Welcome to my studio
It will be my pleasure to share my work with you. I started making handmade paper in 1998. After 17 years of making TV commercials in Bombay, I decided I wanted to do something that "reconnected" me to the earth. Papermaking has put me on that path.

I love the look and touch and feel of beautiful paper. I enjoy exploring various natural fibers. The interplay of light and paper excites me and ways to make paper 3-D, through texturing, sculpting, layering...is like play. I hope that the fun I have, shows in my work.

As raw material, I use only natural fibers that are waste from agriculture and the rural cottage industry. Banana, mulberry, kora grass, jute, sisal......wonderful fibers that make beautiful, strong paper. I use a Hollander beater, lifting paper with traditional deckle and mould.

My studio in Bangalore, that i built in 2002, is one of Bangalore's first green buildings. It was designed by the innovative architect Chitra Vishwananth and her team at Biome Solutions. http://www.biome-solutions.com/ it is constructed with mud blocks, the roof harvests rain water and we also recycle waste water from both, the papermaking process and sewage. This water is used in my garden, where I grow some organic fruits and vegetables. S. Vishwanath , who goes by the pseudonym, zenrainman, designed the waterworks. Its been almost 10 years now and the house and the system is efficient and cost effective.
 

The studio is featured in "Architecture in India since 1990" by renowned architect Rahul Mehrotra.

http://www.hcp.co.in/file_manager/publications/Architecture-in-India-since-1990.pdf