This is Nugu Handmade
Handmade stoneware, from village artisans to your table
The story of Nugu Handmade: natural, vegan stoneware dinnerware made by a community of artisans in Mullur, Karnataka, 80% of them women.
Where it all started
Two friends and a longing for something grounded
It began with two urban professionals in their 50s who had spent decades building careers in design, business and social impact. Despite their success, they wanted something that connected people, tradition and nature. Not just a venture, but a legacy with heart.
Their journey led them to Mullur, a quiet tribal village on the edge of Bandipur Forest in Karnataka's Mysore district. There they found a ceramic workshop that had fallen silent. It had been built years earlier by a ceramic dreamer, but the kilns were cold, the wheels were still, and the community it once supported had lost its anchor.
In that quiet factory, the two friends saw a spark. They took it on, not just as buyers, but as stewards of an unfinished dream.
The revival
What started as curiosity became craft
Reviving the workshop
The unit in Mullur is acquired and the kilns are fired again.
Building skills together
Months of workshops and mentorship with master ceramicists, side by side with the local tribal community.
Mastering clay and fire
From forming the perfect clay mix to controlling the kiln, the artisans grow into some of the most skilled in the region.
Women at the heart of the craft
Today 80% of our artisans are local women, who support their families through their skill.
Across the country and beyond
Nugu pieces now travel to homes, cafés and restaurants far from Mullur.
Handmade with love
Natural stoneware, glazes that whisper
Each Nugu piece is finished in subtle, earthy tones inspired by river mud, forest bark, stone, ash and the fading colours of dusk over the hills. These glazes are designed to complement your food, not compete with it.
Every piece is high-fired stoneware made from 100% natural materials. It is 100% vegan, with no bone ash or other animal-derived ingredients, and it is highly durable, food-safe, and microwave, dishwasher and freezer safe.
Rooted here
Made for the way we eat
Banana leaves, fruit from the orchard and dinnerware sturdy enough to share it all.
Impact
Empowering women, restoring livelihoods
Nugu Handmade is more than a stoneware brand. 80% of our artisans are local women from Mullur, and their income supports their families. Every order helps preserve a traditional craft, restore rural livelihoods and prove that meaningful, sustainable business can grow from a village.
Bring a piece home