page_title: Sholapith
section_title: West Bengal
hierarchical_section_title: Sholapith / West Bengal
caption_attribution_description: English: Sholapith craftwork
context_page_description: Sholapith or shola pith is a dried milky-white spongey plant matter from Aeschynomene species. It can be pressed and shaped into objects of art.
context_section_description: In West Bengal, this craft is mainly practised in the districts of Bardhaman, Murshidabad, Birbhum, Nadia, Hooghly, Malda and south 24 Parganas district. Sholapith craftsmen are known as Malakar, meaning "garland maker", probably because they made shola garlands for idols and for the noble class.
  About 5,000 artisans practice this craft. Craftsmen spend months on each piece. In Murshidabad shola crafts are flowery designs, decorative headwear of gods and goddesses, garlands, figurines such as the faces of gods and goddesses, elephant howdahs, peacock boats and palanquins. Shola products are exported to across the world. In South 24 Parganas, many poor families earn their livelihood from shola products. Big puja pandals of Calcutta are beautifully decorated using shola.
  The idol makers of Kumortuli who traditionally produced clay idols have taken to making idols of sholapith and fibreglass. While fibreglass products can cost around Rs 110,000-120,000, those prepared from sholapith cost Rs 90,000. The height of the idols can vary from four to nine feet. These are mostly purchased for Indian community puja organizers abroad.
caption: An example of sholapith craftwork.
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