Creating their own My Friend Ganesha! ; Workshop on ecofriendly Ganesha making: Crafting Ganesha idols sparks excitement among children

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar: Despite being a Sunday, children gathered with great enthusiasm at One World on Pratapnagar Road to take part in the My Eco-Friendly Ganesha workshop presented by Manjeet Pride Group. Immersed in the creative process of crafting Lord Ganesha idols, the children’s joy was palpable, akin to reaching a state of bliss. Upon completing their creations, the children gazed at their idols with wonder, scarcely believing they had crafted them with their own hands.

The activity aimed to promote the creation of environmentally sustainable Ganesh idols. Students were provided with eco-friendly clay to mould their idols on A-4 size cardboard, which they had brought from home. Under the guidance of trainers Supriya Chavan and Sanket Shelke, the children meticulously followed the instructions, gradually shaping the clay into idols. Depending on the intricacy, some children completed their idols in an hour, while others took an hour and a half. As the idols began to take form, the delight on the children’s faces grew, each striving to make their idol uniquely different from the others.

After completing the idols, the children proudly presented them to their accompanying parents before capturing photos to share across social media platforms. Dignitaries including Vandana Bagadia, Varsha Bhosale, Menaka Paraswani, Colonel Sandeep R H, Veena Sandeep, Shweta Joshi, and Sagar Sakla from the Manjeet Pride Group were present.

600 idols created in 4.5 hours

The workshop was conducted across three sessions on Sunday, with a total of 600 students participating. Each session accommodated 200 students, and within an hour and a half, 200 Ganesh idols were meticulously crafted. Over the course of 4 hours and 30 minutes, 600 idols were completed. The children took these eco-friendly idols home, expressing their intent to install them during the Ganesh festival.