Kangri: Baskets of fire that keep Kashmir warm

During harsh winters in Kashmir, when temperatures drop to as low as minus 20 degrees Celsius, the kangri (traditional fire pot) keeps people warm.

A kangri includes a spherical clay pot called kundal, whichis placed inside a basket frame. This frame is usually constructed using twigs from deciduous plants or willow trees. The clay pot is then filled with burning charcoal made from the wood and leaves of the chinar tree. 

Historically, constructing kangris has been the traditional occupation of the Ganaie community. A significant population of this community resides in Kuloosa village in Bandipora district, and it is here that a majority of kangris used in the valley are made by hand.  

In Kuloosa, Mohammed Yusuf, 48, sits on a mud floor surrounded by bundles of fresh twigs. In 10 minutes, he prepares a plain basket. “My father taught me this when I was barely nine,” he says. The process is long: Twigs have to be collected from trees that are often located in jungle areas, and then peeled, soaked, dried, and finally dyed. The clay for the kundal has to often be sourced or even made from scratch. Once the pot is ready, the twigs are woven around it to make the basket. 

Yusuf’s family usually makes 4,000 kangris a year for the cold that stretches from October to March. While a simple kangri costs approximately INR 150, better-quality kangris that use premium willow and refined clay and feature more intricate woven designs can cost anywhere between INR 500 and INR 1,500. “It is better money than farming, and my hands never feel cold,” Yusuf says.

However, the work is still strenuous, with long hours spent handling charcoal, soot, and wooden twigs. As a result, interest in continuing the craft is waning among younger generations, who seek different, ‘clean’, and better-paying livelihood opportunities.

“If the new generation stops learning, the kangri will completely disappear one day. Now, I teach my sons,” Yusuf stresses. 

At the same time, demand for these traditional heaters has declined, especially in urban areas, due to factors such as the arrival of modern heating appliances and reports of ‘kangri cancer’.

Despite this, there are people all over Kashmir who prefer the kangri because it is more affordable and easier to carry. Moreover, during periods of heavy snowfall when roads are blocked and there is no electricity for long periods of time, the kangri still serves as a reliable source of warmth. 

At a small mosque in Gundpora village, Bandipora, old men sit in a circle after fajr prayer, each with a kangri under their pherans. The imam, 70, recalls, “In the 1990s, when there was curfew for months and no electricity for weeks, the kangri was all we had. We read the Quran by its glow. We survived because of it.”

For younger generations, the clay pot carries a sense of nostalgia and familiarity. “An electric heater warms the room, but a kangri warms the person. And it smells like my grandmother’s lap,” says a student in Srinagar.

Zaid Malik is a Delhi-based independent journalist from Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir. 

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