For generations, the creation of Shadu Mati Ganapati idols has been a process where natural clay is shaped through patient, manual effort. While this traditional craft remains vital, the existing methods of production are often slow and physically demanding for the people involved. This project is born from an exploration into how these manual processes can be better understood through a technical lens. By looking at the physical properties of the clay and the mechanics of the work, we are developing a new “Build Method” that introduces efficiency into the heart of this ancient tradition.

Shadu mati ganapati or any eco friendly ganapati idol face common problem. A high manual work and labour cost.
this type of idol is not expencive because of material or quality, The only reason is it take time and effort in making this type of idol. Compare to POP (Plaster of Paris) idol which get ready in 10 min for one idol. Our eco friendly idols take 40 min to 1 hour(for 1 feet idol) to make. And time and effort increase based on size of idol.(This imformation is for base raw idol before coloring.)
so, Reducing the time of effort in making shadu mati idols is our goal.

The blog ahead will cover journey of the project. the finding of problem, the RnD, the decision to the prototype devolopment….

This project started with a problem. A problem this market in facing. This problem statement came to me as a need by our beneficiary jagdish landge an ganapati idol artist. He make Sadhu mati Ganapati idols only. He never set step in POP idols, the thought is “making festival green”. where we follow our culture without harming the nature.

The problem is real and need is there. but still there is no solution available in the market in this specific area.

So, in this project we will follow a path which will lead to solution to our problem. Understanding problem, discovering different methods

• Understanding the problem
• Learning about current method
• Thinking of new methods
• Decision matrix

There will be complex reasoning and questioning on each steps. which will lead to solve one single problem which is Reducing time and effort in making of sadhu mati ganapati idols.
how can we use machine or any kind of mechanical system here, setting new SOP 

This section is the result of on-site consultation held at the workshop in Ahilyanagar, Pune of our benificier jagdish ji on (23-march-2026). The purpose of the visit was to bridge the gap between traditional artisanal mastery and modern mechanical efficiency. By observing the workflow firsthand, we have identified the “human bottlenecks” that currently limit production and have proposed a mechanical roadmap to solve them.

SITE OBSERVATIONS & CONTEXT

During the visit, I performed a “Time and Motion” study of the current manual process. The workshop environment is a space of high skill but extreme physical labour.

• The Manual Burden: I observed that the most “soul-crushing” part of the work isn’t the artistic finishing, but the repetitive, heavy pressing of clay into molds.
• The Environment: The workshop in Pune handles Shadu Mati in large volumes, but the “output-per-hour” is restricted by the physical stamina of the artisans. As the day progresses, the pressure applied to the molds decreases due to fatigue, which affects the detail of the final idol.
• The Dialogue: Jagdish Ji and I sat down to deconstruct every finger movement, every minute spent waiting for clay to set, and every struggle with “limb attachment.” This document captures the technical outcome of that deep-seated conversation.

OBJECTIVE OF THE RESEARCH

The primary goal discussed is to transform a 2-hour manual cycle into a 20-minute semi-automated cycle. This is not about replacing the artist; it is about providing the artist with a “perfectly formed canvas” created by a machine in minutes, allowing the artist to focus only on the final expressions.

1. THE PROCESS OF MAKING MURTI (LINEAR WORKFLOW)

The traditional creation of a Shadu Mati Ganapati is a delicate balance between material science and artistic intuition. Based on our discussion, the process follows these sequential stages:

Stage 3: The Primary Impression (Detailing Layer)
The mold (usually a 4-piece assembly) is prepared. For smaller idols, 3 pieces are joined first. A thin sheet of clay is placed inside. The artisan uses their fingers to press the clay into every deep crevice and corner of the mold.

• Crucial Detail: This first layer must be thin. If it is too thick, the pressure from the fingers won’t reach the bottom of the mold’s design, leading to “blurred” or missing details. This is the most skilled part of the process, as the artisan must intuitively know how much pressure is “enough” to capture the design without tearing the sheet.

Stage 4: Structural Reinforcement (Thickening)
Once the detail layer is set, additional layers of mud are added to provide structural integrity.

• Variable Geometry: The thickness is not uniform. Areas that handle high stress—specifically the neck (supporting the head) and the base (supporting the entire vertical weight)—are reinforced with extra clay to ensure the idol doesn’t collapse under its own weight when de-molded.

Stage 7: Fine Detailing and Limb Attachment
Any imperfections or “crease lines” from the mold seams are removed using a small art knife. If there are small gaps, they are filled with a “high-water ratio” mud (a paste consistency) which spreads easily with minimal pressure.

• Limb Integration: Since complex hands or external features can’t be easily molded, they are made separately and attached now. The artisan scores (creates scratches) on both surfaces and uses the wet mud paste as “glue.” For larger idols, wooden sticks are inserted into the limbs to provide a “skeletal” support to bear the weight at difficult angles.

Stage 8: Drying and Finishing
The idol dries for several days to a week. Once stone-dry, it is polished to a smooth finish and finally painted.

2. THE CHALLENGES WHILE MAKING MURTIS The Time Bottleneck:
   Currently, a single 1.5-foot idol takes between 1.5 to 2 hours of active manual labor. The molding/thickening takes 45 minutes, and the detailing takes another hour.

