KOCHI: People are always curious to know about lesser known things, be it related to science or any other field. Likewise if someone saw a car in front of a luxurious house, they will be least surprised.
But what if the car is a vintage model made in cement? To tease the curiosity of the people, Sila Santhosh, a sculptor is the brainchild behind this work.
This is not a simple cement car model but a pet shelter. The owner of the house wanted a dog house in front of his house but he wanted it to be special and different from the rest of the pet shelters. When the house owner approached Sila regarding the creation of a dog shelter, he never thought that he will sculpt out a masterpiece in cement.
Sila says, “I wanted the cage to be different and not like the regular ones. So, I suggested a car model dog house. But one more suggestion came to make the car model not based on the present car brands. This is how I decided to take a vintage model car and I looked for its designs on the internet.”It is a blue-coloured vintage car model made in cement and costs around Rs 2 lakh. Sila says, “It was very difficult to make this car model pet shelter and I had to study the model of the car thoroughly before actually starting my work. I googled for several vintage car models in the 1916’s and arrived at this model.” The work was time-consuming but he managed to complete it within 60 days.
Besides being a sculptor, Sila is also an antique collector. It has been more than 14 years since Sila Santhosh has been collecting antiques and his house is a treasure of all kinds of antique collections.
From Time Pieces, a steel ballot box used for the first general election after Independence to a fossil wood more than two hundred years old, everything is present in a small museum titled as ‘Sila Museum’ run by him in Kottarakkara.
He has more 2,500 antique collection which includes coins, stamps, sculptures, knives, weapons. As a sculptor, he has done more than 140 works of well models and has got into Arabian Book of World records.