Mr. Giri Raj Prasad (National and Shilp Guru Award winner)

Shoots & Shoots Photography Academy was founded by Mr. Giri Raj Prasad (National and Shilp Guru Award winner) in 2004 in a prime location in south Delhi. Mr. Giri Raj Prasad was born in 1949 in Alwar, Rajasthan. He received skills of the pottery craft as a blessing from his father. Since his childhood, he was quite inclined to terracotta craft. His early works were mostly earth utensils – different types of pots, Kundas, Chapti, Galethi, Pali, Sakoras, Sakoris, Pitchers, Kulia, Badna, Tasa, Chillum. In 1968, he left his village and moved to Delhi. Here he started making decorative items like lamps, decorative pitchers, urli, huge decorative pots for hotels, which varied in size from a half-inch to 120 inches. He firmly believes that by using earthen pots and utensils many diseases can be prevented so that a human being can lead a healthy life in a healthy body. His hard work paid him well and in 1987 he won a National Award in Pottery. In 1987-88 he won the 1st Prize in Delhi State Award in Pottery. In 1989 Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh States honored him respectively. He has participated in the Birth Anniversary of Smt. Indira Gandhi was a potter in 1993. He has prepared hundreds of designs, which were appreciated in India and in foreign countries.

He has also developed a sort of fridge in terracotta in which food can remain fresh for a longer duration, from his black pottery by double firing technique. The fridge has been designed to work without electricity and is adapted for places with no electricity supply. His work has received widespread acclaim and coverage in the national media.

A True International Artist

He has also visited Czechochoslovakia, France, Germany, the USA, UK, Holland and Australia. He firmly believes that terracotta art is a very ancient craft going back to pre-historic times. It is a fact that the early age utensils were made of earth and even today they are used in one form or another. Shri Giri Raj Prasad received the Ship Guru Award for his invaluable contribution to Terracotta Pottery.