On a cloudy Sunday morning, when a group of elders were busy attending Shivyog Satsang on Road No. 1 Banjara Hills, their children were busy getting their hands dirty at a clay Ganesha workshop being conducted by Mamta Agarwal. Enthusiastic boys and girls gleefully took clay in their hands and under Mamta’s guidance, created a cutesy pot-bellied Ganesha; Each Ganesha with a idiosyncratic pose - majestically sitting with the trunk in focus, lying on one side and some even standing. At the end of the workshop, the children were ready with their own Ganesha to perform Vinayaka Chavithi puja on Thursday. “Their hungry hands and eyes showed how eager they were to learn; It was the encouraging factor,” states crafts person Mamta, who regularly holds clay Ganesha workshops to inspire children and to educate their parents to shun Plaster of Paris Ganeshas and bring home clay Ganesha.
This Vinayaka Chavithi, the mood among artisans holding clay Ganesha workshops is upbeat. The reason, Mamta says, is the spirited younger generation which reinforces their sense of responsibility towards the environment. “The workshops are very stimulating and educative too. This generation of kids have heard the Ganesha story but are curious and have many questions like ‘Why do we worship Ganesha or what is the reason for his big stomach and eyes.’ When they get satisfactory answers, they are energised,” smiles Mamta. At West Marredpally, clay Ganeshas do not grow big but the number of students attending it changes every year. Varsha Ramesh’s eyebrows raise and jaws drop looking at the number of students waiting to attend the clay Ganesha workshop. “The response was spectacular. More than 50 kids came and we had three batches instead of the regular one batch that we planned,” she says excitedly. Besides learning to make clay Ganeshas this year, the participants also learnt about simple and eco-friendly ways of immersion. “We taught them how easy it is to dissolve lump of clay in a bucket and can be used to water a tree or even a pot. When they saw the process, they understood that clay is environment-friendly,” she adds. Sanarch, a Standard VII student proudly displays a clay Ganesha made by him. “It is special as I did not have to put the clay in any mould. Instead, I created the big tummy, eyes, ears and the Ganesha shape,” he points out. His clay Ganesha is left to dry and once it dries; he would be taking it home for the parents to perform the puja . Mamta says Ganesha is nature’s friend as his shape is effortless and simple to make. “If one gets a basic structure and rhythm, the figure becomes very easy to make. And, one need not worry about getting the shape perfect. One should teach children the need to worship an eco-friendly Ganesha as children are the future and will live in this planet,” she adds.
