<p class="bodytext">A 33-year-old has been creating 3D miniatures of iconic Bengaluru locations, such as Vidyarthi Bhavan, CTR and even the unfinished Ejipura flyover. He aims to pay tribute to these spots that are integral to people’s experience of the city.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Parth Jha, a marketing and brand management professional, moved to Bengaluru from Madhya Pradesh in 2023. A self-taught artist, he began experimenting with 3D printing two years ago. On a trip to Japan last year, he was taken by the profusion of miniatures of popular tourist spots and other quintessential features of that country.</p>.<p class="bodytext">“The quality was top-notch and aesthetically beautiful. This is something lacking in India. A majority of the miniature collectibles here are shoddily made,” Jha explains. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Jha’s first miniature was a replica of the original Mavalli Tiffin Rooms near Lalbagh. He posted it on his Instagram page @shrinkray.studio in September and received an overwhelming response. Since then, Jha has been flooded with ideas and suggestions from his followers. “I think I have about 30-40 ideas of locations across different localities,” he says. Other miniatures that he has completed include that of Dodda Ganapathi, as seen in the Dodda Ganapathi temple in Basavanagudi, and the idol in the Prasanna Veeranjaneya Swamy temple in Mahalakshmi Layout. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Jha first conceptualises and then 3D sculpts each piece. It is then prototyped and finally hand-painted. “While prototyping it, a hundred things can go wrong. It involves a lot of trial and error. At 45 mm, these miniatures are really tiny and that makes it more difficult to perfect,” he elaborates. It takes him about seven days to a month to complete each piece.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Painting the replicas is another skill Jha has been forced to acquire. The paints he uses are imported because the kind of paints the art requires are unavailable in India.</p>.<p class="bodytext">“They are highly pigmented and of superior quality. With a single coat you get a smooth and thin finish. The Indian paints I have tried tend to be thick and clumpy,” he shares.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sometimes, he posts the unfinished prototypes on his page to ask his followers what he has missed. When he posted an image of the Veena Stores replica, for instance, a follower pointed out that there was a platform just outside the storefront. “He explained that he would visit the eatery when he was a child and could not see the counter. To get a view of the counter, he would stand on the platform. So I added the platform to the design,” he shares. He also added a water filter and a chutney stand after receiving inputs from his followers.</p>.<p class="bodytext">He notes that old Bengalureans speak of these iconic locations with pride and nostalgia, and he hopes to keep those memories alive. </p>
<p class="bodytext">A 33-year-old has been creating 3D miniatures of iconic Bengaluru locations, such as Vidyarthi Bhavan, CTR and even the unfinished Ejipura flyover. He aims to pay tribute to these spots that are integral to people’s experience of the city.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Parth Jha, a marketing and brand management professional, moved to Bengaluru from Madhya Pradesh in 2023. A self-taught artist, he began experimenting with 3D printing two years ago. On a trip to Japan last year, he was taken by the profusion of miniatures of popular tourist spots and other quintessential features of that country.</p>.<p class="bodytext">“The quality was top-notch and aesthetically beautiful. This is something lacking in India. A majority of the miniature collectibles here are shoddily made,” Jha explains. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Jha’s first miniature was a replica of the original Mavalli Tiffin Rooms near Lalbagh. He posted it on his Instagram page @shrinkray.studio in September and received an overwhelming response. Since then, Jha has been flooded with ideas and suggestions from his followers. “I think I have about 30-40 ideas of locations across different localities,” he says. Other miniatures that he has completed include that of Dodda Ganapathi, as seen in the Dodda Ganapathi temple in Basavanagudi, and the idol in the Prasanna Veeranjaneya Swamy temple in Mahalakshmi Layout. </p>.<p class="bodytext">Jha first conceptualises and then 3D sculpts each piece. It is then prototyped and finally hand-painted. “While prototyping it, a hundred things can go wrong. It involves a lot of trial and error. At 45 mm, these miniatures are really tiny and that makes it more difficult to perfect,” he elaborates. It takes him about seven days to a month to complete each piece.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Painting the replicas is another skill Jha has been forced to acquire. The paints he uses are imported because the kind of paints the art requires are unavailable in India.</p>.<p class="bodytext">“They are highly pigmented and of superior quality. With a single coat you get a smooth and thin finish. The Indian paints I have tried tend to be thick and clumpy,” he shares.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Sometimes, he posts the unfinished prototypes on his page to ask his followers what he has missed. When he posted an image of the Veena Stores replica, for instance, a follower pointed out that there was a platform just outside the storefront. “He explained that he would visit the eatery when he was a child and could not see the counter. To get a view of the counter, he would stand on the platform. So I added the platform to the design,” he shares. He also added a water filter and a chutney stand after receiving inputs from his followers.</p>.<p class="bodytext">He notes that old Bengalureans speak of these iconic locations with pride and nostalgia, and he hopes to keep those memories alive. </p>