ensure none of its parts are damaged,” says Savithiri.

Idols are priced from Rs 50 to Rs 500. Many retailers also queue up at Savithiri’s house to buy 100 to 200 idols at wholesale rates.

Savithiri’s family makes close to Rs 1 lakh during Ganesh Chaturthi, and they are employed only for three months in this business.

“Thanks to Ganesha, I make Rs 1 lakh every year, which helps me pay the school fees of my two children. I have set up a small grocery store next to my house. I also design clay pots, kadai, and bowls for the rest of the year. I am hoping to open an online portal to sell my products. I do not want to quit pottery and making idols, a tradition that has run in my family for many years. My son is taking the tradition ahead as he also makes colourful idols for his friends,” Savithiri said.

She dropped out of school after Class 10 to support her father in pottery. During her visits to Chennai, she learned about pottery studios that have become popular hobby spots. For Savithiri the benefits of pottery exceed the financial support she gets from the art.

“Pottery helps us shape our creative ideas into a product. The touch of clay and giving shape acts like a meditation session. I’m planning to tie up with a pottery studio to take my traditional skillset to heal urban residents,” said Savithiri, adding pottery helps a person improve focus and also calms the mind.

Savithiri’s father, Gajendran (55), recalls how he used to prepare 12 sets of pottery vessels for marriages until 20 years ago. Whenever a marriage was confirmed in the village, Gajendran would be the first person to receive the order for marriage gifts.

“We used to design big clay pots to store rice and pulses, curry pots, plates, lamps, and clay stoves. Some poor families would opt for a five-set gift pack. Now, the usage of clay vessels in daily life has come down. The demand for Ganesh idols remains the same. We are happy that the idols we make are used for pooja in hundreds of houses,” he said.

Switching to modern-day pottery, Gajendran said Savithiri underwent training to make clay pots that could be used in microwave ovens, and she designs modernized pots used in hotels.

Asked about oven-friendly pots, Savithiri shared the details of a training program held in her village for modernised utensil production three years ago.

“There was a combined project funded by Indian Oil Corporation to open a centre for traditional potters like me in 2021. It was executed by an NGO named Centre for Social Development (CSD) with research aid from IIT Madras and Central Glass and Ceramic Institute (CGCRI), Kolkata. But due to poor patronage from government authorities, production work came to a standstill. I had made close to 50 oven-friendly utensils but got back to traditional idol making and pot-making because of the closure of the centre,” said Savithiri.

When The Federal visited the oven-friendly pot-making unit, the premises was found locked up for several months. The unit is surrounded by bushes, and the doors were rusted.

Now Savithiri uses the traditional skillset learned from her father and the modernized skillset learned in the training to design pots for various needs. According to her, since times have changed, the demand for artistic and modernized clay pots has grown over the years. She makes ice-cream bowls, tea cups, and biryani bowls in small quantities.

“There is a big demand for clay jugs and water bottles. Many modern artistic products come and go, but traditional Ganesh idols will always be in demand for many years to come. So I ensure I do not miss out on making idols every year,” says Savithiri.

Colouring a batch of Ganesha idols, Savithiri said she never used plaster of Paris and heavy chemical-loaded colours. The colour clay idols made by her would dissolve in five minutes after immersion.

S. Bhuvana is among the hundreds of customers who buy idols made by potters like Savithiri from Periyapalayam. She is thrilled to celebrate Ganesh Chathurthi with the clay idol of the elephant god.

“I bought a two-feet idol. He looks pretty sitting on little mouse. I bought two others types — one with colourful head gear and the other with Olympic medal. I feel good that these artists help us to keep our traditional alive,” said Bhuvana.