The love for botany and ceramics translated into soulful pottery - Ritu Chaudhary, PhD in Botany dipped her fingers into this therapeutic craft of pottery and birthed KASCERA (‘Kas’ derived from her daughter’s name Kashvi meaning bright/shining and ‘cera’ from ceramics!)
Her vision was to stand out, create a niche, and be exceptional in her art. After closing her rigorous research work at the IARI (Indian Agricultural Research Institute), and her children flying off for higher studies, she was confronted with an empty nest, and a craving for a new adventure. This is when she was introduced to pottery classes. Three months led to nine, and she realized she never wanted to stop. Her undying love for the wheel led her to join a studio potter who acquainted her with Slab Pottery. Slab Pottery provided flexibility for creative exploration, where she could experiment with multiple patterns and shapes. From lace to paper, and leaves to flowers, she was awed by the beauty that textures and motifs could add to ceramics. And so the journey began!
Walks amidst nature resulted in heaps of collected flowers, and leaves with good venation. These were used to be impressed on clay in the silent hours of the day. Once satisfied with the designs, the pieces were fired, hand-painted, and glazed for the patterns to come to life. Nature became her muse as she hand-pressed various compositions, where no two pieces were the same. Be it decor, tableware, or gifting, her bespoke botanical pieces act as a conversation starter, handcrafted to add a unique nature-inspired detail to ceramics.
Pottery helped her connect to nature and with people, becoming a medium of both conversation and creativity. She met her creative side and it proved to be her true calling! The path was not easy. It required patience, perseverance, and the balancing of time, but as she puts it, “If you keep working on something relentlessly, eventually you will find your niche. Inspiration is everywhere!”
