With Ganesh Chaturthi only days away, many in Lucknow have adopted environment-friendly measures to celebrate the birth of the God of prosperity and wisdom. As a responsible citizen, they are making and buying eco-friendly idols for the festival that falls on August 31 this year.
Pankaj Gupta has been sculpting such idols of Lord Ganesha at his studio for the last five years, and celebrating the fete for the past three years.
“The idols that I make are without any wires, chemicals or colours. I source special mud from Maharashtra, and the idols dissolve within minutes of visarjan. I place seeds in the idols, which become plants. While I encourage my friends and others to buy eco-friendly idols, I also encourage my students to make and promote them,” he says. Gupta has also conducted a few workshops for people of all ages to advocate the need to switch to eco-friendly Ganpati.
Vibhakar Saxena, a Lucknowite and a Bachelor of Design student at The University of Petroleum and Energy Studies in Dehradun, says he has been sculpting eco-friendly Ganpati idols for years, a process that has made him more devotional. “Earlier we used to buy idols from the market. But then I thought of putting my craft to use, which made me connect more with the deity. I use raw pottery clay, brown paper carboard, wooden sticks, water colour and velvet paper. Since automobile is my area of interest, I brought Lord Ganesha home in a jeep.”
Photojournalist Nalini Bharti, who is celebrating the annual festival for the 15th time, has transformed the way she performs the rituals. “It used to be a very sad affair to say goodbye to Bappa during visarjan, a ritual that also pollutes water bodies. So, for the last five years we have performed sthapna of our metallic Ganpati idol at the singhasan. On the day of visarjan, we give Bappa a holy bath and place the idol back in the temple,” she tells.
{{/usCountry}}Photojournalist Nalini Bharti, who is celebrating the annual festival for the 15th time, has transformed the way she performs the rituals. “It used to be a very sad affair to say goodbye to Bappa during visarjan, a ritual that also pollutes water bodies. So, for the last five years we have performed sthapna of our metallic Ganpati idol at the singhasan. On the day of visarjan, we give Bappa a holy bath and place the idol back in the temple,” she tells.
{{/usCountry}}Uday Raj Maurya, an artiste at Lalit Kala Academy Regional Centre, has sculpted an idol of Ganpati playing flute. “It’s a three-feet tall idol made out of clay and plaster of paris with fiber inside. As an artiste I was always inspired to make one. Next, I will attempt another idol that is completely eco-friendly,” he says.