Asharikandi Terracotta Village | Handicrafts Pottery Dhubri, Assam |

A small cluster where male and female, young and old of altogether eighty families are always busy to shape and create a range of fascinating terracotta and pottery items is Asharikandi craft village under Devitola Development Block of Dhubri district of Assam. NECARDO- North East Craft and Rural Development Organisation, an NGO that works for the preservation and promotion of the traditional craft and welfare of the craft persons claims that Asharikandi is one of the largest clusters of Terracotta and Pottery in the North East India. An object of art made of a composition of clay and sand and baked with earthen color, a brownish red, is Terracotta. Terracotta is one of the oldest crafts that human beings ever introduced on this earth. It was once considered to be the poor men's craft. But in course of time, it has made its access and occupied a distinct identity among all classes of people by its aesthetic value. In India, the single largest cluster where both Terracotta and Pottery crafts are found and practiced in traditional way is Asharikandi (Madaikhali) craft village. Due to the factors of production, the product-quality of one place varies from that of another. Weather is a key factor and plays a major role in Terracotta-production. The main raw material for pottery and terracotta craft is Hiramati, a special type of soil. The quality of Hiramati varies from place to place. The quality of Hiramati and artistic skill determine the quality of Terracotta and Pottery products. Artistic skill, quality of Hiramati, climatic condition and age-old tradition of Kumbhakaras (potters) of Asharikandi, has enabled to retain a separate identity of Asharikandi- style of Terracotta. HATIMA doll, nationally and internationally acclaimed unique masterpiece of late Sarala Bala Devi, has brought much repute for Asharikandi- style of Terracotta.