अभिजित धोंडफळे हे पुण्यातील प्रसिद्ध शिल्पकार आहेत. शाडू मातीच्या मूर्तीपेक्षाही वजनाने हलक्या असणाऱ्या पर्यावरणपूरक गणेश मूर्ती ते साकारतात. यासाठी त्यांनी नवीन मिश्रण तयार केलं असून ऑगस्ट महिन्यात त्याचं पेटंटही मिळवलं आहे. आपल्या वडिलांच्या नावे तयार केलेल्या या मिश्रणाला त्यांनी 'रवींद्र मिश्रण' असं नाव दिलं आहे. या मिश्रणापासून तयार केलेल्या मूर्ती अवघ्या अर्धा ते पाऊण तासात पाण्यात विरघळून जातात. विशेष म्हणजे अशा पद्धतीचं पेटंट मिळवणारे ते देशातील पहिलेच शिल्पकार ठरले आहेत. १९४१ साली त्यांच्या आजोबांनी सुरू केलेली ही पर्यावरणपूरक चळवळ अभिजित आज यशस्वीपणे पुढे घेऊन जात आहेत. पंतप्रधान नरेंद्र मोदी यांनी २०१६ मध्ये ‘मन की बात’च्या कार्यक्रमात अभिजित यांच्या पर्यावरणपूरक गणेशमूर्तींच्या चळवळीची नोंद घेतली होती.
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00:00 Our family has been doing this for almost 100 years.
00:05 Since 1940, we have not had a single statue of Pooja in the Plaster of Paris.
00:11 We had a monopoly on epoxy resin.
00:14 It became an India World Record.
00:16 2161 children did Ganpati here at the same time.
00:19 23-24 years ago, we decided to start eco-friendly Ganpati.
00:24 The work of Ganpati's external work has been done for the army.
00:28 It is the biggest single-use statue in Maharashtra.
00:31 It is a complete white statue and it looks beautiful.
00:35 Hello, this is Lok Satta Online's special guest, Abhijit Donpale.
00:43 Today, we are going to meet Abhijit Donpale, a famous sculptor in Pune.
00:48 Abhijit Donpale has made a special mixture to make the statue.
00:52 He has also got a patent for this.
00:55 The first three sculptors in India will get a patent for this.
00:59 Let's get to know about Abhijit's work and his journey.
01:05 Hello, I am Abhijit Ravindra Donpale.
01:09 Our roadside shop in Pune is a studio called Donpale Kala Niketan.
01:16 We are working in sculpture.
01:20 My grandfather, Naresh Mansingh Donpale, started this studio in 1940.
01:26 After that, the work of Ganpati started.
01:30 My father, Ravindra Donpale, uncle Anil Donpale, and aunty Ratnamala Joharle also started this.
01:40 All of them carried on this legacy.
01:42 I am happy to say that since 1940, we have not had a single statue of Pooja in Astagaya.
01:52 We started with the shadoo mati.
01:55 My grandfather made some Ganpati from paper pulp.
02:00 One of them is a big Ganpati made in 1955.
02:04 It is still in a very good condition.
02:10 My father added some more mixture to the paper pulp.
02:16 Many of his Ganpati are still in a very good condition.
02:21 Vijay Arun Mitra Mandal, Gajavakra Tarun Mandal, Sahakar Tarun Mandal, etc.
02:26 Many of the mandals in Pune, like Sachapee Street,
02:30 the statue of Sitladevi, 5 feet tall,
02:34 which is still in a very good condition.
02:42 After that, my father started making Ganpati from epoxy resin.
02:46 Epoxy resin was our monopoly.
02:49 My father experimented with many things.
02:54 After that, we have made Ganpati from Nene Ghat, Vajradhehi Mandal,
03:04 Krantivi Rajguru Mitra Mandal, Patwekari Vastath Talim.
03:11 We have made almost 100 Ganpati in Pune.
03:20 We had no space for the exhaust.
03:24 So, we had to make sure that the Ganpati would be permanently in place.
03:28 So that the pollution in the water would be reduced.
03:32 So that the Ganpati would not be exhausted and the pollution in the water would not be reduced.
03:36 This was the purpose behind it.
03:38 After that, my brother Arvind and I started this work.
03:46 Arvind had made the statue of Sharda Gajanan from the Market Yard.
03:51 Our family had taken over the next step.
03:55 We have made Ganpati from Escape Ball Bearing,
03:58 which is a company in Chinchwad.
04:00 All these are made from epoxy resin.
04:03 After that, I wanted to make some more improvements.
04:06 I was trying to make Imitation Marble for almost 5 years.
04:13 After that, I got success in that.
