Shantiniketan, is a small town situated near Bolpur, West Bengal.
For the days, I was there for Poush Mela in Decemeber, I got to visit Santhal Village.
Santhals are the largest Adivasi community in India.
People live there in the houses made of mud, bricks and wood.
It was some 30 mins walk, where I got to experience the simple life of these people.
There were cows, ducks, hens and goat outside their houses which
you generally don’t get to see in our urban cities.
On the way, we got to visit one of the NGO, where they were selling some handcrafted jewellery.
The group was dressed for a musical and dance performance.
They say that if you come to Shantiniketan and not visit Lipi Di’s Studio, your visit is incomplete.
I love pottery and for somebody like me, who loves nature, Lipi Di’s Studio is the most
peaceful place to work.
Lipi di is a person full of life.
This is how she greeted us 🙂
Lipi Di with her architect husband Bidyut and their daughter live in the mud house.
The front has the Studio and the back has their house made of mud and bricks .
Their house property is a natural beauty with prayer flags and beautiful plants and flowers.
Lipi Di is working in Shantiniketan from last 15 years with the local artisans and her husband.
They use mined clay and ash glaze, which is made from garden rubbish in their pottery.
Here, The pottery shapes and designs are inspired by nature. Like, the lotus leaf in the
above picture and
A leaf, as an incense stick holder.
Lipi di has a huge furnace in her studio where they keep this pottery on high temperature.
She told us that, whosoever comes first in her studio while they are taking out the pottery from the furnace, gets the first ready piece.
While looking at the pottery in the studio, I went a little inside and found these boys working
on the clay.
They were so shy to the camera and even I didn’t want to bother them in their work.
As these pieces are very delicate, there could be some breakage.
Lipi Di has a special sitting area in her backyard where she has displayed those products.
You can buy them. Some don’t even look broken after they got it fixed.
Flowers and plants were so beautifully used in her studio.
I had never seen something as beautiful as this magical place.
We were there in the late afternoon and as the sun was going down, the yellow light on the walls of the studio were making it even more beautiful and warm.
We got to have tea with Lipi di. The kettle was extremely beautiful and so as the cups.
Lipi Di doesn’t keep her pottery in any of the stores outside Shantiniketan.
So, please don’t get confused with the other pottery available in our cities.
You are most welcome in her studio anytime you visit Shantiniketan.
Last but the least, Last year Nilanjan Banerjee made a short film on Lipi Di.
Below is the link
The address for her Studio:
LIPI BISWAS
Studio : Boner Pukur Danga
Shantiniketan – 731235
West Bengal – India
Ph : 0091-3463-262337
email : marangburu@yahoo.com
