Cutlery man's passion is making attractive trophies

The mention of Rajasthan conjures up images of beautiful palaces, desert, marble stones, gems and jewellery. It also has some master craftsmen who have made a name for themselves.

But this man—Amit Pabuwal--is the most sought-after when it comes to making trophies for mega events. This man in the Pink City of Jaipur is virtually the first choice for corporates and sports bodies when they plan a mega event. Not for nothing, he is in great demand. Amit has several feathers in his cap and his name finds a mention in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Not many, at least his family members, ever thought that Amit would make a
foray into trophy-making. His family was in the business of selling electronic goods. Amit himself said his entry into the new profession was an accident.

Going down the memory lane, he recalled: “I was doing my graduation in Mumbai’s Sydenham College. Then, I heard of the 1987 Cricket World Cup tournament, named after their Indian sponsors, the Reliance World Cup, was to be held in India and Pakistan. It was the first time that the competition was held outside England. Then it struck me why not the trophy be made in India as the tournament was being held in India,” he said.

“I met Anil Ambani with the idea but he was not convinced of my capability as I had no previous experience. He told me to design some badges and I made some 60 badges for the occasion. He was impr­essed with my creativity but was not ready to offer the contract for trophy. Then, without his consent I designed a model of the trophy and presented it before him. He was very surprised and impressed with my enthusiasm and creativity.”

Then things changed. “He was about to place the order for the trophy to Garrard, now a defunct British company which was once the official jeweller of the British Royals. I saw the letter for the order on the table of Anil Ambani when I met him in his office. But after seeing my trophy, Ambani entrusted the responsibility to me. It was a great honour and since then there was no looking back,” he recalled.

After his MBA, Amit, instead of joining the family business, started a new venture -- cutlery-making venture. Leading hoteliers are now his customers. “I have been designing and supplying cutleries to almost all-leading hotel chains in the country,” he said but emphasised that trophy making continues to be his passion and a challenge.

The Reliance World Cup was  just the beginning. He has went on to create a number of trophies like Wills World Cup, Independence Cup, Hero Cup, MRF World Series Cup, T-20 World Cup, Friendship Cup of Abu Dhabi, Future Cup and F1 Formula trophy.

“Trilok Rachna”, a trophy he made for the marble company RK Marbles, finds a mention in the Guinness Book of Records for the biggest trophy ever-made. “The gemstone-studded trophy is 11 feet 3 inches in height, has 93 kg of silver and is gold-plated. The trophy weighs 120 kg and has more than 20,000 carats of precious stones, serving as a historic piece of creation,” he said. It was made in three years and more than 20,000 man hours were consumed. This intricately-designed, perfectly-made trophy excited Guinness World Record people to start a new category as “world’s largest silver trophy”.

The trophy he designed for the Friendship Cup 2006 (Abu Dhabi), which catapulted former IPL commissioner Lalit Modi to the centre-stage, holds the distinction of the heaviest silver sports trophy ever made. He recently created another record of sorts. The golden trophy for the iGate CEO Cup Golf Tournament held at TPC Sawgrass Golf Course Tournament near Jacksonville, Florida has created a buzz.

It is the world’s biggest and most expensive gold trophy ever made, bigger than the FIFA gold cup today. The 8.6-kg gold trophy is 21 inches high and studded with 830 diamonds and rubies. The master craftsman designed the trophy within 18 days after he got the order for the trophy, beating many world leaders.

“It’s bigger than the iconic FIFA World Cup trophy, which is 14.4 inches high and weighs five kg and is currently the largest gold trophy. The iGate Golf Cup will not only be taller than the FIFA World Cup, but also will be 3.6 kg heavier than the FIFA trophy in pure gold,” Amit claimed .

He said the golf trophy is unique as it is studded with 50 carats of diamonds all of equal sizes and 40 carats of rubies. The trophy is a blend of modern format with Victorian effect. The letters and the name of the company hosting the tournament have been hand crafted with the famous Jaipur enamel, which is called Kundan-Meena work.

Amit is not alone in this business but the whole family – his wife Kiran and their two sons Akshat and Arihand-- help him in this creative venture.

His 18-year-old son Akshat Pabuwal  also finds a place in the Limca Book of Records for constructing the largest ash tray in the world. Designed in the shape of World Health Organisation’s “World No Tobacco Day” symbol, the ash tray weighs about 60 kg and is 12 inches high with a flower in one corner. It seems this family is here to create and break records.