04:16 And then, Prabhat Mitra Mandal, now known as Prabhat Pratishthan,
04:19 the Ganpati in Kazwa Ped,
04:21 was made with this mixture of 4.5 feet.
04:25 I feel that it is the biggest Imitation Marble in Maharashtra.
04:29 It is a completely white statue and it looks very beautiful.
04:33 After that, we used to make thousands of Ganpati.
04:38 And then, as each person in the family started decreasing,
04:43 I felt that this should be a movement of the society.
04:46 Other than that, this will not run.
04:48 Because, how many Ganpati will a person make?
04:51 100, 200, 500, 1000, it will not be fun beyond that.
04:55 The more this message will spread to people,
04:58 the more it will be necessary.
05:01 And that is why, almost 23-24 years ago,
05:04 I felt that I should start this eco-friendly Ganpati movement.
05:08 And the root of this is that,
05:10 my father used to take me to school by bicycle.
05:13 I was in Modern High School.
05:15 And, in the year 1989-1990, when I was in 7th grade,
05:19 he used to take me by car from the river bridge.
05:23 And, by bicycle.
05:25 And, after graduation, the school used to run for 2 days.
05:29 And, while going from Sangam bridge,
05:31 my father used to stop the bicycle there.
05:34 And, at that time, the Ganpati movement of Plaster of Paris had just started.
05:38 And, he used to show me from above,
05:40 that, look, these statues have been resurgent 2 days ago.
05:44 But, their broken hands, broken head,
05:46 all would have fallen on the banks of the river.
05:49 So, he said, this is a little scary form.
05:51 And, it will be very difficult to move ahead.
05:54 And, now, their words are really true.
05:57 When the Ganpati statues made from Plaster of Paris are resurgent,
06:02 these Ganpati statues are hollow.
06:04 And, they don't resurgent.
06:06 So, the water droplets sit on the bottom of the water.
06:10 And, the hollow part of it,
06:12 all the dirt starts getting stuck in it.
06:14 Plastic and many other things.
06:16 And, lumps are formed.
06:18 And, then, due to these lumps,
06:20 the oxygen content in the water decreases.
06:22 And, pollution starts increasing.
06:24 And, earlier, the water droplets were decreasing.
06:26 So, it is our duty to save this.
06:28 So, we need some material,
06:30 which will make the water droplets dissolve.
06:33 And, it will be completely resurgent.
06:35 So, what is the solution for that?
06:37 So, this eco-friendly Ganpati movement started.
06:40 And, initially, it felt like,
06:42 when we do this in small children,
06:45 at the same time, because the changes in the house,
06:48 or the beginning of the Ganpati statue,
06:50 small children start doing it.
06:52 So, in many schools and colleges,
06:54 we started taking workshops.
06:56 And, initially, many people
06:58 started making a fuss about it.
07:00 They opposed it a little.
07:02 What is this? What is going to happen?
07:04 But, this movement started increasing slowly.
07:07 This message also started reaching many people.
07:10 And, somehow, it reached PMO.
07:12 On 28th August, 2016,
07:14 in this Manki Bachcha program,
07:16 our beloved, our Prime Minister,
07:18 Honorable Narendra Modi,
07:20 along with his name,
07:22 he mentioned this movement.
07:24 And, when he mentioned it,
07:26 at that time, this movement became a popular spot.
07:29 And, it reached everywhere.
07:31 It helped to spread it a lot.
07:34 And, now, everyone is getting its importance.
07:37 But, then, some more objections
07:39 started coming on the statue.
07:41 So, I felt that there should be
07:43 some solution on that too.
07:45 So, in 2016, it started working
07:47 on many of its mixtures.
07:49 And, for almost three years,
07:51 after trying many mixtures,
07:53 I have seen hundreds of
07:55 different types of products.
07:57 And, later, I realized that
07:59 in a very simple way,
08:01 aluvial soil,
08:03 that is, the soil of the cow,
08:05 and then, a little bit of shadoo soil,
08:07 10-15% of it,
08:09 if we use soft rice bran,
08:11 or soft rice bran,
08:13 then, this mixture becomes very beautiful.
08:16 And, it also gives firmness.
08:19 It is always said that
08:21 the soil Ganpati,
08:23 or the Ganpati of the environment,
08:25 are very expensive.
08:27 So, what is the reason for this?
08:29 I started to look into it.
08:31 So, I realized that
08:33 when a seller, say,
08:35 buys Ganpati from Pune,
08:37 then, if he has bought 100 Ganpati
08:39 in transportation,
08:41 then, 25-30 Ganpati
08:43 must have had some issue.
08:45 And, then, the costing of those 25-30 Ganpati
08:47 must be the same as that of 75 Ganpati.
08:49 And, it seems like the cost has increased a little.
08:51 So, then,
08:53 we need some material
08:55 that can be used in transportation
08:57 and can be transported properly.
