The Craftsmen

Design Resource

Traditional Toys of Kondapalli

The Craft of Wooden Toys

J. N. Somya

The Craftsmen

“Craft is not meant to be enshrined in museums, showcased in heritage packaging. That would amount to burying it.”
- Uzra Bilgrami, Dastkar

Most families learnt the craft of Kondapalli toys from their ancestors and it is been passed from generation to generation. In the olden days, Kondapalli artists received patronage from the local rulers. For years, these artisans were neglected due to the advent of mechanised toys and many artisans and their children gave up their profession to seek other lucrative jobs. Due to better returns for their hard work and efforts from Government and other organizations, more youth are taking to training and entering the trade now. Many of the craftsperson’s children intend to continue with their hereditary craft.

Artisan S. Nageswara Rao with his son specialized in crafting Raja Rani toys with other toys and selling them through their shop in Kondapalli. Artisan V. Srinivas Rao learnt the art of painting toys from his wife who learnt the art from her father (families of her sisters also paint various toys in Kondapalli). They specialize in painting toys with natural colours, especially Raja Rani toys.

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Classification of ‘Set of rural people’ in terms of structure of hands, dressing style, pairs, profession, accesories.

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Traditional Toys of Kondapalli