Kondapalli Toys Village of Vijayawada
It amazes me how every nook and corner of my country India, is rich with vibrant art and culture. The more I see the more I want to explore! During my recent visit to Vijayawada I could make this wonderful trip to Kondapalli’s Bommala Colony (Toy Colony of Kondapalli). I got to see the making of these lightweight Kondapalli toys in Vijayawada using age old production techniques.
The colony has several families making their living by adding life and color to hand carved wooden toys. These artisans are known as Aryakshatriyas. I was always enamored by these Kondapalli toys that I had seen in shelves of handicraft emporiums and online platforms. The thought of getting to see Kondapalli Dolls Makers of Vijayawada at work was really exciting. With a little bit of interaction I soon discovered the untold struggle that these artisans are going through to keep the art alive and popular.
History of Kondapalli Toys
Before elaborating on their life and struggles a little history about this art of toy making. It is said the art took roots here after a group of craftsmen migrated from Rajasthan in 16th century and settled here. They imparted this unique art of crafting toys from wood. That reminded me of Kavads of Bassi Rajasthan which too is made from light wood. If one were to look into the details like the pointed nose of the human figures they resemble the Islamic style which was widely prevalent then in 17th century Rajasthani art.
The locals quickly adopted the art and style and brought out little sculpted forms of Hindu mythological characters, Gods and Goddesses. One of the reasons for that is the Gollu festival (doll festival) observed during Dusshera. Women secretly compete with each other as to who has more and different kinds of dolls.
Yet another religious connection to this art is that there is reference to these craftsmen in the religious text “Brahmanda Purana”. This community claims its origin to Muktharishi, who is believed to have been blessed with skills in arts and crafts by Lord Shiva himself. These chitrakaras (craftsmen) claim that it was their ancestors who sculpted the numerous sculptures like the Garuda, Nandi, Simha and the Vahanas in the many temples in Andhra Pradesh.
Life of Kondapalli Dolls Makers of Vijayawada
Chatting up a bit with one of the craftsmen there, in a mix of broken Telugu, Hindi and English elicited some details. They work for 10 to 20 hours a day making a dozen to a score of bullocks for toys. These sell for a mere 20 or 30Rs per piece. Do the mathematics. Their earning stands at 500Rs to 600Rs per day! I was shocked. In some of the families all the members were involved in contributing to family income, to raise a decent figure for a decent livelihood. Sales have reduced considerably owing to several reasons.
Their tools are not sophisticated ones! Even the glue, adhesive they use is made of crushed tamarind seeds. The fast selling ones are: toys depicting Dasavataram, Ambari elephants, dancing dolls. Scenes from mythology, animals, birds, bullock carts, and rural life are also a big hit.
Hands that make Kondapalli Bommalu
Reasons for Dip in Sales
One of the most important reasons is the cheap Chinese make toys. Earlier they could make at least 2000Rs per day but with stiff competition from Chinese market this income has reduced considerably. Children of several well to do families prefer to play with tech toys. So the role of these as toys for children is slowly diminishing.
Ever since these Kondapalli toys have ceased to be toys, people now purchase them as collectibles. The purchase quantity thus gets reduced to 1 or 2. Once in a while a customer may land up to buy them for all their friends and relatives!
Sadly with the onset of modern and fast lifestyles traditions are vanishing. This too has led to reduced sales during festivals. Previously, even as recent as a decade back, their sales peaked during Dusshera and Sankranti.
All these reasons have resulted in slight changes in their style. They now use enamel based paints and colors instead of their original natural dyes.
Scarcity of wood too has led to dip in production of these toys. They use wood of Tella Poniki to make these toys. The wood is malleable and can be easily chiselled. The trees take a long time to grow. Wood and shoots of this tree is sweet and tender in its formative years and they fall prey to pests. Unless a responsible department steps in to prevent the loss and protection of these trees the art will die a natural death.
Some Government Initiatives to Encourage this Art
Forest Government has set up Wood Bank for Kondapalli Dolls Makers of Vijayawada. They intend to grow Tella Poniki, soft wood trees that would be legally distributed among the toy makers. There is some assurance of raw material for next 20 years.
Lepakshi Crafts showroom is a government enterprise. Toys are procured from Kondapalli Dolls Makers of Vijayawada. Lot of sales take place through this. Other private online companies like Amazon, My State Bazaar are also involved in their sale.
Not only through sales Kondapalli toys are a prestigious gift in almost all the government programs like foreign delegate meetings etc. Vijayawada Airport is beautifully decorated with paintings depicting Kondapalli toys.
CLICK to BUY online: Kondapalli Toy
Matsya Avatar – Kondapalli Toys Vijayawada
5 Ways You can Contribute to this Art
- Do not negotiate on price if you are buying from local artisans.
- Do buy a piece or two to gift your loved ones back home.
- Show off the souvenir, be a proud owner of a Kondapalli doll.
- Share info about the art with your friends and relatives.
- If you are feeling more generous please share this blogpost with all your readers and social media followers.
If you are worried how to carry these back home without any damage be assured that they do excellent packing of delicate Kondapalli toys. For international parcels they are packed in glass/polyvinyl cases. For local delivery they are done in cardboard casings.
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- Kondapalli Toys Vijayawada
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- packing of delicate Kondapalli toys
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- Veena – Kondapalli Toys
Location of Kondapalli Bommalu Colony Vijayawada
Kondapalli Toys making village is located on east bank of Krishna River.
