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Mansimran Singh or Minni, as he is affectionately called, is an artist - potter of significant merit. His English wife, Mary, is also a professional potter.
Andretta Pottery came to be because a woman called Norah Richards came to live in Andretta (Himachal Pradesh), in the 1920's. She was a theatre lady and several artists visited her. Painter Sobha Singh moved here after partition; and Gurcharan Singh who started Delhi Blue Art Pottery would often visit Sobha Singh at Andretta.
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In the early 1980's there were still 120 out of nearly 270 potter families still existing in this area. Mansimran and Mary Singh were anxious to get them interested in pottery to suit modern day demands in an effort to stop the youngsters from leaving to look for jobs elsewhere.
Apart from setting up their own studio pottery workshop, they also established there a pottery and rural marketing centre in 1984, with a view to promoting and preserving the rich but dying crafts of the region.
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The Singhs involved the Development Commission, Handicrafts in the Ministry of Textiles, and then the Rural Marketing Centre, which gave them a subsidy of Rs. 85,000 for land building and furniture. Then came a seed capital of Rs. 50,000 against which funds could be raised. |
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Andretta Pottery and Crafts Society was set up in 1983. The Singhs worked in glaze and slips on terracotta, encouraging the village craftsmen to experiment. Since then Andretta Pottery has taken part in many exhibitions all over the country. The traditional potters have also accompanied the Singhs on many of these exhibitions.
Presently Mansimran Singh teaches students and also holds workshops at Andretta. In June 99 five Japanese potters held a workshop for the local potters of Andretta. |
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In June 2000 Jyotsna Bhatta of M.S. University, Baroda held a workshop on terracotta toys and decoration, at Andretta.
Andretta is about 540 kilometers from Delhi. One can go by road. The car journey takes 11 or 12 hours with a few stops on the way. The bus goes overnight as well. An overnight train will take you to Pathankot from where it is a three-hour drive to Andretta. |
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