Page 168 - Changing Living Spaces

Laitpharlang Cajee and Monica Mawlong

the Assam Valley covering the eastern Himalayas, Purvanchal and the
Meghalaya-Mikir region, and the Brahmaputra Plain covering the hilly
areas of the valley. Several tributaries and streams drain this region of
the Brahmaputra and Barak rivers (Medhi 2003).
From a historical point of view, the production of handicrafts can be
considered as having a well-thought-out logic and structure. However,
since these traditional pottery products are unique and different from
other products, they also convey a sense of attachment to one’s cultur-
al heritage. The replacement of indigenous handicrafts with industrial
products can lead to the destruction and erosion of indigenous skills and
knowledge. Clay cooking utensils, for example, would fit well with both
the traditional lifestyles of indigenous societies and the environment.
In contrast, plastic pollution is now considered one of the fundamen-
tal problems that developing countries like India need to address (Ziaee,
Nadalian, and Marasy 2017, 297–8).
This study presents the environmental characteristics of the tradition-
al production of pottery in a village setting. It conducts a case study be-
cause the article is an attempt to give a summary of the production of
‘khiew ranei’. In this article, a definition of the standards and criteria of
traditional pottery production in relation to the environment is intro-
duced, the process of pottery production in Larnai is described, and the
environmental characteristics of Larnai pottery are explained.

The Objective, Data Source, Area and Methodology of the Study
This article provides an overview of pottery production in northeastern
India and specifically of the Larnai women involved in traditional pot-
tery making. It also explores the characteristics of Larnai pottery and
how these traditional practices have helped them maintain their indige-
nous skills and preserve the culture of making traditional pottery (khiew
ranei) that they inherited from their grandparents. Further research into
the process of pottery making and how this has affected people’s lives is
also important and will be considered here.
Larnai is a small hamlet in Thadlaskein community and in the rural
development block of Meghalaya. It has a population of 900 with a to-
tal number of 114 households. Larnai is located between latitudes 25˚59’N
and longitudes 92˚19’E. It is about 51 km from Shillong, the capital of
Meghalaya, and is located on National Highway No. 6, which is part of the
Nartiang Doloiship.

166