TRADITIONAL TOYS OF MADHYA PRADESH

MADHYA PRADESH

TOYS OF INDORE

Madhya Pradesh is a state which is known for its unique handicrafts. Once you deep dive into the mesmerizing world of handicrafts of MP, you will come across several cities and small towns where handicraft is not just a livelihood for people living there but is also a source of identity for them. 

lacquer toys of MP

VARANASI TOYS

In the small town of Budhni, along the banks of Narmada, reside the makers of the eco-friendly lacquered wooden toys. Soft wood of the Dudhi branches are easily chiselled into the required shape, and then the lacquer on the toys is made by mixing colourful dye with chapdi and chandrak, natural wax agents found in the forests of MP and Maharashtra. Once the lacquer is pasted on the wood, it is finished with kewda oil for the gloss effect.

BETEL NUT TOYS

Rewa city of Madhya Pradesh is known for its bearded art. There are many types of toys made from the betel nut here. Betel nut has been used for worshiping and feeding for centuries. But hearing of the betel nut toys is surprising.

In the Rivan city of Madhya Pradesh, some people of Kunder family have been proficient in the art of toys like the Suparis. Native foreign tourists are amazed to see the beautiful and adorable toys made of betel nut. If peeled peel to a small beetle and if made of a tablecloth or a Taj Mahal, then it will be a matter of actually pressing the fingers under the teeth.
This handiwork of betel nut has been developed in the Kunder family which is the result of hard labor and continuous research. Earlier these families had the task of making wooden toys. Later on experimenting with the betel, these people started preparing the betel nut toys.

BATTO BAI DOLLS

The heritage city of Gwalior in Madhya Pradesh, that is popularly known for its forts, museums and monuments, is also famous for its unique Batto Bai Dolls. This distinguished craft is named after Batto Bai, an enterprising craftswoman from Gwalior. Her fourth generation family members continue to carry forward the legacy of crafting these unique dolls to perfection. These dolls range from few inches to almost 2 ft. in height are popular to decorate the household.

BHUDHNI TOYS

Budhni is a village,10 km from Hoshangabad dist. in the vindhyachal forest range. It is quite famous for its wooden craft culture. Artisans here are skilled at carving lives out of wood. They are faithfully trying to uphold and carry out the 100yr old tradition of “khard shilp.” This place is second in India after channapatna of karnataka.

Khard artisans belong to vishwakarma community whose livelihood solely depends upon the wooden carving articles. They work with the doodhi wood found in the vindhya forest. Only the small branches are used, thus there is no harm for the trees. Elaboration of the wood work is for both utilitarian & architectural purpose, but master craftsmen are inclined towards lacquered toys
. Toys are very eco-friendly, use of natural colors made with lac turns to be harmless for our little ones. These bio-toys are gifts from nature for kids.

Share this post