Want eco-friendly Ganesh idol? check Facebook

The portal serves as an aggregator to provide religious products because they believe that quite a few artists aren’t aware that they could reach out to a wider audience

When Vikas Dubey, founder of edevlok.com, based in Andheri, decided to provide eco-friendly Ganpati idols since 2016, he was sure he wouldn’t want to sell even one Plaster of Paris (PoP) idol through his portal.

A two-feet paper mache idol would weigh 3kg, while a PoP one would be 7-8 kg and a clay idol would weigh up to 14kg. (HT)

“When I would look at the idols being carried in bulldozers the next day after immersion, it would strike me that the same idol that was worshipped for 10 days would lie in a dump yard later. Which is why I choose to provide paper mache idols, though PoP ones have a higher profit margin,” said Dubey.

Dubey’s team started working on making paper mache Ganpatis for sale since April this year. After 50 idols were sold out, they received more than hundred calls asking for more idols.

The portal serves as an aggregator to provide religious products because they believe that quite a few artists aren’t aware that they could reach out to a wider audience, and the demand for eco-friendly products has increased in the past few years.

Dubey also went on to add that devotees are now looking for idols that are light in weight, and since clay idols are heavier than PoP ones, a lot of them choose other options. A two-feet paper mache idol would weigh 3kg, while a PoP one would be 7-8 kg and a clay idol would weigh up to 14kg.

People opting for these idols also demand for other eco-friendly products such as make-shift temples and torans.

Sandeep Gajakosh, a idol maker who makes paper mache idols, said a lot of people from United Statest called him after they saw his contact on Google. He has also supplied the eco-friendly idols to the portal.

“People have learnt to make use social media for spreading awareness. There are these paper mache videos which have gone viral on Facebook, and it’s good in a way as there is a demand-supply gap for these products,” said Gajakosh.