Lucknow: Corona scare to stay, idol makers say Ganesh Utsav business hit by 60%

LUCKNOW: Rahul Rajpoot, 25, has been making Ganpati idols professionally since 2012. Every year, in his Saadatganj workshop, 10-12 artists would be busy in giving finishing touches to 5-foot-tall idols, while people would line up to take home their ‘Bappa’.
However, in the wake of pandemic, the 29-year-old workshop bears a deserted look this year.
“This is the first time that we are seeing such low demand for Ganesha idols. It is a tough period for us. There is hardly anyone coming to the workshop to place orders,” said Rajpoot.
With summer, which is the time to make idols, lost to the pandemic and lockdown, idol makers say that they are staring at a grim future, with little or no orders to mark Ganesh Chaturthi, which falls on August 22.
Instead of delivering huge idols of 5-9 feet to puja pandals in the city, the idol makers are only able to make small idols of 1-2 feet with limited material. This has resulted in losses of about Rs 2 lakh to every idol maker.
“We had around 12 workers from UP and West Bengal, Now, they have all left for their hometowns and we cannot even afford to call them back. During Ganesh Chaturthi, the puja committees would also give us orders for Durga Puja. But this year, the situation is different, We have received only 10 orders of Ganesha idols till now,” added Rajpoot.
The artisans say that business is hit with about 60% drop in domestic orders. Since idol making is a capital-intensive business, the artisans fear they will not be able to pay their bank loans on time.
Deepika Mishra, an idol maker from Bharatpuri, said the economic crisis and uncertainty among devotees over the festival is a major cause of worry.
“Ganesh Chaturthi is the time when we make money that lasts us for an entire year. Since the government has imposed a ban on public gatherings, we doubt we would be able to revive our business during Durga Puja too,” said Raju, another idol maker in Saadatganj.