There is a glorious history to the tiles in Mangaluru city. Houses sporting tile-clad roofs offer a quaint window to days gone by. While today only three out of a total of 43 tile factories are still functional, no resort, beach house or homestay is complete without a tile roof.
Resorts in Goa, Maharashtra and Mahabalipuram use Mangaluru tiles. Many tileries tried producing tiles locally with dies taken from Mangaluru but they did not get the same quality as Mangaluru tiles. “The texture and finish is due to the quality of clay we have,” Raaghu Poojary, a supplier of clay said.
Clay tiles are fashionable again as is earthenware to cook fish and akki rotti. The complaint that the ponds are drying up and there not being enough clay to feed the many tile factories has also died down. “When there were more tile factories, the demand for clay was more and the supply was less,” says Ian Lobo whose family owns the Cascia Tile Factory.
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“We still produce tiles in limited quantities, but we maintained the same quality of long lasting tiles,” Ian’s father, FM Lobo said. Cascia Tile Factory was started in 1916 and the Lobo family bought it in 1932 from local traders.
The classic Mangaluru tile houses are a tourist attraction. “The first thing the tourists see is the roof and they are fascinated by the perfection with which they are laid,” says Yousuf a manager in one of the cruise operating firms. “When they learn about Mangalore tiles they want to take a souvenir. A tile factory in Mangaluru makes miniature tiles in red clay as souvenirs.”
The three functioning tile factories are Sovereign Tile Factory Kudroli,(1929) Cascia Tile factory at Morgan’s gate (1916) and Albuquerque Tile factory at Hoige Bazaar (1868).
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The winds of change hit the tile factory hard and the demand for Mangalore tiles took a downward plunge starting in 1980. Alfred Pais who owns a boutique of clay items in Mangaluru begs to differ. “Tiles never went out of fashion. Even today we see a number of new houses with a tiled roof, but underneath there is a concrete slab.”
Following the slump in demand and production, the Cascia Tile factory pioneered a new trend. “While keeping the tile factory production intact we have used a major part of the premises for recreational facilities. We have named it Lobo’s River View. People come here to relax as it is located on the banks of the Nethravati River. We converted a part of the tile factory to sustain the tile manufacturing unit,” says FM Lobo.
The other two functioning tile factories are also re-purposed as boat clubs and private beach areas. These factories have retained the basic structures adding a fresh coat of paint and some renovations. At Manipal, the tile factory is part of the media education complex. Earlier when it was the headquarters of one of the non-banking finance companies of the Manipal Group, the factory was kept intact and modified only for functionality.
Holiday makers, who stay at the tile factory, return home with a love and respect for tiles. Pradeep Moray, a Bengaluru-based businessman who is building a house in RT Nagar has decided to clad the roof with Mangaluru tiles. “It can be done without compromising the security. The tiles could be clad over the sloped reinforced concrete slab which will give a rustic look to the house.”