VISAKHAPATNAM: Prime Minister Narendra Modi's call for making India the world’s toy manufacturing hub as part of the 'vocal for local' slogan came as a big push for the manufacturers of Etikoppaka toys, who are now hoping to soon get the mandated certification to declare that the toys don’t contain toxic elements, so they can market the toys in the US and Europe.
During his 'Mann Ki Baat' interaction, PM Modi on Sunday referred to Etikoppaka toys, which are made by artisans of Etikoppala on the banks of the Varaha river in Visakhapatnam district. The toys got GI tagging in 2017, helping them get promoted abroad. To get marketed there as well, samples of the toys had been sent to the ministry concerned for certification.
Etikoppaka has been famous across the workd for its lacquer toys, which have a long chequered history and were patronised by several rulers.CV Raju, whom the Prime Minister referred to in his address, is an agricultural graduate and member of Etikoppaka village who took up the dying art of making lacquer toys to preserve it for future generations. Due to his efforts, nearly 200 families now breathe life into the toys.
Speaking to TNIE on Sunday, Raju said the toys faced extinction due to deterioration of quality and absence of diversification and the 200-odd families were then making only limited varieties of five to six toys.
"Later, some artisans switched over to synthetic colours. One of the biggest advantages and unique things about Etikoppaka toys was that they were well rounded and made using natural dyes that made them safe for kids. Once this uniqueness got lost, the demand for these products drastically declined," he said.
After attending a national-level workshop on natural dyes on fabric, Raju decided to try them on Etikoppaka toys and could invent 20-25 natural hues and colours which helped preserve the dying art. "The maiden exhibition we held at Vadodara was a runaway hit and after the commercial success of this experiment, other artisans followed suit. High prices and increasing demand for their products made the artisans realise the value of their skills. They gradually started going back to natural dyes," he said.
However, after the advent of toys made in China, the US and European countries enforced stricter regulations that eroded their international market. During the lockdown, the artisans struggled like people in any other sector, and NRIs and some organisations helped by meeting their regular ration requirements.
"Our marketing was also affected as there were no postal and courier services during the lockdown," he said.Raju added that there is a bottleneck in reviving the US and European market as heavy metal certification hasbeen made mandatory for commercial sales in those countries.
"We are waiting for the certification from the concerned ministry of the Union government. Now we are concentrating on the domestic market,” he said.“We have informed the Prime Minister’s Office about the certification which was awaited and we are hopeful of a favourable decision soon," he said.
Etikopakka toys are made of Ankud wood. To meet the need, the artisans set up Ankud plantations on nearly 70 hectares as part of a community forest and handed it over to the forest department. The artisans are reaching out to the online market as well. Etikoppaka toys have good patronage in Delhi, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad