Hyderabad set for Ganapati’s nimajjanam

Hyderabad: Innovative Ganeshas made of currency notes, ice-cream cones, matchsticks, and peacock feathers are a specialty of the city. This includes the Musheerabad Ganesha with the golden ladoo which was auction and fetched Rs 7 lakh.

V. Chakradhar Reddy, now aged 52 and in the construction business, started installing Ganesh idols when he was a college student in 1986. He formed the Swami Vivekananda Kranthi Sangh, affiliated to the  Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and in 1989, he told Deccan Chronicle, “we started installing innovative Ganesh idols which would represent a current topic. In 1989, the Ayodhya movement was at its peak and we installed a Ganesh idol representing the Ram mandir.”

Every year since then his organisation has installed a “creative Ganesha idol, like one representing the Kargil war, and when Modi went to Parliament for the first time, we installed a Parliament building made of thermocol.” The currency note Ganesha was the result of six months of brainstorming and was in support of Prime Minister Modi’s demonetisation. According to Mr Reddy, “in the new move of demonetisation which aimed to convert all the black money into white, at least some black money was brought into the mainstream.”

Around 35 years ago, Dora Raju, now 51 and owner of Olive Sweets, was holidaying in his native village near Machilipatnam when he heard of a cow that had eaten 20 kg of plastic, which was removed from the animal after surgery. This really disturbed Mr Raju. On his way back to Hyderabad by bus, he thought of setting up an NGO. He called it Tree Guard Foundation and became a fervent environmentalist.

At the time of the Ganesh festival in 2005, he distributed 50,000 small environment-friendly clay Ganeshs. He went on to make bigger clay idols which people noticed. “In 2009 every one thought that installing clay Ganeshas is impossible and they were hesitant to make them. Trying to challenge this myth and create awareness, I installed a 21-ft clay Ganesh,” he told this newspaper.

Eco-friendly Ganesha is also the aim of 38-year-old K. Surya Prakash, who is in the decoration business. Since 2010 he has made idols with  newspapers, paper cups, tissue paper and other eco-friendly products.  “With just Rs 6,000 we have made the Ice-cream Ganesha which is eco-friendly. We hope that it serves as an inspiration to the public and encourages them to install such Ganesh idols,” Mr Prakash said.

Innovative Ganeshas made of currency notes, ice-cream cones, matchsticks, and peacock feathers are a specialty of the city. This includes the Musheerabad Ganesha with the golden ladoo which was auction and fetched Rs 7 lakh.

V. Chakradhar Reddy, now aged 52 and in the construction business, started installing Ganesh idols when he was a college student in 1986. He formed the Swami Vivekananda Kranthi Sangh, affiliated to the  Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and in 1989, he told Deccan Chronicle, “we started installing innovative Ganesh idols which would represent a current topic. In 1989, the Ayodhya movement was at its peak and we installed a Ganesh idol representing the Ram mandir.”

Every year since then his organisation has installed a “creative Ganesha idol, like one representing the Kargil war, and when Modi went to Parliament for the first time, we installed a Parliament building made of thermocol.” The currency note Ganesha was the result of six months of brainstorming and was in support of Prime Minister Modi’s demonetisation. According to Mr Reddy, “in the new move of demonetisation which aimed to convert all the black money into white, at least some black money was brought into the mainstream.”

Around 35 years ago, Dora Raju, now 51 and owner of Olive Sweets, was holidaying in his native village near Machilipatnam when he heard of a cow that had eaten 20 kg of plastic, which was removed from the animal after surgery. This really disturbed Mr Raju. On his way back to Hyderabad by bus, he thought of setting up an NGO. He called it Tree Guard Foundation and became a fervent environmentalist.

At the time of the Ganesh festival in 2005, he distributed 50,000 small environment-friendly clay Ganeshs. He went on to make bigger clay idols which people noticed. “In 2009 every one thought that installing clay Ganeshas is impossible and they were hesitant to make them. Trying to challenge this myth and create awareness, I installed a 21-ft clay Ganesh,” he told this newspaper.

Eco-friendly Ganesha is also the aim of 38-year-old K. Surya Prakash, who is in the decoration business. Since 2010 he has made idols with  newspapers, paper cups, tissue paper and other eco-friendly products.  “With just Rs 6,000 we have made the Ice-cream Ganesha which is eco-friendly. We hope that it serves as an inspiration to the public and encourages them to install such Ganesh idols,” Mr Prakash said.