Are you a stay-at-home mom? Do you feel you are just killing time. If a hobby will keep your clock moving, this homemaker has a lot of tips to offer you. Yamuna Rajan from Kozhikode says she is happy with her humble hobby. Yamuna is not your regular housewife who depends on television serials to pass her time. Her creative interest is what keeps her busy and satisfied.
Yamuna is a master at pottery painting, wall hangings, metal embossing, embroidery, glass painting, crochet needle works, fabric painting, the list just goes on.
‘’I am surprised when homemakers like me often complain that they are bored to death. I on the other hand don’t get time at all. After my family leaves for office and college, I am in my own world where I am the curator of several things,’’ says Yamuna, who recently took out her collections to a public space for the first time.
‘’I had not kept the items for sale. In fact I detest the idea of making it a business,’’ she says. Yamuna has been in this field for the past 16 years. ‘’I began working on this out of passion. Today I teach this craft to several enthusiasts. I don’t intend to make it a profession. Involving money means inviting several risks and tensions and I am not prepared for that. This is my hobby and I don’t want to take it to another level. Those who are really interested in buying any of my products can always approach me to make the same,’’ says the artiste with a smile.
Her works that she had on display included several handcrafted items, most of which were made out of products of daily use. Pista shells, toothpicks and coffee powder are the materials she uses for working. The toothpick-carved Taj Mahal definitely is definitely something and so are the pista shell-made peacock wall hanging and coffee powder-painted Jesus Christ.
Paper flowers are easy to make and the painted flower vases which carry them adds more colour to them. Some of her other creations are the huge metal-embossed works of Vinayaka, Nataraja, Gitopadesham, Mahabharata, Christ crucifixion and Mother Mary. ‘’I have used aluminium sheets for the embossed works and they took me nearly a month’s time to complete it. There’s nothing difficult in these tasks, except for the fact that you will have to let your imagination run wild and spend ample time for the best results,’’ says Yamuna, who has had no formal training in any of these crafts.
‘’I learnt them from several books and other references. My family members further encouraged me with their suggestions and corrections and that helped me grow further,’’ she adds.
Enthusiasts interested in getting trained under Yamuna can contact her at 93498 37993, 93881 53843.