BENGALURU: To help improve the participation of youth in politics and policymaking, a group in Bengaluru is exploring creative ways of educating young citizens about the Constitution and its values. The Reclaim Constitution project will be displaying Dasara dolls in various parts of the city, and will highlight the contributions of founding mothers – 15 women members of the Constituent Assembly, who debated and drafted the Constitution of India.
Vinay Kumar, founder of Reclaim Constitution, told The New Indian Express, “Despite the country’s median age being 26 years, we see a lack of interest in politics and poor participation from the youth. A large percentage of people in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha is from age groups above 50 years. Through creative initiatives such as these, I want the youth to realise that we have a responsibility towards the country.”
He added that people from ordinary walks of life came together to write the Constitutional book, and they should be celebrated too. The idea is also to make Dasara a community event and not just based out of individual homes. The initiative will promote diversity in Karnataka and the nation.
“Not just religious figures, we also have statuettes of Babasaheb Ambedkar, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Subhash Chandra Bose. Dolls representing Buddism, Jainism, Christianity and Hinduism will also be on display,” Kumar said. Citizens can also participate and put the dolls on display in their societies and committees, which can be availed from the Reclaim Constitution website.
The 15-woman doll set includes Sarojini Naidu, Ammu Swaminathan, Dakshayani Velayudhan, Begum Aizaz Rasul, Durgabai Deshmukh, Hansa Mehta, Kamla Chaudhary, Leela Roy, Malati Choudhury, Purnima Banerjee, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur, Renuka Ray, Sucheta Kriplani, Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit and Annie Mascarene, along with a statue of Ambedkar and the Constitution of India.
Kumar informed that the Constitution dolls will be a travelling exhibit for the next year, to commemorate the 75th year of the Constitution of India. The dolls will be on display for the public at Janapada Loka, Mysuru Road, for a month and in colleges and exhibition centres around the city. The 15-women doll set took over 20 days to makes. Artists from Chitrakala Parishad, Nanda Girish, Girish S, Raju and Fastin Pedros are actively part of the project.