Faridabad(Haryana): A stall of Kerala artisan Radha Krishna Palli, who was creating artwork from straws, was winning laurels from the visitors at the stalls at the 35th Surajkund International Crafts Mela in Haryana. The Kerala artisan, who arrived at the fair for the first time became a topic of discussion.
Radha Krishna makes unique artwork from straw due to which he has won many national and state-level awards. Straw is often considered a cause of pollution in Haryana, Punjab and Delhi, but this artist from Kerala has drawn the attention of people by creating art forms and pictures from straw.
Some 40 years ago, after seeing his brother's art, he tried his hand in this artform and now this art has become the means of livelihood for his family. The 55-year-old Radha Krishna Palli, hails from Kerala. In this art form, a picture is drawn on a cloth with a pencil, then by making leaves of paddy twigs, cut them with a blade and give the shape of the figure.
A special gum naturally prepared from trees and mixing it with fevicol together. Generally, it takes them about four to five days to make artwork and if the painting is big then it also takes him about 25 days to complete one artwork. "For 42 years, I have been making this art form and I come from a village in Kerala. It takes almost five days to complete. The artwork is very delicate and detailed. All the natural materials are used to make this artwork, hence, it is environmentally friendly, too."
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Krishna's painting starts from Rs 50 to Rs 32,000 and his gross earning up is Rs 50,000 in a month. His stall displays various types of pictures starting from religious figures like Lord Hanuman, patriotic leaders of the country like Mahatma Gandhi, Subhas Chandra Bose, also former President APJ Abdul Kalam and other paintings like portraits and scenic pictures have been made from the paddy straw.
Due to the pandemic over casting its shadow, the Surajkund International Crafts Mela is held after a gap of two years. The crafts mela encourages and provides a platform to thousands of artisans from all over the country a platform to showcase their arts and products. This year, Governor of Haryana Bandaru Dattatraya and Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal inaugurated the Surajkund International Crafts Mela. Jammu and Kashmir is the theme state of the 35th Surajkund International Crafts Mela 2022 presenting its distinct culture and rich legacy via handicrafts and art forms.
