This 93-year-old potter of Visakhapatnam’s Kummari Veedhi keeps a fading tradition alive

At 93, Srikakulam Pardes is the last potter in Visakhapatnam, preserving tradition amidst a changing landscape.

At 93, Srikakulam Pardes moves through the narrow lanes of Kummari Veedhi, the potters’ colony in Akkayyapalem, Visakhapatnam, with a quiet grace that belies his age. His weathered hands, nimble on the potter’s wheel, scoop out diyas one after another. Born into a lineage of potters, Pardes has seen the colony transform from a bustling place with 40 families of potters to a time where the hum of the potter’s wheel has been silenced by other professions.

Today, the steady rhythm of the potter’s wheel is heard from only one corner of the lane, where Pardes continues his lifelong craft. He is the last surviving potter in the colony. Despite his age, hearing difficulties, and failing eyesight, Pardes works tirelessly, keeping alive an ancient tradition that has shaped the community for generations.

As Deepavali approaches, Pardes can be found hunched over his wheel, his gnarled hands skilfully shaping clay into small deepams and flower pots. Sitting beside him, his daughter-in-law Venkata Laxmi lays out the freshly made deepams and pots on a steel plate under the blazing sun to dry. The deepams and flower pots, an integral part of the festival of lights, represent both the continuity of his craft and the fragility of the tradition he upholds. “I’ve been doing this since I was a child,” Pardes recalls, his voice a raspy whisper. Laxmi says that over the past one year, he has been talking less and the only time he is energetic is at the potter’s wheel.

More than a decade ago, Kummari Veedhi was a bustling colony of potters where each family would make 6,000 deepams during Deepavali. “Now there are five or six families selling deepams here; but all of them bring ready-made deepams in lorries from Chennai, Rajasthan and Bengaluru ahead of festivals,” says Laxmi, adding that the only ones that are made at Kummari Veedhi today come from Pardes’ wheels.

Pardes knows that his craft may not survive much longer. His children have moved away, and none of them have taken up pottery. “The making of the deepams is a laborious exercise. With cost of living going through the roof, this profession pays us hardly anything to make a decent living,” says Srinivas, Pardes’ son who has taken up a clerical job at a private college while occasionally helping his father on the potter’s wheel.

Today, Srikakulam Pardes is more than just a potter. He is a living reminder of the city’s history and the deep cultural roots that still run through its streets. As Deepavali lights up Visakhapatnam this year, the warm glow of his handmade deepams will bring not just illumination, but also a connection to a past that fades with each passing day.