08:59 This mixture,
09:01 aluvial soil,
09:03 and soft rice bran,
09:05 when I took its lab test,
09:07 I realized that its strength
09:09 is equivalent to POP.
09:11 It has a very beautiful strength.
09:13 And, then, it has the ability to dissolve.
09:15 So, when I took the Gattu of these three,
09:17 and I noted down the timing,
09:19 I realized that
09:21 the Ganpati of this mixture
09:23 dissolves first.
09:25 It means that within an hour,
09:27 the Ganpati is completely dissolved.
09:29 It has aluvial soil,
09:31 rice bran,
09:33 so, its fertility rate is very good.
09:35 So, even if
09:37 we have a resurgence
09:39 in our water sources,
09:41 wherever it settles,
09:43 it will increase the fertility of that soil.
09:45 So, because of that,
09:47 this mixture is good.
09:49 Its strength is good.
09:51 And, its finishing is also very good.
09:53 It has a combination of three.
09:55 We can use it
09:57 with our regular colors.
09:59 We can use any color
10:01 in it.
10:03 This is the mixture.
10:05 So, let's see
10:07 next year,
10:09 it will be made in more quantity
10:11 and it will reach more people.
10:13 Let's hope so.
10:15 It means that
10:17 science and our spirituality
10:19 should be
10:21 put in hands.
10:23 That's why, this experiment
10:25 has been done.
10:27 When I got the patent for this,
10:29 I realized that this is the first
10:31 patent in India.
10:33 And, I felt that
10:35 our family has been
10:37 serving Ganpati Bappa
10:39 for so many years.
10:41 So, this service
10:43 and its
10:45 result is what I feel.
10:47 And, I pray to Ganaraya
10:49 that this service should
10:51 continue in future.
10:53 The work of Ganpati's
10:55 external work has been done
10:57 for the army.
10:59 Many puppets have been made for the army.
11:01 And, while doing one of the puppets,
11:03 when the sea in
11:05 Madhya Pradesh,
11:07 there was a battalion of 6 Marathas.
11:09 And,
11:11 they asked me,
11:13 "If you take workshops like this,
11:15 will you take workshops for our soldiers?"
11:17 I was very happy.
11:19 And, those soldiers were very enthusiastic.
11:21 All the soldiers from Satara and
11:23 Vai were there.
11:25 They came to Pune and
11:27 took 10 catties of soil 15 days ago.
11:29 They mixed the soil.
11:31 After going there,
11:33 the workshop was done in 2 days.
11:35 And, all the members of their family
11:37 were there.
11:39 For all of them,
11:41 all the children
11:43 and their wives,
11:45 all of them made Ganpati there.
11:47 And, the next day morning,
11:49 all of them along with their commander
11:51 sat to make Ganpati.
11:53 Everyone was excited
11:55 about how to make Ganpati.
11:57 And, the atmosphere of excitement was different.
11:59 Everything was crowded.
12:01 And, in the lunch,
12:03 there were about 300-350 soldiers.
12:05 And, when everyone's Ganpati was ready,
12:07 there was no space left for their happiness.
12:09 And,
12:11 their barracks were there,
12:13 where everyone had a cot
12:15 and a table was kept around it.
12:17 Or,
12:19 a small table and
12:21 a drawer below it.
12:23 So, everyone's Ganpati was kept
12:25 on that table.
12:27 And, when I went to meet them at night,
12:29 everyone was showing with pride
12:31 that this is their Ganpati.
12:33 So, this was a fun experience.
12:35 And, that year, everyone took their Ganpati
12:37 home. And, still,
12:39 I get phone calls from some people
12:41 saying that they are still making Ganpati
12:43 by themselves and
12:45 they are keeping it at home.
12:47 So, all these incidents
12:49 give us a lot of strength
12:51 to keep this movement
12:53 going.
12:55 And, in 2017,
12:57 Raman Bagh High School in Pune,
12:59 which is a school of agriculture,
13:01 there was a principal, Tilottama Reddy madam,
13:03 and she asked
13:05 if she could do something
13:07 for her children.
13:09 And, when this thought was
13:11 put forward,
13:13 it was decided that her children would
13:15 get their land and there are
13:17 almost 2500 children in that school.
13:19 So, 15 days before, the children were getting their land.
13:21 The drumming of Raman Bagh is
13:23 very famous.
13:25 So, they would play drums every day
13:27 and the soil would get mixed.
13:29 It was distributed to each class.
13:31 And, I used to go to each class and take their
13:33 training. So, after 15 days,
13:35 it became
13:37 an India World Record.
13:39 2161 children
13:41 did Ganpati here at the same time.
