LUCKNOW: It would be another feather in UP’s cap when Prime Minister Narendra Modi would gift the State heads and foreign dignitaries at the G-20 summit a unique hand-made artefact of brass in the shape of a lotus, named ‘Kamalam’, from Mahoba in Bundelkhand as a memento. Crafted by Manmohan Saini, a metal craftsman and a national award winner from Mahoba, the artefact is five inches tall with 16 petals — eight big ones and eight small petals.
In fact, Saini was sounded eight months in advance by the UP Handicrafts Development and Marketing Corporation to prepare 50 lotuses in brass. As per the craftsman, all the artefacts were sent to Delhi in advance with spare pieces. “I am extremely excited that my work will be seen at such a high platform and I am sure the brass work will get a new lease of life after this,” said Saini. Sharing the details of the piece, he claimed that once it is opened, the artefact resembles a lotus in full bloom and when it is closed, all the petals are locked into the shape of a lotus bud.
“It is in the form of a special lotus prepared in a way that a slight rotation will open its outermost petals and, on rotating further, will result in a fully bloomed flower,” he said, adding that he is the only artisan who can prepare these. Saini said that it took three months to make 50 lotuses and the corporation experts regularly monitored the making for quality control and design. Saini’s ‘Kamalam’ hogged the limelight in 2016 when BJP MP Kunwar Pushpendra Chandel gifted it to Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Parivartan rally. It caught PM’s attention and won a lot of appreciation.
Saini said he learnt this craft from his father Gyasi Saini who used to make decorative pieces of brass in Kulpahad. He said he was assisted by his family in the endeavour. His two brothers Azad Saini and Shiv Kumar Saini have also won state awards in the skill.
According to Mahoba District Magistrate Mridul Chowdhary, the handicraft development corporation had got in touch with Saini directly and had taken the delivery of all artefacts. “It is a matter of pride for Mahoba district and Bundelkhand that such a unique memento made in Mahoba will be given to the state heads and foreign dignitaries at the G-20 summit,” said the DM.
Among many accolades and awards, Saini won the national award in 2012 and organised an exhibition of his craft in Moscow the same year. “At one time, Mahoba was known because of its brass work in the country but no longer. I hope this will revive the traditional brass work in Mahoba and around,” he said.