ReDharavi

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Pottery
Twelve and a half acres of prime property in Dharavi at the junction of the 90-60
Feet Roads is named after the migrant potters from Gujarat: ‘Kumbharwada’
(Potters’ Colony). Like many communities who came to seek their fortunes in
the island city, they were shifted out of the then emergent city centre in south
Bombay, and resettled in Dharavi.
250 potters’ families who live here have a special place in the community, their
business being as old as Dharavi itself. Their houses, combining home and
workplace, have an interesting design, narrow and long structures with two
entrances: one opens onto the yard where production happens and where the
shared bhatti or kiln is sited; the other entrance opens onto the street, where
the finished goods are displayed and sold. Though, compared to other trades,
the Kumbhars enjoy more space, their business has not seen a boom as some
others since it caters to a localised clientele.
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