Wooden furniture that saves the planet

Two decades ago Adwait and Uttara Kher escaped from Mumbai to Nashik because they wanted their daughters mdash Saunskruti and Saiyami mdash to be raised close to nature they were also fed up of the life in a big city The Khers left behind a flourishing career in advertising and a restaurant business and shifted focus towards making unique furniture Now theyrsquore back in the city after a gap of 12 years for a twoday exhibition that features their unique collection A collection of wooden pots How it all began Adwait 54 the avid traveller began hitchhiking around the country and would bring back teak wood artefacts including doors and windows much to the consternation of Uttara 48 who was clueless ldquoHe Adwait could see the designs within the wood blocks that I couldnrsquotrdquo she admitsu00a0Since Adwait didnrsquot have a background in carpentry he would come up with contemporary designs and get a group of tribal carpenters to execute them As he was ecoconscious he chose to stick to recycled wood obtained from trees that fall naturally instead of chopping down trees for wood To procure wood he would visit government auctions held in distant rural areas He was always on the lookout for teak wood from old homes that would otherwise be sold off or used as fuel Recounts their daughter Saunskruti ldquoDad was always against the cutting of trees He respects the fact that it takes decades to obtain seasoned teakwood and was alarmed that teak trees are getting extinct If he ever came across someone chopping a tree he would confiscate his or her ax Thatrsquos how we have a roomful of axes at homerdquo She has teamed up with her sister Saiyami both of whom are pursuing acting to handle the publicity for the exhibition A collection of wooden pots Spread the wood While their first pieces of furniture were lapped up by acquaintances the Kherrsquos chose to remain lowkey However the brand titled Uttara and Adwaitrsquos got plenty of wordofmouth publicity and at the insistence of their patrons and daughters they decided to organise this exhibition in Mumbai The brand name comes from the fact that the couple works as a team mdash Uttara looks after the logistics while Adwait sticks to the design aspect ldquoOften we have disagreements but it helps add spice to life He asks for my opinion about certain items but goes ahead and does exactly the oppositerdquo laughs off Uttarau00a0 At the present exhibition look up for 100 specimens of art furniture which includes coffee tables vases benches wall clocks table lamps beer jugs and wooden pots Adwait terms the furniture as art since it is handmade and akin to a work of art which cannot be replicated Some of the wood on display is 200 years old Beauty in unlikely places Adwait who claims to be a fulltime vagabond and parttime furniture designer observes that he would always opt for the ugliest piece of wood that no one wanted and turn it into something beautiful He elaborates ldquoWe have adopted the traditional scientific method to make furniture We donrsquot use short cuts by using screws or nails to hold the planks together Instead we use Japanese butterfly joint techniques to hold the blocks Also we donrsquot tamper with the inherent imperfections of the wood be it the cuts to the block or the graininess as it adds character to the furniturerdquo His major challenge is that there are few skilled carpenters who work with teak wood Itrsquos also very labourintensive some pieces take a few days to make while others go up to six months Uttara and Adwaitrsquos are open to customising furniture Among all of Adwaitrsquos creations his favourite is a wooden sculpture of a tree that took him six months to craft ldquoItrsquos not on display but it shows my concern for the future where we may no longer have treesrdquo On April 13 and 14 11 am to 9 pm At Gallery BMB ground floor Queens Mansion next to Cathedral School Ghanshyam Talwatkar Marg Fort Call 22000061 Log on to wwwfacebookcomUttaraAndAdwaitu00a0