Dreams going up in smoke for ‘Ravanawallas’? Dussehra brings little cheer for effigy makers

By PTI

NEW DELHI: The pavement is lined with big Ravana heads in festive pinks, yellows and blues.

It’s the primary Dussehra celebration after greater than two years of Covid however the highway to restoration is sluggish and tough, say the artisans who craft the effigies that type the centrepiece of festivities.

Two days forward of Dussehra, when effigies of the demon king, his brother Kumbhkaran and son Meghnad go up in flames in a logo of the triumph of fine over evil, Delhi’s Titarpur village is distinctly festive with vibrant effigies able to be shipped throughout the nation.

Scratch the floor, nonetheless, and the despondency is clear. Things are higher however a far cry from what they was once.

“Some years ago, I would make as many as 100 effigies for the festival. This year I am making only 21. With neither margin nor demand, there is no reason or motivation for me to increase the count,” 73-year-old Mahendra Pal, who has been within the enterprise of constructing effigies for the previous 45 years, instructed PTI.

Not so way back, the road in west Delhi could be teeming with artisans busy making the tall, intricately woven bamboo frames a month earlier than the competition and patrons on the lookout for the most effective provide.

Torsos, limbs and demon heads could be fastidiously painted after which assembled on frames full of explosives. But the pandemic, growing ranges of air pollution and the ban on crackers have meant that the demand for the effigies has steadily dipped.

The road is quieter and the crowds are thinner. The effigies, peak starting from three ft to 50 ft, take virtually six to seven hours to finish and price round Rs 500-Rs 700 per foot. There are simply not as many takers as earlier.

The “effigy community” has slashed manufacturing from virtually 60-100 items per vendor in pre-Covid instances to 20-30 items now.

Pal, who works as a taxi driver in Panipat, Haryana, takes satisfaction in the truth that he’ll have the ability to make not less than some cash and get to color his house, a activity pending for the final couple of years.

“Yes, it is much better than the Covid pandemic when I could barely sell any effigies other than the few I made to be sent to Ayodhya. But sales and demand are just not enough for me to be really happy,” he defined.

Many artisans, generally known as “Ravanawallas”, are making peace with the scenario.

“Market ka kuch pata nahi hai iss saal (We are not sure about the demand in the market this year). Then there is also the fear of a ban on celebrations or crackers so most people thought it is better to prepare fewer effigies only as we no longer have the appetite to bear losses,” Mahinder Kumar mentioned as he painstakingly utilized adhesive on fluorescent paper and put it out to dry.

Kumar, who’s from Delhi and works in a store promoting Ayurvedic medicines, mentioned he bought many queries however not sufficient upfront bookings. He has managed to promote solely eight effigies, put collectively in a makeshift store suffering from paper, wooden and bamboo.

Many of the artisans are each day wage labourers from Rajasthan, Haryana and Bihar who come to the capital to make an additional buck or extra. This yr, a lot of them mentioned, they will not handle to make greater than Rs 8,000-Rs 10,000 within the season.

In their heyday, many of those distributors delivered their effigies the world over, together with to the United States, Canada, Japan and South Africa.

Dular from Begusarai in Bihar is impatiently ready for the instances to get higher however does not know in the event that they ever will.

Selling his wares at Beriwala Bagh, somewhat distance from Titarpur, the 45-year-old mentioned he has to this point made 30 effigies — precisely half of what he made in 2018.

Dular, who works at a garment store again in his hometown, dismissed information stories claiming “high demand” of effigies this yr as “false”.

All he needs now could be to promote all his effigies.

“Jhoot bolte hai news wale (people writing such news stories are lying). There is no pent up demand or anything. I had made 60 effigies back in 2018. Had there been such a huge demand this time, I would have created more effigies,” he mentioned.

After two years of lockdown, it’s a glad Dussehra, however perhaps subsequent yr shall be happier. For the “Ravanawallahs” of Titarpur, that is the fervent hope.

NEW DELHI: The pavement is lined with big Ravana heads in festive pinks, yellows and blues.

It’s the primary Dussehra celebration after greater than two years of Covid however the highway to restoration is sluggish and tough, say the artisans who craft the effigies that type the centrepiece of festivities.

Two days forward of Dussehra, when effigies of the demon king, his brother Kumbhkaran and son Meghnad go up in flames in a logo of the triumph of fine over evil, Delhi’s Titarpur village is distinctly festive with vibrant effigies able to be shipped throughout the nation.

Scratch the floor, nonetheless, and the despondency is clear. Things are higher however a far cry from what they was once.

“Some years ago, I would make as many as 100 effigies for the festival. This year I am making only 21. With neither margin nor demand, there is no reason or motivation for me to increase the count,” 73-year-old Mahendra Pal, who has been within the enterprise of constructing effigies for the previous 45 years, instructed PTI.

Not so way back, the road in west Delhi could be teeming with artisans busy making the tall, intricately woven bamboo frames a month earlier than the competition and patrons on the lookout for the most effective provide.

Torsos, limbs and demon heads could be fastidiously painted after which assembled on frames full of explosives. But the pandemic, growing ranges of air pollution and the ban on crackers have meant that the demand for the effigies has steadily dipped.

The road is quieter and the crowds are thinner. The effigies, peak starting from three ft to 50 ft, take virtually six to seven hours to finish and price round Rs 500-Rs 700 per foot. There are simply not as many takers as earlier.

The “effigy community” has slashed manufacturing from virtually 60-100 items per vendor in pre-Covid instances to 20-30 items now.

Pal, who works as a taxi driver in Panipat, Haryana, takes satisfaction in the truth that he’ll have the ability to make not less than some cash and get to color his house, a activity pending for the final couple of years.

“Yes, it is much better than the Covid pandemic when I could barely sell any effigies other than the few I made to be sent to Ayodhya. But sales and demand are just not enough for me to be really happy,” he defined.

Many artisans, generally known as “Ravanawallas”, are making peace with the scenario.

“Market ka kuch pata nahi hai iss saal (We are not sure about the demand in the market this year). Then there is also the fear of a ban on celebrations or crackers so most people thought it is better to prepare fewer effigies only as we no longer have the appetite to bear losses,” Mahinder Kumar mentioned as he painstakingly utilized adhesive on fluorescent paper and put it out to dry.

Kumar, who’s from Delhi and works in a store promoting Ayurvedic medicines, mentioned he bought many queries however not sufficient upfront bookings. He has managed to promote solely eight effigies, put collectively in a makeshift store suffering from paper, wooden and bamboo.

Many of the artisans are each day wage labourers from Rajasthan, Haryana and Bihar who come to the capital to make an additional buck or extra. This yr, a lot of them mentioned, they will not handle to make greater than Rs 8,000-Rs 10,000 within the season.

In their heyday, many of those distributors delivered their effigies the world over, together with to the United States, Canada, Japan and South Africa.

Dular from Begusarai in Bihar is impatiently ready for the instances to get higher however does not know in the event that they ever will.

Selling his wares at Beriwala Bagh, somewhat distance from Titarpur, the 45-year-old mentioned he has to this point made 30 effigies — precisely half of what he made in 2018.

Dular, who works at a garment store again in his hometown, dismissed information stories claiming “high demand” of effigies this yr as “false”.

All he needs now could be to promote all his effigies.

“Jhoot bolte hai news wale (people writing such news stories are lying). There is no pent up demand or anything. I had made 60 effigies back in 2018. Had there been such a huge demand this time, I would have created more effigies,” he mentioned.

After two years of lockdown, it’s a glad Dussehra, however perhaps subsequent yr shall be happier. For the “Ravanawallahs” of Titarpur, that is the fervent hope.