Mysore/Mysuru: The season of festivities in the region begins with onset of Shravana and Bhadrapada. In particular, Gowri and Ganesha Festivals are celebrated with a lot of fervour and devotion. Idols of Gowri and Ganesha are sold on the roadside and sellers do brisk business during the   festive season.

Mid-year festival season is about to begin on July 25 with Nagar Panchami. Ganesha Festival falls on Aug. 22 this year, but for families of idol-makers uncertainty looms large and are bracing to face huge losses amid the COVID-19 pandemic. No one has any idea about how festivals are going to be celebrated this year. And the State Government is still waiting for the Centre’s guidance on what type and size of festive celebrations should be permitted in the region.

Speaking to Star of Mysore, D. Revanna, a Gowri-Ganesha idol-maker residing at Kumbarageri said, “Every year, other than householders, Ganesha festival is celebrated by groups of devotees by installing Ganesha idols on the roadside, but this year, none of us have had any orders for large and medium sized Ganesha idols. To what extent householders will buy our idols this year, we do not know either.”

“This year, none of us are certain about the number of idols we are going to sell. It is not an easy job as it involves more than three months of work. Months before the festival, we need to get clay from far off places including KRS, Doora and Udbur villages. Then, we start carving out the idol initially with mould and later work on adding intricacies, which involves a lot of skill and imagination plus hard work. Finally, after drying them out under shade, we make use of natural colours to paint them,” he added.

“Every year, we used to spend Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 40,000 for clay and other expenditure and earn at least Rs. 1 lakh at the end of season. This year, we are confused. What would be the demand for these idols, how many idols we need to make and how to plan ourselves for this season, we do not have any answers,” he said.

“District Administration has already banned large scale public gatherings. If this rule applies for upcoming Ganesha festival also, in all likelihood, there will not be any demand for large and medium sized Ganesha idols, which are normally installed on the roadsides. Certainly, this is going to be devastating for us because nearly 60 to 80 families in Mysuru city and over 150 families in the district are earning their livelihood with this,” he added.

Revanna’s mother Ningamma, who also helps him making Ganesha idols said, “Recently, the State Government has announced relief package for various communities which are badly affected by lockdown. We would request authorities to come to our aid and provide some amount as relief package for Ganesha idol-makers.”