Indian artist to create 'Taj' in NY

Sand artist Sudarsan Patnaik will be creating a replica of the Taj Mahal at an Indian festival in New York later this month.

Sand artist Sudarsan Patnaik will be creating a replica of the Taj Mahal at an Indian festival in New York later this month.

Patnaik said he has been invited to the Sep 23-26 festival, called Incredible India @ 60, by the ministry of tourism and culture.

"I have created a sand replica of the Taj in Berlin and in other places of the world as well as in Agra," Patnaik said.

Joining him in New York will be two other artists, Manas Kumar Sahoo and Bulu Mohanty, who are students at the sand art institute that Patnaik runs here.

"The Taj replica in New York will be created near the festival venue and can be seen from the Port Authority Bus Station, New York's main bus terminal. We will use seven truck loads of sand," he said.

Patnaik had earlier created a Taj Mahal using black sand at Agra on the occasion of the 350th anniversary celebrations of the monument of love.

He has created 35 sand replicas of the Taj abroad including at Doha and Berlin. He has participated in 34 international sand sculpture championships across the world and won many awards.