This Bommalu Colony (Toys Village) is located 1.3km from Kondapalli Railway station.
It is at a distance of 41.8km from Vijayawada International Airport.
Nearest Sightseeing place is Kondapalli Fort, 400m.
Nearest luxury hotel is Novotel Vijayawada Varun, 26.7km.
Disclaimer: This article includes affiliate links. This translates to no extra cost to you but I get a referral bonus if you purchase via the link.
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Handmade dolls are a real craft. I really admire this people who stay and continue to keep this craft alive throughout the years. The government should equip them so they can be more sustainable. I’d love to own one of them for my house in the future.
These Kondapalli dolls are just gorgeous! I love the little animals. I would love to buy some as tokens from India – and definitely would pay full price. Such a shame the tradition is at risk.
Kondapalli toy dolls look really beautiful. But I am equally sad knowing the hard work (10-20 hrs) these doll makers put and the amount they earn. Rs.500- 600 per day is too less. They surely make a wonderful gift for the loved ones and we too would say, that we should not negotiate with these sellers.
That is one thing I noticed when I visited India it is a vibrant art and culture. I do hope the fast culture does not affect it. I love supporting the arts.
Oh my God, these dolls look so beautiful. They are actually to play with? I find they are pieces of art and would carefully put them on my book shelf and never touch them. I love the colors as well as the ingenious shapes. So beautiful!
I had heard similar stories from the makers of Channapatnam toys. It’s pity that they earn 500-600 Rs per day. And it’s sad that we , the people want to buy Chinese toys , not these hand crafted wooden ones.
I always try to bring something for my home when I meet these artisans … doing my bit to help them.
*No need to say any more* Let us do the following as the writer rightly mentioned :
Do not negotiate on price if you are buying from local artisans.
Do buy a piece or two to gift your loved ones back home.
Show off the souvenir, be a proud owner of a Kondapalli doll.
Share info about the art with your friends and relatives.
If you are feeling more generous please share this blogpost with all your readers and social media followers.
Wonderful article. Thanks a lot to the writer.
Thank you Dr. Praveen for the visit to my blog and your comment 🙂
So good to know of your contributions Nisha.
What a wonderful tribute to the local artisans. With increasing competition, it’s tough for their business. I hope that with parents will move their kids away from tech toys and remind them of the simple pleasures of playing with toys. Great tips though on not negotiating!!
I love the fact all the toys are hand made and painted to great detail. But didn’t know about the lifestyle of the craftsmen and really glad this was mention. Really hope they can keep working and have a better life in the future. Felt a bit sad reading this.
I have never heard of these. They are beautiful. Figures the dip in sales would be because of China and their production of toys and such.
Such skill and talent to make such toys. Great to hear that there is some work to keep the arts here going. It would be a great shame to lose such artistic expressions. It should provide the next batch of artists going!
It was a really inspiring article I have never heard of these dolls before but seems like a really hard task I mean engaging yourself for 10 – 20 hrs is a really time-consuming task. It’s really sad to read how their sales are decreasing I hope they still continue to work, but conditions improve for them. Thanks for highlighting the issues and the issues the Kondapalli toy makers face
Good to see that the Govt is taking some initiatives to keep this art alive. The heritage art definitely needs to thrive. After reading this, I am curious to know the state of Channapatna. Maybe you and I should get there and find out – what say?
Great idea! Let us pack and GO!
It is true that our country has some of the best art and crafts and it is also true that these handicrafts now are mostly neglected. You have stated the reasons for so and it is happening for most of the art and crafts in different parts of India. In West Bengal, dokra art was almost dying. It is good that the government is taking initiative in reviving the arts. Hopefully, the art and artisans always live, or else we will lose a considerable part of our heritage.
The artisans are truly creative. It is amazing how they have these dolls that also makes their place unique. I wish that they will pass this craftsmanship and skills to the next generations of artisans.
I can only imagine how much time and skill goes into making these toys. They really are pieces of art. I’m glad the government is stepping in to provide wood for these artists so that they can continue their work.
This post made me a bit sad. I am always disheartened when I see people with amazing skills working day in and day out and their hand made crafts selling for pennies on the dollar. It’s interesting here in Germany, where I live, there is a HUGE influx of parents buying boutique hand made wood toys and moving away from the cheap Chinese made plastic or tech toys. I just want to go there and buy up all the toys to support this amazing craft. I hope they are able to continue to work, but conditions improve for them. Thanks for highlighting the issues and the issues the Kondapalli toy makers face
I have never heard of the Kondapalli Dolls, but I always enjoy seeing how things are made. The doll makers work for 10 – 20 hours a day??? That is insane. It’s sad that the sales are decreasing. The US has the same problem with items being so much cheaper from China. It’s surprisingly and good that the government is actually doing something to help. Usually governments don’t 🙁
Have always admired wooden toys (love Channapatna toys). Sad to know about the issues that these artists face. Glad you have focused on it.
I personally love Kondapalli and Chennapatna toys. Those were the first ones that I gave my daughter to play with and she still loves them.
Oh! I didn’t know they moved here from Rajasthan. I can very much see the similarities between these and Kavads. I’m yet to introduce Kavads to my gal. She’s still a bit too young for that!
I agree big time when it comes to not bargaining when buying crafts. I once got majorly irritated when a guy asked me bargain on behalf of him as he didn’t speak their language! Its just ridiculous when you end up spending money on FMCG!