K. Manohar makes small curd pots at his work station in Royapettah.
| Photo Credit: RAGU R
A resident of Maavadi Vinayagar Koil Street at Balaji Nagar in Royapettah, K. Manohar has been in the business of making small curd pots (dahi handi). Having seen 65 summers, Manohar has witnessed the vicissitudes of time, as has his business alongside him, which is obviously younger than him but not significantly. The business keeps “firing”, showing no signs of ageing; it is 50 years old. There are challenges, but Manohar has soldiered on, watching his business outlive even star hotels that once placed huge orders with him but have since slipped into oblivion. As things stand, he supplies these pots to one star hotel in Chennai, the enterprise attracted to his creations for the novelty they bring to the table. He functions with a two-member team, that is, if one counts him in. The only other team member is also his partner for life, M. Bhuvaneshwari his wife: talk about family-run business!She chips in by helping him with preparations for processes such as drying the pots and firing them. He makes these pots with clay sourced from Red Hills. Every day, he manages to make 200-300 pots; after he has racked up around 2,000 pots, he initiates the firing process. He maintains an inventory of 4000 pots at any point in time. Though not extremely keen on retailing, he does not shy away from it either. The pots are priced in the range of ₹8 to ₹10 each. He is content servicing that one bulk order, one that keeps him busy.
