Mahoba, 10 Sept: It is a proud occasion for craftsman Manmohan Saini of Uttar Pradesh’s Mahoba area. While welcoming international leaders attending the G20 Leaders Summit on September 9 and 10, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will distribute souvenirs specifically designed by him.
These “rare” memories are known as ‘kamalam,’ according to Saini, and he has prepared 50 of them for the major occasion. But what makes these mementos so unique? “It’s the design that makes these mementos rare and special,” said Saini, who has perfected the craft of making brass objects for more than 30 years.
“It is in the shape of a special lotus prepared in such a way that a slight rotation will open its outermost petals and, on further rotation, will result in a fully bloomed flower,” he explained, adding that he is the only craftsman who can produce them.
According to Saini, officials from the Uttar Pradesh Handicraft Development and Marketing Corporation Ltd approached him eight months ago and urged him to make special souvenirs for the G20 meeting because of his experience. “I took it lightly back then, thinking G20 would be like any other event, but when I saw it on TV recently, I realized it is something big, and I am fortunate enough to be chosen for the task,” he added.
Saini went on to say that it took him about six months to finish the full consignment of 50 souvenirs. He went on to say that the ‘kamalam’ is five inches long and has eight little and large petals on each.
He went on to say that at the BJP’s ‘Parivartan’ rally in 2016, party leader Pushpendra Singh Chandel and deputy chief minister Keshav Prasad Maurya presented the prime minister with a ‘kamalam’ he had prepared.
However, this is not the first time Prime Minister Modi has selected an indigenously prepared artifact to be presented to foreign dignitaries in order to highlight India’s distinct culture.
During the G7 conference in Germany in 2022, he presented US President Joe Biden with a rare ‘gulabi minakari’ pair of cufflinks and a matching pin.
The uncommon artwork is exclusively done in UP’s Varanasi area and consists of enameling and coloring silver objects with pink. The word ‘gulabi’ comes from the fact that this pink color is made from gold oxide.
