Toyland, Ahoy!

Whenever I travel the Bangalore –Mysore route, the child in me pops on seeing  the arch “Toy town - Chennapatna welcomes you”.   I always try to stop at this place to have a look at all those beautiful  and colorful  chennapatnada gombegulu( chennapatna dolls) adorning the shelves on those tiny shops which are on either side of the highway.

This little town which is 60kms from Bangalore just after the Sholay town ramnagaram( hindi movie sholay was shot here) is famous for eco-friendly hand made wooden toys and locally it is called gombegala ooru ( toy town).

This ancient art which has survived many generations is believed to be the art of Persian toy makers, who were brought to India by the Mysore ruler Tipu Sultan.  Made out of rain forest tree wood, colored with vegetable dyes and polished with  blades of grass which have an abrasive property , these toys have no sharp edges . These are child-friendly, eco-friendly and non-toxic  compared to the battery operated expensive electronic toys. From each rain wood tree they make 2000 toys and for every 20 toys they sell they plant a tree, thus for every tree cut to make toys, they plant 100 trees making their rain forest multiplier as100. Similarly the vibrant colours, ivory tones and lacquer finish  comes from natural tree waxes and cactus leaf oil, all of which are non-toxic.  

 What’s more you save on the cost of batteries and e-waste, when you buy these mechanical toys which work on the principle of winding. 

Like any other child, my children too born in the electronic age played with battery operated electronic toys.  These toys were educational and entertaining. No doubt on that but they were’nt safe. Made with plastic and lead these toys required constant monitoring while they played ,  moreover the batteries were an additional expense on our monthly budget and  the batteries were part of our monthly provision or shopping list with one toy having a 9v Duracell battery costing 120Rs  and 6 numbers of 1.5v battery. That way, these wooden toys are a good alternative and an ideal gift material.

A decade back,  this industry  faced a  huge challenge from the Chinese toy market and was almost on the brink of close-down but survived, due to the interest shown by  some NGO’s and  bulk orders from some famous MNC’s .  After surviving the challenge, today they have diversified to meet the modern day requirements and so along with traditional toys like dolls, mind games, mathematical games, dolls abacus, tic-tac-toe spinning tops,rocking horse, pallankuzhi etc.,  they also make modern day games and meet the requirements of emerging markets by making roller-bead seat cover, car  back rests, mandasanam( pooja alcoves),candle holders, decorative pieces like vintage cars, motorcycles, wooden bead curtains, chess board table etc,. They have products for all ages from  toddler toys to old man's walking aids.( see the pics below)

  These toys/products/dolls are now popular in most of the art and craft exhibitions  held across India and have a huge export order market from western and European countries.   During her recent visit to India  Michelle obama has picked some of these Chennapatna toys as mementos and today they adorn  White house too. With the help of NGO’s and MNC’s they design and produce world class toys which has led to the revival of this craft and  the artisans. Microsoft is one of their major customer.

Personally ( to the best of my knowledge),my first visit to  this place was when I was just 11 and my paternal grand mom got me a jewel box which i cherish to this date.( she passed away a couple of months later and so was the last gift from her) and a stencilled colored alphabet kit for my 5 year old sis and from then on it is a ritualistic stop for me at chennapatna  whenever enroute mysore. 

 Next time while you are on the Bangalore –Mysore highway, indulge the child in you and pay a visit to these toy shops or if you’re luckier pay a visit to the homes where these dolls are crafted and have a visual tour. You will be thrilled to see the child in you surf up!

Check the pics below clicked by me on my latest visit and have your pick....

                                  ....  keychains, car hangings, window and wall hangings........

                                   .... showpieces, wall masks,  pooja mantaps

                                   The traditional stacker ring dolls.

                                      roller toys and colorful pallankuzhi
                                   

                               stationary items like erasers, sharpeners, stand alone dolls.............

                               pen holders, jewel boxes, kunkum bharnis and roller rabbits...........

                                casks, wooden vintage bikes, cars 

and many more like  crafted rosewood inlay tables, centre tables ........all at any of the chennapatna wooden toy stall anywhere in Indian art/craft exhibition or at Cauvery emporias across India.

Rasalok at Bimba

(click on the image for a larger view)

This summer, we had an unique cultural experience through Rasalok (still theatre in miniature form) at Bimba in Bangalore.

Bimba – the art hut, a totally non-commercial NGO is situated in an area away from the hustle and bustle of the market, at the corner of DVG road(Upahara darshini end) on Ratna vilas road in Bangalore. The moment you step into Bimba, you travel back 100 years in time. Yes, that is precisely the age of the building. Every thing here smells and feels of the sepia toned times.

The whole concept of Rasalok was formed by the mother daughter duo of Smt. Uma Nagraj and Deepika Dorai. They decide upon a appropriate moment from our rich history,culture or myth. They visualize the moment and then create a tableau in miniature form of that period, scaling them proportionately (like golu- tamils display little dolls during navarathri). This requires skilful artistic engineering, creativity, imagination and craft work. They paint the face of dolls and stitch costumes relevant to the period to perfect detailing.

Mr. Deepak who gave a brief intro about the art, informed us that the idea originated from Mrs. Susheelamma (mother of Uma Nagraj) who used to do such creative work during her free time (with plastic dolls) which was eventually passed and improvised by the succeeding generation of her family. Now Deepika uses special wooden toys which have flexible joints.

The tableau is then encased in a box. The mother/ daughter narrate the inherited story from our culture pertaining to the tableau through a live drama.

They have captured five such enthralling moments from our faith.

Krishna and Sudhama
Sankaracharya rolls the cosmic dice
Muthuswami Dikshitar – A gift of Goddess
Ravana – The priestly asura
Ganga Avataranam.

What we saw was Ganga Avataranam. (The descending of river Ganga to Earth)

The spot light was only on this tableau and darkness surrounded us when we entered the 100 year old room. The whole ambience transported us to the Kailash mountain. The scene was where Lord Shiva took the viswaroopa form in front of Bhagiratha and heeded to the request of bringing Ganga to the earth. Mrs. Deepika arrested us for an whole hour with her narration which was complemented by her well modulated voice and expressions.

It was an unusual and beautiful experience for the children and elders too.
The tableau itself was so appealing with the entrance of heaven( from where Ganga descends) strewn with little golden lotuses and the corridors of heaven were a rare creation. The materials used are paper, wax, fabric,beads, rope,miniature jewels, details of plant and animal life and relevant props like palace gate, banyan tree which are made from other media.

I wish they organised some workshops for children to learn this art form. When i proposed this to Mr. Deepak, he said "art cannot be taught through workshops, it has to be created with imagination, for this the children should have exposure to nature and absorb things around them". Well, very profoundly said.


This rare art is not monetized by the creators. The entry is free and what's more everybody is given a token gift of a hand made doll. The audience are attracted through word of mouth and not through frilled/fancy advertisements.

Those of you in Chennai and Bangalore who have an interest in Indian art and culture can add Bimba to your life. They also have an ethnic creative art hut/store for artifacts, furniture,furnishing,paintings,clothes etc where creative work of genuine artists from village are displayed and sold.

Their address in chennai is 17, temple avenue,srinagar colony,Behind saidapet court,chennai-15

In Bangalore apart from Ratna vilas road, they have an art hut(store) at Jayanagar 4th Block, corner of 36th cross, 5th main.