From the outside, Kadwantara, in Kochi, looks like just one more plant nursery with cute nursery, greens and flowers of flowers. But the action is at the distant end of the nursery, under a temporary shed covered by blue torplin. A septuagenian idol-mekar Tapan Kumar Jenna, a septuagenian of Digha in West Bengal, is shaping the fingers of the idols of Durga there. Six idols are waiting for their ‘fingers’, which stand on the floor. Tapan’s wife, Suchitra, assigns her to the fingers that she then shapes and joins the stumps. The vision is real, these terrible white, bare form will turn into reverence divine, in a few days, when they are painted, adorned and their sari is wrapped.
Step fingers have half-shocking package of smooth, flour-like soil and mold used to make fingers. “This is ‘Ganga Mati’ from the Ganges that is used to make idols. The soil here is not suitable for it, it does not just come together. We use local soil (piling left), but not too much,” Tapan says.
He has been coming to Kerala for the last 20 years, usually with his two brothers and his wives. Suchitra’s brother is Uttam Sahu, who owns the nursery. The best reason is that Tapan came to Kochi for the first time. “I think it was 2004 when I had organized a Kali Puja in the nursery. I asked Tapanda to come to make a statue of Kali. Similarly, his attempt started with making idols in Kerala,” a gardener, which has been in Kochi since 1999.
A group of six lives at Uttam’s house nearby. Tapan is one of the many idol makers from Bengal who travel to other states as a worship season.
Make a deity throughout the year
“They are busy in a year,” made fun of Uttam. Booking is to be made at least four months in advance. “We had to deny two orders – one from Kochi and the other from IIM Kozhikode because we will not be able to make them on time and distribute it,” is called Tapan.
On Wednesday, an idol made by North Indian Shiva Temple, Uday Nagar in Uday Nagar as Shernwali built by Tapan Kumar Jena. , Photo Credit: Thulasi Kakkat
This year, Tapan and the family reached Kerala on 2 September. He has come here in the last 20 days, he has 40-odd statues. They were also constructing idols in Thiruvananthapuram, “one takes 10–12 days,” Tapan explains. Two idols headed for Kozhikode are being made in the lovely nursery. He left Digha in July, moved towards Punjab to start this year’s era of making idols for Bengali and Northern Indian associations.
Constant work
It has been busy ever since they arrived here, working through the day to prepare the idols by 27 September, before Durga Puja begins in the entire Bayana. However, the idol maker, rarely make it home for celebration. “It has been many years since we have gone home for worship. In fact, we make sculptures for black worship, before we set so that when we return, it is usually close to Diwali, we don’t have to worry about it,” says Tapan.
Although they make idols of Durga and Kali, this time they created a Sheranwali (Vaishno Devi) for the Northern Indian Union … Some of the few idols are the same piece with all the idols on the same basis and there are other idols where there are other idols where a scene is completed and kept together and kept together.
Tapan explains the process of making idols, which, at the end of the worship ceremony, are immersed in water. “First we make out the outline shape from the bamboo, which we then covers ‘filling’ with grass, which we cover with soil, shape it. Molds are for the face and extreme. Home, I do not use plaster of Paris (pop), I don’t like it, but I have to be prepared to remove sanding.” To show how many light they are.
Statue -making family trade
When they paint the idols, it decorates it with ornaments made of color paper for women and drapes the saree, sometimes organizers offer sarees. Design/model on WhatsApp is finalized as manufacturers send samples, or potential customers send their specifications. “I either mention the photo or make them with memory.” The price of the idols depends on the size, ranging from ₹ 40,000- 00 1,00,000.
Tapan has been building idols for the last 45 years, his father was also a statue producer. “I tried to get a government job, I also made it in a shortlist, but did not get the job. Similarly I got involved with my father, after all this is something I have seen growing up … It’s in the gene!”
Published – September 28, 2025 07:32 pm IST