New Delhi: A Kashi-based craftsman has crafted a replica of the Ayodhya Ram Mandir with gold, silver, and diamonds in 108 days. Kunj Bihari, a national award-winning hand craftsman, has crafted the temple’s replica as a token of love and devotion for Lord Ram. Bihari made the temple replica in Gulabi Meenakari, an art of decorating a metal surface by using mineral substances on it.
Bihari claimed that this is the first time that someone has crafted a replica of the Ram Temple in the indigenous enamelling of Gulabi Meenakari.
“It took 108 days to create this artwork. Gulabi Meenakari involves the use of gold and silver. The replica of the temple also includes a golden idol of Ram Lalla,” Bihari said.
The replica weighs approximately 2.5 kg, measuring 12 inches in height, eight inches in width, and 12 inches in length. It features gold, nearly one and a half kilogrammes of silver, and an uncut diamond placed on the spire. The temple replica consists of 108 parts.
Bihari said that the work is a blessing of Lord Ram himself, as his previous attempts to replicate Ram Temple didn’t go well. He said that earlier when he tried to craft out the exact structure of the Ayodhya temple using Gulabi Meenakari, the temple could not take the shape. However, as soon as the construction work commenced with the invocation of Lord Ram’s name, the temple gradually started taking the form, Bihari was quoted as saying, adding that the Gulabi Meenakari artwork gained international recognition only after the efforts of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
Notably, Prime Minister Modi and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath often present exquisite examples of Gulabi Meenakari as gifts to foreign dignitaries to showcase the exceptional skills of Varanasi’s artisans to the global audience.
Bihari further expressed his wish to hand over the replica to the Ram Temple Trust.
