The famous bell metal work of Kantilo in Orissa under threat due to govt apathy

By-Manish Kumar

Kantilo (Nayagarh district), June 10: There was a time when the famous Kantilo village in Nayagarh district was recognized by a passerby through the sounds of collective beating of metal by the traditional artistes emanating from a number of houses there.

However, many families and houses in the traditional village have now opted out of the traditional art of bell metal work, for which the village is known in Orissa. Many veterans blame it on the government for their apathy for the village and their art work. 

Sudarshan Sahoo is a 64-year-old bell metal veteran artist from the village. Giving final touches to one of his products he says, “Earlier, there were many families and houses from the village directly involved into the business of bell metal work, but now many have opted out of the business and have turned to more profitable business as they see a bleak future from our traditional work. I feel very sorry seeing the tradition art form of our village dying a premature death.”

Similar apprehensions are also expressed by many other veterans who have devoted more than 15-20 years into the profession. Most say they are not getting ample profit out of the arduous and painstaking art form. “The work of bell metal is very painstaking. But we have been pursuing it as it has been our traditional art form and people reckon Kantilo with the art form,” said Bydhar Sahoo, another veteran artiste from the village. 

He also adds, “Most of artistes get up at 3am and start working on brass. The whole process involves heating a hard mass of brass and then beating it by around 3-4 people together to flatten it. Later we mould it according to the shape we want. Lately, final touches are given to make it more lucrative.”  

Many people who are directly involved into the art form and toiling day and night to produce lucrative metal items for the masses are also saddened by the luke response the government has shown towards the art form. 

58-year-old Laxuri Dutt says, “We have often heard about government supporting painters and weavers, but they seldom think about our welfare. Isn’t our work contributes to the glory of Orissa, aren’t we too artistes? Earlier collective sounds of beating of brass used to come from a number of houses in the village but now only few are left who are continuing with the business. It is really unfortunate.”

Kantilo, situated around 80 kms from Bhubaneswar is famous for bell metal work. The work includes buying a bulk of hardened brass metal from markets. According to the villagers, now they buy the bulk at the rate Rs 700/kg. 

The artistes often wake up early in the morning and heat the brass metal into the kiln. Later around 3-4 people beat it collectively to flatten it and later artistes give it they shape they want. Final touches are given lately to make it more attractive. Now the artistes there produce metallic containers which are often used for religious purposes. However, they are also used in kitchens as cutlery.  

The state tourism department meanwhile says some steps have been taken to help the art form flourish. An official on anonymity said, “We have a dedicated bell metal craft display gallery near the village. Moreover, accommodation facilities have been arranged by the government near the village. The gallery is managed by the tehsildar of the local area.”

However, a visit by me exposes government’s ‘paper works’. The bell metal craft display centre was found locked and it was used to make arrangements for a wedding. A shopkeeper near the gallery said, “Government does many things just to show off. This gallery is also an example. It is often closed and this is mostly used for marriage purposes. The managers of the gallery are making money out of the gallery by renting it out during marriages.”   

However, many experts opine that to be in demand, artistes need to make their art form more acceptable to the public. KCS Ray, Director of NIFT, Bhubaneswar said, “Artistes need to adapt and change according to the demands and tastes of the buyers. Demand and tastes often change with time. With minor changes and adaptations we can potentially make these products more attractive and appealing to the masses. Few of our teachers have already tried their hands with this. This makes it more diverse in use and also increases its prospects.”   

Many experts from the field of tourism say rural tourism has huge potential and sites like Kantilo could be a good spot for ‘experiential tourists’. They say government need to make full use of these potential sites from Orissa to attract tourists.

 Himanshu Das, Vice President of Travel Agents Association of Orissa said, “We are getting enormous response towards rural tourism and many people are now keen to visit these traditional art villages to see and experience these things. This is also nowadays called experiential tourism, but we need to make it more organized to make it successful.”

Das also says that services should be strengthened to widen its prospects. According to Das, the experiential tourism has been quite successful in Tibbet, Ladakh and Uttarakahand and has huge potential for tourism sector.

(Published in Orissa Post newspaper on June 13th, 2015)