Twelve Mentally challenged girls learn to mould Ganesh idols at Maharashtra care home ahead of Ganpati festival

The Ganesh idols made by these women from care home at Maharashtra’s Osmanabad district are as stunning as those made by professional artists. They hope to sell it in the upcoming Ganpati festival and make their lives purposeful.

Currently, the care centre has 110 girls and women, majority of whom were brought in  state and most of them were bed-ridden, the care home’s head Shahaji Chavan told.

They are orphans brought here from big cities like Pune and Mumbai. They are autistic and mentally challenged. They can’t express their condition and 30 of them cannot even assess their urge to go to the toilet,” he informed.

But as time passed, they started studying and 60 of them are now literate. Figuring out their area of interest and talent, they decided to engage them in different activities and consequently found 12 of them were good at moulding clay and mud and they started making the idols of Lord Ganesh.

Though it demands a great menial work and precision of hands to work with mud, making body parts of an idol and attaching them properly, these inmates are learning and they have now also started painting the idols on their own.

Two persons from the care centre work with the inmates and make them learn the art of making idols, they try to make around 400 idols every year and but only half of them reach the market, as per Chavan.

Their idols are as stunning as those made by professional artists.The care home is not only making these inmates learn art, but also helping them with different therapies to make them stand on their feet and provide them a decent life.