This lantern manufacturer hopes to turn Diwali into an eco-friendly celebration, with a dollop of traditional art thrown in

 

While most people bring kandils or lanterns into their homes as a part of Diwali tradition, kandil manufacturer Aamod Shetye has chosen to infuse a part of culture into his lanterns. Shetye, who rose to fame three years back for making eco-friendly products, has launched a new range of kandils embossed with Warli and Madhubani paintings.

“My kandils are eco-friendly, economical and are bought by people of all classes. When I began selling eco-friendly kandils at affordable rates the stereotype that eco-friendly is usually expensive was broken. Similarly any form of appreciated art is expected to be highly priced and by introducing Warli and Madhubani paintings in my kandils I hope to ensure that middle class households can have a piece of traditional art this Diwali,” says Shetye.

Priced at Rs 150, the Warli and Madhubani-art embossed lanterns are among the 350 designs of eco-friendly lanterns made of paper, bamboo, cloth and ice-cream sticks, all on display at the ‘Kandil Mahotsav’— a lantern exhibition. The exhibition, confined to Dadar since its inception three years ago, has now also been started in Vile Parle, Goregaon, Thane and Pen from this year.

“In the past three years we have sourced our cane lanterns from Assam, bamboo ones are brought from Kolhapur and handmade paper from Pune is used to make paper lanterns. This year we have roped in artists from Wada and Jawahar in Maharashtra who are proficient in Warli art,” says Shetye.

The Madhubani print on the lanterns depicts mythological stories like that of Radha-Krishna or pictorially represents the importance of trees, mirroring the exhibition’s green agenda. “The Warli art that you see on our kandils is made by the actual members of the tribe as we cannot afford to hire professionals who are trained in Warli art. However the Madhubani paintings are done by professionals who were willing to utilise their talent for our green agenda at subsidized rates,” adds Shetye.

Besides bringing in a cultural touch to the traditional kandil, Shetye has also made his lanterns storage-friendly and easier to carry. “Plastic ones tear if you try to fold them while cloth kandils are awkwardly bundled into a lump. Starting this year we are introducing foldable kandils which are made of cardboard and can be easily folded after use,” said Shetye.

Besides catering to Diwali enthusiasts, the Kandil Mahotsav will also appeal to photography addicts this year. It is announcing a lantern photography competition for the first time in Mumbai, which will encourage citizens to click photographs of the lanterns at Kandil Mahotsav and any attractive eco-friendly lantern displayed in the city. The last date for submitting the photograph (size 5 x 7) is November 3 and the results will be declared on November 10.

URL: http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/a-green-glow/375399/