From Goshamahal to Gujarat, Demand Rises For Telugu-style Ganesh Idols

Hyderabad: Amid light rain, drizzle and spells of dry weather, groups of people can be seen walking around Goshamahal, where large sheds are filled with Ganesh idols in various stages of preparation. Some are already shaped and painted, some are half-built, and some are being sprayed with colours and sparkles, while others are receiving the final finishing touches.

These individuals travel by train, bus or road to Goshamahal to buy the idols. They do not mind making the trip twice — once to place an order and again to pick up the idol before the festival begins.

According to Ganesh idol artists in Goshamahal, who make idols taller than 16 feet in a distinct Telugu style, they have been attracting customers from Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Gujarat and Bengaluru for the past four years.

Customers are also spending nearly `45,000 to `50,000 on transportation to take the idols to their respective locations. Interestingly, the trend is reversed in Telangana, where people are ordering customised Ganesh idols from Mumbai-based artists for pandals in Hyderabad.

These Mumbai-based makers have also settled in Hyderabad and make idols designed to attract crowds by, for example, adding lights, creating single tall idols and incorporating additional decorations.

Nikheel Parse, a private employee, told Deccan Chronicle, “Ganesh idols from Mumbai are based on a concept. We have been buying them from Mumbai, so I bring them from a Ganesh maker who creates simple concepts, such as Ganesh playing with a rat, sitting in a pond with swans or being depicted with his parents in a joyful setting. They are based on real-life concepts.”

Naresh Murthies and Sunder Kalakar explained to Deccan Chronicle that their work continues throughout the year. “The artists we work with mostly come from Karnataka and Maharashtra. They design the statues for that year and leave. Later, PoP is mixed and applied step by step to the idols. The idols are then made to stand, after which they are painted and sprayed.”

Customers for Goshamahal Ganesh idols come from Gujarat, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Chennai and other parts of Tamil Nadu, as these places lack artists who make huge Ganesh idols.

“I have many customers from Gujarat who have been coming to us for years. We have Ganesh idols priced from `85,000 to over `1 lakh. The reason is that artists in no other state provide the kind of finishing that artists from Goshamahal do. We have also made Ganesh idols up to 25 feet tall. This year, we have permission for idols only up to 16 feet, so the designs extending above 16 feet are detachable and are given to customers to reattach later,” said Babu Singh of Sunder Kalakar.

Akash Singh, one of the artists, said that since some states have strict restrictions on PoP, customers are approaching artists in Goshamahal for PoP idols. Deliveries begin 20 days before the festival, with orders from outside the State delivered first, followed by those placed by customers within Telangana.

People come in groups to book idols and later return to collect them. They also hire labourers to move the idols and load them onto trucks.