At first glance the villages that are close to Koratgere seems ordinary. They are permanently facing drought and are among the most back ward areas in the  state, because of the absolute political neglect. But one thing no one can take away from this region is their unique and indigenous culture and art. while they may not be world famous, the aesthetic component cannot  be denied.

None of the associations or  political parties have ever expressed an interest in the region and tried to develop it into a force to reckon with. And it is because of this  apathy that a fine artist such as G R Rama Murthy still wallows in the shadows of anonymity.

With politicians who think of honouring art forms with a garland and absolute indifference from his own people, it is criminal that this artists has not been brought into the lime lite.

It is well known that the Tumkur is a land of the Kalpavriksa. However once the coconuts are used, their shells face a varied future. Most of the time they are used as fuel in this region. This is a practice that has been going on for centuries. But Ramamurthy shifted his focus just a little and saw these brown and hard shells as a material to make attractive artifacts out of them! You may wonder how this would happen.

Hear RamaMurthy discuss his passion of converting this waste into art,  you get your answer.

You also understand how one man’s  passion can turn the most inanimate object into a work of art. It is amazing that a 24 -year-old can think out of the box and  come up with such brilliant creativity. Stepping into nostalgia he remembers an incident during his school days.

His craft teacher N H Hipparigi has once created hair clips out of these coconut shells that changed his  life forever. While he was mazed at the  fantastic creativity of his  teachers his mind began to explore the  various possibilities that one  could create with the material.

Crossing hurdles

Not once did he  think about the poverty that has bogged down many a dream. To him his dreams had nothing to do with the reality of his situation ans were meant to be achieved. He works nearly 15 hours every day to provide for his family in his small piece of land. In the remaining time everyday he  works on his craft.

What his story gives us is hope and inspiration. His artifacts are take the shape of shivalinga and little of craving and touch up would turn into the figure of Lord Ganesh. What makes this amazing is that this boy has not found excuses of his limited resources to curb his dreams.

Shapes and shades

While many of the people visited his display at his home and also encouraged him, it is still a mystery as to how many actually bought anything of  his works.  However nothing could stop ramamurthy. He then expanded his art to table lamps and other innovative items. The tourism department needs to give this  talented youth a break and a platform for him to exhibit his work to the large world out there.

The Deputy district Commissioner S R Umashankar and the district administration must take up the responsibility of giving this young man the platform he so seemingly deserves.