Kailash Ji belongs to an illustrious family who counted on patronage of Maharaja Man Singh and Jai Singh as blue pottery artisans. His grandfather, Guru Bhagat Ji, was initially involved with making commissioned products for the Maharaja and started the work with Kailash Ji’s father. When he was 10 years old, Kailash Ji started working under the supervision of his older brother, Madan Doraiya, by mixing colours for the pottery. He finally expanded his knowledge into the design
According to Kailash Ji, his attachment to the craft began building as a result of his experimentations in innovative design and use of new materials. He bought this innovative spirit into the craft by designing many contemporary objects such as door knows, table lamps and tiles (in sizes of >10inches) before these objects came into the attention of mass consumers. His biggest order to date has been the supply of almost 1.8 lakh tiles to the Raj Vilas heritage hotel.
Recent experimentations for him have included working with supplying beads of jewellery business to a Bombay based jewellery designer. Ever the passionate teacher, Kailash ji believes in passing his knowledge to the students that he trains on the pottery techniques. He recently trained a group of 30 students who had come down to visit his place from Madhya Pradesh and quite often passes on his wealth of knowledge to the younger people. He believes that, “Art will be safeguarded and sustained only when we pass on our knowledge to the next generation.”
Recent experimentations for him have included working with supplying beads of jewellery business to a Bombay based jewellery designer. Ever the passionate teacher, Kailash ji believes in passing his knowledge to the students that he trains on the pottery techniques. He recently trained a group of 30 students who had come down to visit his place from Madhya Pradesh and quite often passes on his wealth of knowledge to the younger people. He believes that, “Art will be safeguarded and sustained only when we pass on our knowledge to the next generation.”
His younger and older son are now were working in textiles are now looking to take Kailashji Ji’s work and passion for blue pottery into the their own hands. We wish them best of luck and hope to engage with them soon!