Balasore: Right from his childhood he was well aware that ‘struggle is an integral part of life’ and coming out of it is the art of life.
His struggle began from his early days during his Elementary Education after his father’s demise. However, he takes his struggle as his art of living as he plans to sketch his name in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Meet young sand artist Dasarath Mohanta of Baunsadiha village under Thakurmunda block in Mayurbhanj district.
His first encounter with misfortune came in the form of his father, Sanatan’s death. It was when he was just three years old. With the loss of the sole bread winner, the family’s financial condition worsened. Keeping in mind the future of her children, Dasarath’s mother Ahalya took upon the responsibility of her family on her own shoulders.
Despite financial constraints and concomitant problems, Dasarath never neglected his study. At a tender age, he felt the need to help his mother. Thus, he started working as a labourer engaged in lifting sand.
He had never imagined that working as a small time labourer would help him find goal of his life. While working as a labourer, playing with sand on the river bed was his favourite pastime. He started building small sand figurines consciously or unconsciously and continued working on this gifted talent. This way, he established his first bonding with the tiny lifeless particles on the river bed.
Once while going through a newspaper, he came across a news item on Sudarshan Patnaik. And the very next moment he decided to be a sand artist like Patnaik, accepting him as his ideal.
He was fortunate that his uncle (father’s brother) was a clay artisan. As the relationship between the two families was not good due to some family disputes, Dasarath watched his uncle working on idols through his house fence, a story similar to Eklavya.
His dedication and learning from his uncle did give him the base about sand art. Upon gaining confidence, he made a clay idol of goddess Laxmi and it fetched him Rs 200, his life’s first income. This was the beginning of his journey as a sand artist.
Since then, there has been no looking back for Dasarath. He has gathered a lot of praises over the years and one such praise that he often remembers was from local artisan Padmalochan Nanda who saw his Mother Teresa’s sand sculpture and praised him.
Meanwhile, he completed his Matriculation and Plus II from Khandbandh High School and PRM Government College respectively. After Plus II, he could not continue his higher education because of poor financial condition of his family.
But his strong determination to be a sand artist found a way out. He took off to Bhubaneswar and got himself enrolled at Bibhuti Kanungo College of Art and Crafts. He met his expenses by taking tuitions and completed his degree.
Reminiscing the most striking moment of life, Dasarath says, “I cannot forget the day when I met Padma Shree Sudarshan Patnaik in 2013.” Thereafter he was allowed to work with him, and his creativity flourished under his guidance.
In 2015, for the first time I took part in a sand art competition held in Puri and was declared Champion. And there was no stopping for him. Accolades and awards started pouring in as he went on to participate in more and more sand art competitions held in Delhi, Gujarat, Jamshedpur and several other places outside the State.
While he was honoured at Bolangir Mahotsav and Konark Beach festival, he with the help of the then Mayurbhanj Collector Rajesh Prabhakar Patil organised Sand Art Festival in 2016 and 2017. However, the district administration is no longer providing any such support, he alleged.
The Sand Art Park at Thakurmunda in Mayurbhanj district is his brainchild. On various important days and occasions, he puts up sand sculptures that are always proved to be crowd pullers.
Even if he has come thus far, poverty is still there pulling him backward. He wants to be a well known sand artist and to register his name in Guinness Book Records.
“If I could get any assistance from the government, I will be able to bring laurels for the State,” Dasarath says.
PNN
