Having started back in 1968, Midaya is a family owned business running on its second generation and is the oldest surviving company in Sri Lanka. 

Initially, the company was only export oriented, shipping large scale orders to USA and Japan with very little focus on the local market.  But in 2012, Midaya decided to break into the Sri Lankan ceramic industry to balance the markets locally and internationally. 

Back in the day, Midaya handled several big clients such as Hallmark and Disney but upon China entering the industry with rock bottom pricing, Midaya switched focus onto a more niche, specialised, handmade, value added market in which the focus shifted from catering to countries such as the USA to a more European market.  Today, Midaya biggest market demand comes from Europe. 

Having entered the local ceramic industry in 2012, Midaya’s showroom situated in Kirulapone has a large variety of high quality ceramics done for a number of international clients sold at a fraction of the retail price. 

Anura Warnakulasooriya, Managing Director of Midaya Ceramic Company took us through several high quality pieces done for clients abroad that are also being sold in the showroom. “What we sell to clients abroad for about $200, in Sri Lanka, we offer the same piece reduced down to 1/10th of the price and offer it at about Rs. 2000. Basically, Sri Lankan customers get handmade, hand painted, highly refined ceramics for a much lower amount than what foreign clients would pay for.” 

The showroom is packed with a plethora of ceramics of different nature; some porcelain, some stoneware, some earthenware, some terracotta among many other forms of ceramics. From tableware to ornamental ware and even home décor – Midaya offers some stunning collections that are hand painted and unique with a high quality assurance due to its very high quality standards. 

The Midaya factory is fully equipped with all the facilities required to produce high quality ceramics. Taking a tour of the factory, we got a chance to peek at the highly complex procedures that takes place in producing even the most simplest of ceramic pieces. 

First the minerals dug from the ground are sent to be refined at a ‘slip house’ which turns the minerals into the clay body and is then left to age for about 1-2 weeks. While the clay is ageing, a model is made of the ceramic design and since the clay shrinks 11.5% during the process, the model is made to accommodate this shrinkage. With the model, a sample mould is made. Once the sample mould is approved, a Master mould is made. 

The aged clay is then mixed with water and sieved and then poured into the moulds. Once the clay is taken out from the mould it is fired at 1000 degrees Celsius for 22 hours to make it hard enough for painting and glazing. Every fired item is checked for quality before and after it is fired. Once the item has been through the first firing is then polished and painted. We are told that in some ceramics, the initial of the painters name is also painted underneath in order to give due recognition. Once it is painted it is then glazed and fired once more at 1240 Degrees Celsius to seal in the paint within the glaze. And after one last quality check, the items are packed and shipped to clients abroad. 

This complex procedure is what tends to give Midaya a competitive edge over others as they are one of the few companies that produce multiple ceramic bodies simultaneously which requires careful precision and observation as accidental mixings of ceramic bodies could lead to major defects down the production line. 

Catering to the upscale niche market, Midaya currently deals with over 60 clients worldwide including a few famous names such as Wedgwood, Royal Daulton, Halcyon Days, Susie Watson ceramics, Moorland Pottery and Quail Ceramics among others. 

Photographs by Kithsiri de Mel