Source: www.sakaaltimes.com
PUNE, MAHARASHTRA, INDIA, July 18, 2009: Even as the city prepares itself to welcome the God of wisdom, Lord Ganesha on next month, some murtis of the deity are all set for their journey abroad.
Natraj Arts, the traditional murti makers here, have readied scores of murtis of varied sizes for shipment to London, Canada, Holland and Mauritius, around this weekend. “The Non-Resident Indian (NRI) devotees abroad prefer traditional clay murtis from India instead of the modern,” said Bhalchandra Deshmukh of Natraj Arts. “They demand simple murtis, usually replicas of famous temple Deities, as they want to impart the traditional Indian culture to their kids,” he said.
This year, 100 to 125 small murtis and a 4-feet murti of Ganesh have already been booked each in London and Holland. Deshmukh said they were mainly focusing on eco-friendly murtis, which would easily dissolve in water. The British government had permitted immersion of the murtis in the Thames, according to Deshmukh.