13:43 And, even then, the atmosphere
13:45 was very
13:47 amazing. There are many
13:49 opportunities to serve
13:51 the army.
13:53 In the beginning,
13:55 I decided to build a statue of Arun Kumar
13:57 in Pune.
13:59 And, wherever they were killed,
14:01 there should be a memorial
14:03 in that same spot.
14:05 Everyone thought so.
14:07 And, that was my first job in the army.
14:09 I consider it my fortune
14:11 to get the statue of Arun Kumar.
14:13 Because, he was
14:15 a general in Pune and he had
14:17 crossed the
14:19 very big
14:21 hurdles like Operation Blue Star.
14:23 And, then,
14:25 in 2008,
14:27 Field Marshal Manekshan was appointed.
14:29 And, in 2009,
14:31 I decided to install the statue
14:33 in the Southern Command.
14:35 And, they asked me to call the person who made
14:37 the medical statue.
14:39 And, I was called to the office of
14:41 Geoscience.
14:43 And, there, the meeting was held.
14:45 And, I decided to make a 9-foot bronze statue.
14:47 And, then, in front of the Southern Command
14:49 gate, there is a square.
14:51 And, there, this statue is
14:53 standing in front of the gate.
14:55 And, there is RSI Institute.
14:57 Rajendra Singhji Institute.
14:59 And, there, the statue of Rajendra Singhji is 9-foot bronze.
15:01 And, while making all these statues,
15:03 I was asked
15:05 from Delhi.
15:07 That too, from the office of
15:09 Chief of Army Staff.
15:11 That, the Manekshan Center
15:13 in Delhi,
15:15 is a huge structure
15:17 spread over 25 acres.
15:19 It is a
15:21 Army Center.
15:23 And, the entrance lobby there,
15:25 there, the statue of Manekshan is given.
15:27 The Chief of that time,
15:29 General Vikram Singh, he was the one who was
15:31 in charge. And, then, he called me
15:33 and, directly,
15:35 I had a meeting with the Chief.
15:37 And,
15:39 he was going to bring this incident to the city.
15:41 In Madhya Pradesh,
15:43 Mahu, there is
15:45 a huge Infantry Museum
15:47 in Madhya Pradesh.
15:49 It is the largest Infantry Museum in India.
15:51 At the entrance, there are 11 feet by
15:53 8 feet two murals.
15:55 And, inside the entrance lobby,
15:57 the two Field Marshals who have
15:59 gone, Field Marshal Kariyappa
16:01 and Field Marshal Manekshan,
16:03 their 9-foot statues.
16:05 And, similarly, there is a
16:07 department on Gorilla Tactics.
16:09 There is a department of them.
16:11 And, the birth of Gorilla Tactics,
16:13 they wanted a statue of Shivaji Maharaj
16:15 there. And,
16:17 he was seated there.
16:19 1971 Surrender Ceremony.
16:21 There is a
16:23 significant event of this.
16:25 Because, the celebration that we do on Victory Day,
16:27 the Bangladesh which was established
16:29 and the treaty was signed,
16:31 in which General Arora, General Niyazi,
16:33 these two had helped,
16:35 that incident, all that,
16:37 that group sculpture was done there.
16:39 And, that was a life-size and a very big
16:41 work. And,
16:43 he is also seated there now.
16:45 And, then, seeing the work of my army here,
16:47 we got an order from the
16:49 Iranian army.
16:51 And, in the city of Iran,
16:53 Ahwaz,
16:55 one of their officers was Major General
16:57 Mohammad Jahanara.
16:59 His 13-foot bronze statue
17:01 is seated there. And,
17:03 this is the first bronze statue
17:05 to be sent to Iran from India.
17:07 Many such works are going on.
17:09 Only
17:11 General Bipin Rawat,
17:13 I got the opportunity to make his statue.
17:15 And,
17:17 in the RSI Institute, he has now built a very big
17:19 hall in his name.
17:21 And, the establishment of that hall
17:23 was done only 15 days ago.
17:25 General Bipin Rawat's statue
17:27 is seated there.
17:29 I am calling out to all
17:31 and requesting that
17:33 everyone, by the grace of God,
17:35 before Ganpati,
17:37 whose completeness will be forgotten,
17:39 we should sit at home.
17:41 We should avoid
17:43 POP or Plaster of Paris.
17:45 We should try to stop
17:47 the destruction
17:49 that will be done by our father.
17:51 We should try to stop it.
17:53 I request
17:55 everyone,
17:57 Ganpati Bappa,
17:59 come to the fore.
18:01 The tradition of Khilpa Kailash
18:03 that started three generations ago,
18:05 is not able to be continued.
18:07 Let us all join together
18:09 and stand together
18:11 in the struggle for the rights of the people.
18:13 (upbeat music)