“As a kid, I loved Ganesh Chaturthi. Welcoming Ganpati ji, celebrating his arrival, attending Ganpati decoration competitions – these are my favourite memories from my childhood. For me, going to different pandals and seeing different kinds of Ganesh idols was very exciting! But as much as I loved the festival, seeing how our celebrations disturbed nature saddened me. Since my parents were environmentalists, they’d tell me about the ill-effects of POP, and that stayed with me. They taught me, ‘You should always protect nature.’ Thus, from a young age, being environmentally conscious was instilled in me.
That’s why, 8 years ago, when I started getting a Ganesh idol to my office, it was obvious that I’d go for an eco-friendly option. Initially, I’d get a plant idol. But one day, while randomly scrolling through social media, I came across a picture posted by a man from Pune – that of an alum stone on which there was a carving of Ganesh. That’s when the seed was planted… I wondered, ‘Can we make idols using alum?’ Since alum is commonly used for purification of water, I thought it’d be great if idols made using alum would be immersed in water. They’d purify the water body they’d be immersed in, thus reversing some of the pollution we cause! So, along with a few friends, I reached out to local idol makers with this idea. But most weren’t keen on it because making those idols required extra effort.
