Pedana-based 59-year-old wooden block maker Kondra Gangadhar, who has won the Shilp Guru Award-2018, has earned the honour for his craftsmanship in creating three wooden blocks with teak wood – Arch, Mango, and Pandu designs.
He is among the 10 awardees for 2018 announced on Friday by the Ministry of Textiles for their remarkable contribution in the field of handicrafts. Mr. Gangadhar also received a national award in 2002 through the hands of former President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam.
Shilp Guru is the country’s highest award in the field of handicrafts given to artisans aged above 50. It is presented by the President of India.
“The three works are traditional Kalamkari designs. I worked for 60 days to carve them out of the wood procured from the Bastar forest in Chhattisgarh,” said Mr. Gangadhar, who has kept the Machilipatnam Kalamkari art alive in Pedana town.
“I am delighted to become the first wooden block maker from the Telugu States to win the Shilp Guru Award. I hope this recognition will help revive the glory of the wooden block method of Kalamkari that is on the brink of extinction in Andhra Pradesh,” Mr. Gangadhar told The Hindu.
Mr. Gangadhar, who had migrated from the Telangana region in the 1980s, has been running one of Asia’s biggest wooden block-making units here. Along with his brother Narasaiah, he has also been grooming young artisans.
“The achievement was possible due to the constant encouragement from traditional Kalamkari artisans like Pitchuka Srinivas, for whom I have created ‘Tree of Life’ and Buddhist series in recent years,” Mr. Gangadhar said.
