Puducherry, formerly known as Pondicherry is also known as “Little France of India”. A Union Territory of India landlocked between the state of Tamil Nadu & Bay of Bengal. There are small towns belonging to Puducherry embedded in other Indian states namely Mahe in Kerala, Yanam in Andhra & Karaikal in Tamil Nadu. All these regions which were once French colonies together form the Union Territory of Pondicherry which is thus a multi ethnic land. Pondicherry town has UNESCO heritage-tagged sites, a popular tourist destination with its French-era heritage buildings, charming boulevards, sunny beaches, and delicious multi-cuisine restaurants. The place displays a combination of the Tamil heritage and French influence in all aspects including Arts and Culture.
Pondicherry has a rich heritage and is one of the places with the highest craft density in South India.
There are settlements in the region still actively producing traditional crafts like Terracotta items, seashell crafts, paper mache dolls, coconut shell crafts & stone crafts like at Villianur, Thengathittu, and Yanam.
With the establishment of Sri Aurobindo Ashram Pondicherry witnessed the onset of a new era in crafts. A renewed, enlightened, and disciplined exploration of Handicrafts & Fine Arts. Many exquisite crafts like Marbling on paper,Marbling on fabrics, Handmade paper making, incense, perfumes & candle making, Batik & Block printing, hand painting & hand embroidery were introduced to Pondicherry’s craft scene.
Auroville, an international township adjoining Pondicherry, has contributed immensely to developing varieties of Contemporary & Eco-conscious crafts garnering recognition from far and wide. Thanks to its uniqueness, functionality & beauty. Many villagers living close to Auroville, in the early days, got trained at various craft-making units of Auroville involved in making leather crafts, upcycled crafts, glazed ceramic pottery, terracotta, seed-jewellery, lights & lampshade making, embroidery, hand-weaving, Eco wood crafts etc. Many of them have their own micro village crafts units today forming craft clusters in and around Auroville villages like Alankuppam, Sanjeevi Nagar, Kottakarai, Irumbai etc.
Some of the popular Crafts from Pondicherry are:
Terracotta
Wood crafts
Seashell crafts
Paper mache Doll making
Coconut shell crafts
Stone Carvings
Leather Crafts
Ceramic Pottery
Hand-made paper
Marbling on paper & fabrics
Candles and incense sticks
Embroidery & Crochet stitching
Thread & Bead jewelry making