A touch of CNY: Ramesh putting the finishing touches on the dragon kavadi he created. — Bernama
GEORGE TOWN: Designer R. Ramesh has produced many different kinds of kavadis for Thaipusam over the last 30 years – but this year, he is really on fire.
He has designed a giant kavadi in the shape of a dragon in conjunction with Chinese New Year to be celebrated two weeks after Thaipusam, which is on Jan 25.
Ramesh, 54, said he came up with the idea a few weeks ago when a customer asked for something different and new for his kavadi.
“Since it will be the year of the dragon, I suggested a kavadi which combines Lord Murugan and a dragon.
“This is because Thaipusam is not only celebrated by Hindus but also by other races, including the Chinese community.
“When the customer agreed, I made some sketches. The early ones did not turn out so well, but after several attempts, I managed to get the right balance between Lord Murugan and a dragon,” he told Bernama when met at his workshop in Tanjung Bungah.
The father of three said it took him three days to build the 1.5m-high and 1.8m-wide dragon with a 3D concept using styrofoam, as it is lighter and easy to handle.
“I used the 3D concept because I wanted the sculpture to look realistic. The carving had to be done carefully and the right colouring technique had to be used to ensure that the work looked ‘alive’,” he said.
Ramesh said work on the kavadi started with the sketching process before the styrofoam was cut into several parts.
The pieces were carefully carved and then painted according to the exact colour scheme and finally assembled into a dragon with Lord Murugan “resting” on the dragon’s head.
The dragon will also be decorated with lights to make it glow.
Ramesh said his more than 30 years of experience as a sculptor made the task easier for him.
