With just a few months left for Durga Puja, idols of the goddess are all set to go abroad from Kumartuli, the clay modellers’ colony in north Kolkata.
Speaking to ANI, artist and clay modeller Mintu Pal said that every year three-four months ahead of the Durga Puja festival, fibreglass Durga idols from Kumartuli are dispatched to foreign countries. The idols sent to foreign countries are generally made of fibreglass.
“This year I have got orders for 14 Durga idols of which eight idols have already been shipped abroad. Idols have been sent to New York, Canada, Germany, Berlin, Australia. One Durga idol is ready to be shipped to Texas, USA.”
“Orders start coming from the month of January. There are orders for Maa Durga idols from the UK, Dubai, Sharjah, Singapore and they are being prepared,” he added.
Mintu Pal further said, “Every year our idols that go abroad are made of fibreglass only. The order was less during Covid but now the festival has restarted. Durga Puja is being performed by NRI Bengalis and Indians living abroad following the rules. In Muslim countries, the idols of Maa Durga go to Dubai, Qatar, Sharjah.”
He also said that talks are going on for 2-3 orders, of which one would go to the UK. “One will go to England, talks are going on now. Last year we sent 16 idols to foreign countries. This year also 16 to 17 idols will go abroad from my store, eight have already reached America and now some are on their way. All the idols for the USA will be shipped by August, the rest of the idols going to Singapore and Dubai are being made now. It reaches in 15 to 20 days,” he said.
He further said, “Since 2000, I have been sending fibreglass idols to foreign countries where Maa Durga is worshipped. People place orders online, through phone, through WhatsApp, some people place orders when they come to visit Kolkata, some relatives who live abroad place orders. Presently, more orders are received online and on WhatsApp.”
“The idol of Maa Durga that goes to USA is sent by ship, the cost is less and it is easy to send a big idol by ship, and the one that goes by flight, are the smaller ones. The cost of sending by flight is very high. That’s why we send the idols of Maa Durga by ship to foreign countries two-three months in advance. It takes around 60 to 70 days to reach the USA. It takes 20 to 25 days to send Durga idola to other Asian countries,” he added
According to Mintu Pal, the cost of making a Maa Durga idol was equal to the cost of sending it.
“If the cost of an idol is Rs 1 lakh 80 thousand to 2 lakh, then almost the same amount is spent in sending that idol. It costs about two lakhs to transport it. The idols of Maa Durga going abroad are made of fibreglass. Depending on the size, the cost of the idol ranges from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2.5 lakh.”
He said that if the total cost is calculated then it would come to around Rs 4 lakh to make and transport the idols.
Speaking about business taking off after COVID, Pal said “Local orders have increased this year. After getting recognition from UNESCO, Durga is celebrated with much more grandeur across the country as well as abroad now. Bengali people who are settled abroad are all organising Durga Puja,” he said.
Mintu Pal is associated with the idol-making business for the last 35 years.
“I making idols for the last 35 years, this is our family business. We make all types of idols– Durga, Kali figurine,” he further said.
Talking about business in Kolkata, Pal said, “We got very good orders this year from Kolkata and I have made a total of 35 Durga idols and we have stopped taking orders now. If we talk about the size of these 35 idols of Maa Durga, then it is 12 to 18 feet. Most of the ordered idols are 10 to 12 feet tall,” Mintu said.
“If the price of raw materials is Rs 100, then the labour charge is Rs 150. The labour charge for idols made of clay is more and the rate we fix is more or less decided according to the decoration of that idol. We cannot predict the state of business till puja starts,” he said.
Speaking about post-Covid business, Pal said, “During Covid, we made small idols and the artisans were also less and the budget was also very less but now the budget is increasing gradually. It will take us two to three more years to reach the idol rate of 2018 and 2019.”
In December 2021, United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) inscribed “Durga Puja in Kolkata” on the “Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity”.