Not a Happy New Year for pot sellers

It’s that time of the year when new beginnings and greetings of prosperity are going around in celebrating the Telugu and Kannada New Year, Ugadi.

However, it seems like festivities will be making a meek appearance at homes of pot sellers across the city who are facing about 40 to 50 per cent loss in their trade this year.

For a long time, pot sellers did affluent business during Ugadi as people made the traditional ‘Pachadi’ in new earthen pots. Lately though, people are opting to refrigerate the drink and not cool it in earthen pots as they used to do so. This has led to a big hole in earnings of pot sellers.

Speaking to The Local, a pot seller Meghna said that this year business is very less. “Every year our business lasts for only a month. And now, we can’t even earn in those 30 days.”

Another pot seller from the ‘pot market’ in Monda Market Sujata shares, “I am selling pots here for the last 20 years. But this year the sale in very less and it is mainly because many people have started selling pots in other areas due to which people do not visit the market.”

A customer at Monda Market, Arvapalli Annapurna says that Ugadi is a one of the most auspicious days for the Telugus as it the beginning of the New Year.

Speaking about the importance of new pots she says that Ugadi Pachadi is the main drink and it is made in the new pot so that the whole year should go with good health and prosperity.

“Raw mango, neem flowers, jaggery, tamarind and pepper are the main ingredients. It’s upsetting that a lot of people are not opting for new earthen pots,” she sympathised.

By Aneri Shah