ASSAM: Sanjib Basak’s journey of environmental conservation through art started with thermocol and evolved to include plastic bottles and spoons. During the Covid-19 pandemic, he incorporated needles and syringes. Every Durga Puja, he uses his artistic talents to raise awareness about conserving the environment.
An officer with the Assam State Disaster Management Authority, he combines creativity and environmental sensitivity to create stunning sculptures of goddess Durga and other deities using plastic waste leaving viewers awestruck.
The 41-year-old, originally from Dhubri town in lower Assam and currently based in Bilasipara, Dhubri district, developed interest in fine arts at a young age. He later earned a master’s degree in fine arts from the Sarbabharatiya Sangeet- O-Sanskriti Parishad in Kolkata. Since then, he has never looked back. “I learned the basics at an art school in my neighbourhood. Over time, I began dreaming about creating something new, unique, and exceptional in a multinational environment,” he says.
In class 12, he voluntarily taught fine arts to a group of students which continued till Fevicryl recruited him to teach youth in villages in 2008. “I was selected as one of two candidates from the Dhubri district after passing a test.
The company sent me to New Delhi for a 15-day training course in craft. Upon returning, I worked as a trainer in various free workshops organized by the company in rural areas. We used various materials provided by the company, including dice blocks, colors, brushes, and pottery items, to create different kinds of structures,” Basak explains.
He was appointed by the Assam government in 2011, the same year he and his friend Gopal Mandal came up with the idea of making an idol. They tried to use paper for the project but faced difficulties. “After a lot of experiments, we managed to carve a Durga idol by using thermocol in 2015.
The 14 ft high sculpture was displayed in Dhubri, and people loved it. Our interest in idolmaking grew tremendously from that point on. Every Durga puja thereafter, we created the idols of the goddess and other deities,” Basak shares. He emphasises their focus on creating unique idols using materials like aluminium net, cotton thread, waste plastic bottles and spoons, expired tablets and capsules, empty vials of Covid vaccines. He collects waste materials and occasionally, buys it from local scrap dealers. Sometimes, he gets it from his well-wishers.
Once, he bought waste electrical wires from a scrap dealer and created an idol. This year, Basak’s Durga idols were displayed at four localities of Dhubri. He carved them after being approached by puja organisers.
They provided him with the materials. For the past decade, Basak has been working towards nurturing the artistic temperament in the youths. “Some colleges invite me to work with their students. While some students are full of ideas, they lack passion. I try to motivate them. I want the youngsters learning fine arts to be serious.
They should strive to be creative, as every artwork is judged based on its beauty and meaningfulness,” Basak says. A recipient of several awards, he has carved his name into the India Book of Records, Assam Book of Records and Gold Star Book of Records. In 2021, the Crafts Council of India honoured him with the Kamala Award under the category of creativity during the Covid pandemic.