–Khalid Din
business
Four generations of potting business, changing market diminishes attraction
Khalid Din, saving the identity of the grandson
The art of making pots still alive in Indrachowk
Akanksha Dhami, Nepal News Bank
Kathmandu. Khalid Din, who has been working in Indrachowk, Kathmandu, has spent around 55-56 years of his life in this profession. He is one of the oldest businessmen who have painted themselves in Indrachowk.
“Maybe I’m the old guy who made this place,” Khalid says. I bring the material from outside. We make garlands or ornaments like potato, naugedi, chhadke, etc. “
At one time, the business of making pots in Indrachowk was doing very well. He remembers that in the past, it was easy to feed his family, educate his children and manage household expenses. But in recent years, he said, the business has been declining.
‘It was good at first. The children were educated, everything was enough. Right now, it’s okay to eat in the morning and evening,” he said.
He has continued this work that he learned from his ancestors till now. “This is what my father and grandfather did, and I am continuing this profession. Leaving the profession is only at the end of one’s life,” he says.
He says that the business of painting in Indra Chowk increases especially during the festival season.
Although the demand for potte is high in the months of Teej and July, the business will be normal at other times, he said.
The price of the paint varies according to the customer’
s needs and design. “We make pots ranging from Rs 50-60 to Rs 100. It can also be up to two to three hundred rupees. If you have to make a naugedi, it costs up to four to five hundred rupees,” he said.
For Khalid Din, who has been associated with the grand business of Indrachowk for decades, it has become not only a job but also a basis of identity and life handed down by his ancestors. Khalid Din’s son Zamuddin, who has been continuing his ancestral profession of making grandchildren, is also active in this business.
Born in Thamel, Jamuddin has been working for the past 25 years in Indrachowk.
‘My father used to do the same job, my grandfather was also in the same profession. This is our ancestral profession,” says Zamuddin. Household expenses are going on, family is being maintained. “
But now there is a decrease in the business compared to before. According to him, changes in the market, increase in the price of gold and increasing use of readymade materials have affected the business.
‘The business was very good before. Now it has decreased a bit. The price of gold has also increased,” he said.
According to him, customers have started opting for readymade red and green garlands available in the market more than traditional potato.
‘There is not much business in Saun like before. Now there are more ready-made garlands,” he said.
Jamuddin says that the painted goods sold at Indrachowk come from different countries.
According to him, the equipment for making the pots comes from Japan, the Czech Republic and China. Traders have been importing these goods in large quantities from outside.
‘Only one person cannot order from outside. Four or five people come together. Many people don’t know the price and cost, only the moneylenders know,” he said.
He is not sure that the next generation will continue this profession that has been going on in his family for generations.
‘Grandfather did it, father is doing it, I did it. I’m in the fourth generation. I don’t know if my sons and daughters will do it now. That’s the current business situation,” he said.
The ancestral relations of Jamuddin’s family, a local of Thamel, are also connected to the same area. “I was born in Thamel. It’s Ward 26 and my ancestral family is also from there,” he said.
The potte business, which has been the identity of Indrachowk for decades, is now in a challenging situation with the changing market and consumer tastes. However, businessmen like Khalid Din and Jamuddin are still retaining traditional skills.
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