Learning Pottery in the Mountains with Shilaroo
Shilaroo, a village town just before Narkanda in Himachal, homes a learning retreat run by a sister duo. I spent 8 days learning pottery, taking nature walks, meditating and doing yoga in this quint home that is surrounded by vegetable gardens and mountain air. Virangana, co-founder of The Shilaroo Project and a full-time ceramist and fine artist shares the process and values of creating this space.
Her words edited
THE SEED
As army kids, we traveled a lot with our parents and that exposed us to situations and people a lot more than other city kids. My mother who is a travel writer and author (Anita Kanthela) had a great influence on us. I studied at the Kalakshetra college of arts in Chennai and then went to the golden bridge pottery school and later worked with Vineet Kakar to learn more about my art. I took a conscious decision to study art and then leave Bombay and move to the hills. And when you have an intention, dots start to connect and things work out. My grandfather had this land and both me and my sister had a calling since our families are from here and we both did not want a life in the city. It took us 5 years of planning and building this space of learning.
COLLABORATION
Meditation and pottery compliment and facilitate each other, something you realize only after /doing it for some time. The same way I and my sister are a great team. Initially, we had some challenges when it comes to mingling with the locals and somehow justifying our odd choice, however with time we have built that relationship with them and have even organized yoga events for them.
DESIGN
All natural materials have been used in this project including terracotta, wood, and metals. When we were conceptualizing the space, we wanted to incorporate the open space yet have a covered water and windproof functional stay. Hence, it was important to merge the boundaries of the inside and outside. We have tried to make the space comfortable and personal with books we have collected over a period of time and art and pottery in each corner.
MEANING OF CONSCIOUS LIVING
It’s a state of awareness when you make sense of everything logically but also emotionally. It’s about trusting the path and even being aware of the unclarity. It’s not a moral or habitual choice. Sometimes I miss the city but then I know why I chose this kind of life and what value it brings to me.
SOUL
I think it’s important to ask yourself questions and it is a continuous process to create something authentic. It’s important to experiment. It helps in intangible ways even as a potter or a painter as you add another layer of expression to your work. There is a character in this piece of art. It is a challenge to retain your values sometimes, but its a making of a person before art. I try to work with different materials, sometimes 3D, sometimes 2D. I keep myself inspired by Hindustani music, Sufi and Bhakti poetry, and literature. I try to choose quality over quantity.
ROAD AHEAD
We wish to create an experiential space and center for learning by holding longer workshops. Sunil Chauhan of Spiti Ecosphere is someone who has inspired by with his knowledge and experience and we hope to collaborate with him. Another project that is interesting is Allap in Kumaon who work on forest conservation and the idea is to bring this community together.
NOTE ON MODERN-DAY SPIRITUALITY by Shubhangna Kanthela
We are living in the center of the most advanced era on levels of socio-economic development, rapid technological and scientific progress, mental, physical and emotional wellbeing. All the aspects of our basic survival needs have been taken care of making it the best time to open a discussion on spirituality. In such times, exploring and going beyond the physical becomes natural as our survival has more or less been taken care of. Spirituality is not something that is done on the outside or in competition with someone else, it is a process one does with oneself and having achieved such a strong ground on the outside there is nowhere we need to turn more than inwards.There are no shortcuts to being spiritual, but something that everyone could and should do is to be 100% aware and responsible for themselves throughout the day. Inculcating gratitude is something one can experiment with on a daily basis; absolute attention and awareness being grateful for the water you drink, being grateful to the earth on that we walk upon being grateful to each other and to yourself. This will bring about a shift in the way we experience life. Another experiment is to follow the cycles of nature as closely as possible; eat on time, sleep early, wake up with the sun and wake up with a smile. This will help in coming to a state of complete clarity within yourself.
TRAVEL JOURNAL
Day one: Just boarded the morning Shatabdi from New Delhi Railway station. Soon a chai wala and then a newspaper wala will come. What is the thing about travelling that I like? Maybe it’s the curiosity or just a feeling of being in a flow. Maybe the human connection and that feeling that I am going to meet someone who’s destined. I think it’s growth that I strive for.
The landscape changed after Chandigarh. A five-hour uphill drive, and soon air was cooler and trees were more pine. Curvy, bumpy, stormy and foggy. Upon arrival, I found my corners to hide. A book corner, a tea corner, a window by the balcony. We were a dozen women put in a house, all from different walks of life. From a volunteering teacher training to be a pilot, to an economist who is a poet at heart. Potters, painters, meditators and vegan enthusiasts. Bunch of passionate wanderers and women who empower, embracing diversity.I browsed through the space and found a painting studio in the loft with ceramics, books, view of the mountains, natural light. I later took a walk through the vegetable garden and came back for some fresh bread and tea. It all felt a little bit cosmic. Like something exactly out of my journal. I started to feel that something was bringing me closer to a dream. I was scared and happy, all at once .Conversations on sustainability, feminism, philosophy began I was listening and learning.
Day 3: In an outhouse
In an apple valley
Centring.
Listening to music.
Feeling of an imaginary presence.
I come back to the room.
I slip into a sweet lull of this winter afternoon nap.
Song of Silence
I could hear my breath,
Sunlight on my face,
Wild breeze
A solo bird
Yellow flowers
Smell of cedar wood
Solitude
Clouds teasing me
Smell of rain
Shades of blue and green
And Starry nights that make me happy sad
Day 5: We drove through villages to reach a peak of a mountain from where we walked into a dense forest. Sitting in silence in nature, you realise how the forest has all the answers. How nature Balances itself, how beautiful solitude can be, how years of experience forms us, how unique each tree is, how they happily coexist with their differences, how rooted a tall tree is, how many imperfections it holds and yet it blooms. Every-time I saw an element, I learnt something new. I tried to soak in as much as I could, so when I am back to the citylife, i can visualise and experience the same peace again.There are Stones reflect light, that have taken years to form and are unique. Sitting Lakes, broken flowers
Day 7: Hold it. Warmly. Don't put too much pressure. Sense it. Know it. Feel it. Nurture and love it. Be gentle. Be patient with it. Find the Balance. Don't be attached to it. And then let it go. The less you try to change more it loves along. Understand it.
Day 9: We are all beautiful women. A little bit broken, a little alive with our dreams, holding each other. These warm corners where we shared laughters, experiences, hopes and dreams. Pottery room that taught us how to centre, yoga room that made us mellow, tea room and the attic where ideas were shared, all will be missed. Do we have to let go? I am not happy yet.