Ganesh Chaturthi 2021: Unique Ganpati idols made of matchsticks, coconuts and chocolate

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Ganesh Chaturthi began yesterday amid Covid-19 restrictions. Devotees carried idols of Lord Ganesha to public pandals and their homes to kick start the 10-day long festivities.

However, due to the ongoing pandemic, large scale celebrations of Ganesh Chaturthi has been disallowed across the country.

Therefore, artists from different parts of India have crafted unique Ganpati idols with natural ingredients to keep the spirit of the festival alive and promote sustainability at the same time.

Odisha

An artist hailing from Puri in Odisha has crafted an idol of Lord Ganesh using matchsticks. The art piece, which comprises of as many as 5621 matchsticks, is 23 inches long and 22 inches wide. Saswat Sahoo, the artist, told ANI that it took him eight days to craft the work.

Also Read: Ganesh Chaturthi 2021: Why these Mumbaikars have adopted zero-waste celebrations

"Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, celebrations for the Ganesh Chaturthi are subdued. Hence, I thought of creating something new. I will be praying to this idol on the festival at my home amid the pademic," said Sahoo.

Gujarat

A woman in Surat installed a 201 coconut-made Ganesha idol in a mall in Surat as Ganesh Chaturthi festivities began on Friday. Speaking to ANI, Aditi Mittal, who made the idol, said that the idea behind this is to prevent environmental degradation and spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

"I am a dentist by profession and an artist by passion. I have displayed my artistic creation here. It is believed that whenever we start something new, we break the coconuts and start the day," she said.

"I hope and pray that by creating this 201 coconut idol, it wipes away all the negativities from all our lives. I have carved out various signs and symbols of gods and goddesses on each of these coconuts," she added.

Punjab

A Ludhiana-based bakery crafted a Ganpati idol made of dark chocolate on the occasion of Ganeshotsav. "We've been making chocolate Ganesh since 2015 to send a message that we should celebrate festivals in eco-friendly ways," said bakery owner Harjinder Singh Kukreja.

Also, well-renowned sand-artists Sudarshan Patnaik spread the message of eco-friendliness and "world peace" in his own way by crafting a Ganpati idol by the beach made of sea-shells.

According to the artist, he used 7,000 sea-shells to create the idol.

(With ANI inputs)