BENGALURU: No large-scale visarjans, no visits to houses of loved ones, no community gatherings. Ganesh Chaturthi, like many other festivals this year, is likely to be carried out on a smaller scale than usual.
With fear of the virus looming large, people are left wondering if it is safe to bring home idols of the god for the occasion. This has prompted a line-up of DIY workshops, where artists show participants how to make their own Ganesha figurine at home. Most are making use of easy-to-find supplies from one’s pantry or eco-friendly alternatives.
Take, for instance, Savitha Ramnarayan, the founder of The Kraft Nook, a sustainable arts and crafts initiative. The Bengalurean is conducting a workshop where participants can make a 5-inch idol with clay, natural food colours and spices; or salt dough, where cornflour or maida is mixed with salt.
“All these can be composted or added to garden soil,” says Ramnarayan, adding that it could take a newcomer three hours to complete the task. “It isn’t rocket science. Effort and enthusiasm can make a big difference, and money can’t measure the satisfaction of making your own idol, that too an environment friendly one,” she says.
Mumbaikar Savita Iyer is collaborating with Dialogues Cafe, a city-based cafe and events space, to hold a similar workshop where she will first show participants how to make the clay, and then teach them how to mould the idol. After some trial and error, Iyer, who is an artiste and founder of Urbankala, was able to get the right proportions of common kitchen ingredients like tissue paper, vegetable oil, vinegar and cornflour to make the clay.
“I usually use shadu mati but I knew people wouldn’t find that accessible now. Covid-19 has forced us to get innovative with festival celebrations but at least this way we can flaunt our creation,” says Iyer, whose two-hour workshop will help participants make a 4 or 5-inch Ganesha. “Once people learn the technique, they can apply it to make bigger idols,” she adds.
While the visarjan is an integral part of the festival, BL Kavyashree’s workshop on seed Ganesha will ensure a greener send off. Her venture Graphite Stories will hold an online workshop on how to handcraft an idol from kitchen items that can later be grown into a plant.
“We can save the planet one Ganesha at a time,” says the Bengalurean, who will show how to design the idol and the best seed options for a garden. “Our culture and our planet are both equally important. Finding the right balance will allow us to pass them both down for generations,” says Kavyashree.
When and where
DIY Seed Ganesha from Kitchen Items:
Aug. 19, 7pm onwards. Link will be available on Graphite Stories’ Instagram or on Dialogues.space. Price:Rs 499
Online eco-friendly Ganesha workshop by The Kraft Nook:
Aug. 16 (clay) and 21 (salt dough); 10am-12.30pm and 2pm-4.30pm. Price: Rs 300 without raw materials.
Eco-friendly Ganesha: Aug. 9, 3pm. Visit dialogues.space for details. Price: Rs 499