Dhamrai is famous for its handicraft work. It is about 25 km from Dhaka and takes between 1.5 to 2 hours by bus from Asad Gate. From the bus stop you take a rickshaw to Dhamrai Bazar.
Sukanta Vanik, who owns
Sukanta's Dhamrai Metal Crafts. His family has worked in metalcraft for 200 years.
To make a metallic object of art, the worker starts with wax..
...which is painstakingly rolled and cut...
... to make a replica of the object
A worker then covers this with a special type of mud...
...so the wax replicas look like this.
These are baked in this oven which melts the wax and hardens the mud into a mold:
Finally molten metal is poured into the mold to make the finished product:
Some of the art can take 5-6 months of work. I saw an exquisite merry-go-round of horses, about a foot in diameter, priced at Tk. 18000.
I saw many types of craft around Dhamrai Bazar, such as making Dhols (drums).
Many thanks to my friend Zahed for being guide.
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Tuesday, November 7, 2006
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