“Years ago, I met an artisan from West Bengal who told me about the traditional way Durga Mata idols are crafted in Kolkata using clay. I was fascinated by the process. I kept thinking, why couldn’t we make our Ganesh idols in the same way?

I’m Kothakonda Nagesh, a Shilpi from Hyderabad. I have been making Ganesh idols for more than 35 years, and that thought from my early days has stayed with me.

In the 1990s, we began making eco-friendly Ganesh idols with clay. At that time, there was hardly any demand for them. We knew we would not earn much from making these idols, but we continued because we believed it was the right thing to do.

In the beginning, we made around 30 to 40 Ganesh idols a year, mostly about four feet tall. Over the years, the demand grew, and so did the scale of our work. Today, we make idols of different sizes, including some of the largest Ganesh idols made in Hyderabad.

Ganesh Chaturthi in Hyderabad has its own energy. Across the city, neighbourhoods come together to install idols, organise celebrations and welcome Bappa with music, devotion and large gatherings.
As the celebrations grew, the idols became bigger and the designs more ambitious. What once meant making a few small idols gradually turned into taking on projects that require teams of artisans and months of work.

The idol-making starts with the framework. We use bamboo and wooden supports to create the structure, and dry grass is packed around it to build the basic form. We then apply layers of clay along with Kolkata Ganga mitti, which is sourced from the Hooghly River, and carefully shape the idol according to the design and requirements of the organisers.

With larger idols, the framework and proportions have to be right from the beginning. Even a small mistake can create problems as the work progresses.

One of the biggest projects we are working on this year is the 72-foot Sri Ashta Siddhi Maha Ganapathi for the Thiranga Youth Association in Nagole. A team of 25 specialised artisans from West Bengal has joined us for this work. It has been about continuing a craft I chose more than 35 years ago and doing it with the same passion and devotion every year.”