GAGRI and GHAITO

GAGRI and GHAITO are the basic water vessels that are used in Nepal to store water in house for different purposes especially in places where there is no 24 hour water supply in the house or in villages where there is a common tap. In the above picture the top one is GAGRI and the bottom one is GHAITO.

There is mainly two basic differences in GAGRI and GHAITO. The first one is visible in the picture above i.e the shape; GAGRI is long and slender whereas GHAITO is more round and curvy. The second difference however is due to the raw materials used in its making. The first one is made up of metal and the latter is made up of clay. GHAITO usually is plain as there is rarely any carving done in clay goods but GAGRI is more versatile in its appearance and it is made up of metal. A GAGRI can be simple with no carving or be exotic with all the metal designs around the body.  

DALO

DALO is a bamboo basket that is normally used to store dry food(rice, maize,pulses etc.), transfer small quantity of goods or even used as decorative item. It is a good storage idea to make your room clutter free. It comes in different shapes and sizes and are light to carry, hence making it easier to relocate or transfer in them. DALO is mostly "kind of" half oval shape and has four corners supporting the structure and also extended at base for easy grip.

JATO

Above is the picture of "JATO" side view and top view respectively. It is a form of grinder and is made up of stone. Pulses, rice and other grains are usually grinded using "JATO" and usually a person is enough to complete the job. People mainly have it inside their house or within the premises of the house. 

It consists of two round stone of which the bottom part is attached to the ground or the floor in the house (as in the top picture) and has a big nail or wood in the centre to keep the top stone in place while grinding (it is visible in the bottom picture in the middle hole). The top part however has two holes in it, one in the middle to keep grains and the other on the side to place a handle for grinding. The grains are grinded using a circular motion with the help of the handle and the person has to be sitting down to do the task.

DHIKI

DHIKI is our very own manual grinder!!! It is used to grind paddy, rice, dry chillies and etc so mostly it is used to make powder goods from dry grains or plants. There is a defined area for "DHIKI" in a house usually in the backyard. The area is first cleaned to grind and requires two people. It is a very slow process and requires enormous amount of energy and effort.

"DHIKI" is made up of wood and works like lever but instead used for grinding. The framework consists of fulcrum having two pillars on each side, an effort area (where one of the person stands on the long thick plank of wood making effort at every interval ), a long and thick plank of horizontal wood which has a small vertical extension that goes into a hole made on ground. It is in this hole that the grains or dry chillies are kept to transform them into powder. The other person usually sits at this area to keep grains in the hole in coordination with the effort applied on the other side. They very well be cautious and communicating as a wrong movement especially in the side of the person keeping grains can cause an accident of grinding their own hand.

SUKUNDA and SUMICHA

Another artistic treasure of our heritage is the "SUKUNDA"and "SUMICHA". It is a traditional nepalese oil lamp used in almost all the religious as well as special events such as birthdays (while giving shagun), when you are leaving home for special occasions, when you pass the exams and remember god and also when you are starting anything new be it a new store, project or work. It is very essential that the lamp has the inscription of lord Ganesh as a god of bestower of success. 

There is three parts associated with the "SUKUNDA". The body, the nossel and the "SUMICHA". The lamp is lit on the nossel with the help of oil and the oil is stored in the main body of the Sukunda. "SUMICHA"is the spoon with peacock on the top which is used to transfer oil from the vessel to the lamp to fuel the light.

AMKHORA, KARUWA AND ANTI (NEPALESE EWER)

AMKHORA

KARUWA

ANTI

All these vessels are used almost daily in the Nepalese community to drink, store and serve either water, wine or alcohol. These are the traditional water bottles of our community and serves a great purpose to our heritage and culture. "Amkhora" is generally used by all the Nepalese community whereas "Karuwa" and "Anti" is specially used in the Newar community. All three vessels can be made either with just plain metal or may have moderate to exquisit carvings on them. 

But with the increasing use of plastic bottles (whether that be our very own 2 litre coke ko bottle or modern plastic bottles) they are being less frequently used now-a-days. Water in these vessels are usually cold and need not be refrigerated like other plastic bottles. Also if we increase its use in our daily life we will not only be preserving our culture but also promote Nepalese local art and craftsmanship and uplifting our own fellow citizens financially. 

THEKI and MADANI

Theki is locally made by people from wood and is usually used to store milk fat (Taar), make butter (i.e NAUNE GHYU)out of it; which can later be cooked to make the clarified butter also known as ghee and also make buttered milk (i.e MOHI). The "Theki" is only a vessel, where as the "Madani" is like a thick stick with turbines at one end.

To make all these products we first need to keep the "Theki and Madani" near a pillar so that Madani can be tied very loosely (infact right parallel to the pillar). The "Madani" than needs to be wrapped around spirally by another rope in such a manner that when you pull one side the other gets smaller (if that makes sense just like a hand exercise !!!). The "Madani" is then kept inside the "Theki" with milk fat in it. Slowly the person starts to rotate the "Madani". As there are turbines present it works like a mixer grinder and separates the fat and the butterd milk. The fat floats on the top which is collected either ready to eat or make clarified butter and the buttered milk remains at the bottom ad is usually sour but thoroughly enjoyed by everyone including me!!!!!!