TV
The century-old traditional wood carving craft in Nayagarh district’s Khandapada is on the verge of extinction due to a decline in demand, a lack of interest among youngsters and availability of raw materials.
There was a time when the lanes and bylanes of Khandapada’s Kumbhar Sahi reverberated with the sounds of hammers and chisels. Artisans could be seen working to give a desired shape to a log. The articles in demand were wooden masks and idols. These masks were used in ‘gitinatya’ and ‘sunaga’ (both are kinds of performing arts). Their hands were full with orders. They would run their families happily with whatever they were earning.
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With the passage of time, things have changed now for the worse.
In this modern era, this craft witnessed a sharp decline in demand. The lack of market facilities and government help has spelled doom for this art form. The present generation is no longer interested in carrying forward the legacy as it is no longer profitable. This apart, the types of woods required for this craft such as “Nima’, ‘Paladhua’, ‘Simili’ etc. are also not available as they once used to be.
“Once, our masks were in high demand. They were used in mythological plays. Nowadays, these plays are hardly staged. So we have lost our business. The art is now passing through a difficult time,” said Kalia Mohapatra.
“We are now forced to reduce the price of our items to get more buyers. We are facing difficulties in running our families,” said Manaswini Mohapatra, an artisan.
“There was a time when we would get the wood freely from the forest. Now we have to buy them. At times, we fail to find them,” said Basudev Mohapatra, an artisan.
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“Our children are going to other states in search of employment because the art has lost its significance and the types of trees have also gone scarce,” said Sita Mohapatra, an artisan.
Another senior artisan Govinda Chandra Mohapatra said, “While Raghurajpur has got recognition as an ‘art village’, we are yet to get any such tag. It is a matter of great sorrow for us.”
(Reported by Rakesh Chandra Padhi)