• Detail Loss: Because manual finger pressure is inconsistent, complex mold designs are often avoided because they are too hard to “fill” by hand.
• The Glue Factor: Attaching limbs is a slow process of ensuring the “glue” mud is the right consistency to prevent parts from falling off during the drying phase.
• Physical Strain: The constant pressing of clay into molds for 8–10 hours a day is physically exhausting for artisans, leading to a drop in quality towards the end of the day.

3. CHEMISTRY AND BEHAVIOR OF SHADU MATTI

Shadu Mati is a unique natural clay with specific behaviors that must be accounted for in any machine design:

• Shrinkage: As Shadu Mati dries, it loses its water content and “cools,” causing the entire structure to shrink by 0.5 to 1 inch. Any mechanical mold must be slightly “upscaled” to account for this 5-8% contraction.
• Thixotropy: The clay behaves differently under pressure. It needs enough force to become “fluid” enough to enter design crevices but must remain “stiff” enough to hold its shape once the pressure is removed.
• Adhesion: Shadu has a high affinity for smooth surfaces, meaning de-molding requires perfect timing—too wet and it sticks; too dry and it cracks.

This visit helped me in understanding the process of making shadu murti. the proccess, the steps, creativity, hardwork, efforts, the challenges, etc..
This proccess and understanding of it. provide few important things the data..
our goal was to reduce time some how. but for that we had to learn the process where we can cut down the time. and this understanding helped in there..

so, we obverseved the manual burden along the 8 step proccess. and here in few steps we can cut down the timme and manual labour. or atleast reduces the burden.
By reducing the burden, and making process fast labour can do more work in less stress and burden. so ultimatly time reduce for per idol creation.
so, few steps or stage is requiered as it is. cos it need that artist work into it. like fine work, detailing, coloring. the focus here is on the stage 3 and 4.

This is the longest process and high labour intensive process, highest manual burden.
this two stage does one same thing, giving the shape to the idol. so adding shadu in the mould and pressing it manually to get immpression and then rethicknining it with extra clay for structrual stability all this give shadu the shape of idol.

reason of first thin layer impression and than second layer thickening and more extra sadhu for stability, is that while doing it manually due to less force by hand we cant add thick layer of clay and press. it will be hard to get detail here. so they do it in layers. this cost more time. also manual burden tends to fatigue. and the energy reduce and work get affected due to it.

so if we work on this part which take max time and burden. we can reduce total time significantly.
we will be working on this part about how we can ease this step/stage of the proccess. how we can automate it or semi automate, using machine or discovering new method to to this steps….
our next step will be thinking of solution which reduce time in this perticular stage of the proccess. and amoung all the discover solution which is best…

In the previous section, we defined our problem statment whcih was the result of visit and understanding the current proccess of making shadu idols…

As we get to know that the first few step of making impression with shadu clay and making the shape of idol is the longest proccess and high effort included. and as we made decision to work around this step and reduce efforts and time here.
In this section of blog we will exploring different aproches we can go with. having multiple idea helps to make best decision and tends to best aproach.

1. DISCUSSED MECHANISMS & TECHNICAL INTERVENTION

From the start, we discussed many mechanisms with mentors and guide.  we evaluated three distinct mechanical engineering approaches to replace the 45-minute manual molding phase. My intervention focused on balancing mechanical simplicity with the fluid dynamics of Shadu Mati.

technicals: the robotic hand can manuver in all direction reach crital angles. with the help of motors. the top rotate full 360 degtree. which helps hand to reach all direction in an hemi-sphere.
the pointer is made of silicon, it also have pressure sensor in it so it give feedback of the pressure. which help to mimic gentle handling of human hand. The sensor allow robotic arm to feel the shadu/ clay. just like an artist feels it and apply pressure accordingly.

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As we concluded to go with pressing each mould piece method. we need to again ideate and think the aproaches while building this prototype. 

think of the way how we design the machenism, how it will press. the claleenges, the solutions.. we have to again filter the methods. but this time it is related to perticular mechenism. before we made decision martix for selecting the machenism. here in the journey ahead while prototyping. we have need to take decision for aproaches towards the machenism.

in this method we will be using press machenism. as the idol shape is complex but as our mould can be saparated and is consist of 4 part. the 4 direction front, back, right and left. and we can press each seperately and than combine it to form full idol. 

Existing Mould.
so, the current mould consist of 4 parts show in the below images. and combines and form full mould.

as shown in the below image. this is how it is assembled. this eaxct shape or how it assemble and disssemble.  this allows us to unmould the idol properly. this is how existing mould works.

SO, the thought around this mould is that make impression on each piece seperately. and than assemble it like puzzle again. after it get attached unmould to get complete idol.
in this way worker, artist the steps dont changes  too much and morker or artist is already have practise of such task. they dont need to adapt to new proccess differently. our method just let artist skip one-two steps and continiue ahead. and our method dont need to be learned, so easily slips into artist proccess without overhead. 

pressing mould need mould pieces to be placed on the table or flat bed. and from the top there will be a top plate which will have nigative or core of the mould piece. which will travel down and press to our part and will make impression. 

As we visualize and think of practical implementation which was done on 26th of april . we discover the problem. and this problem is needed to be solved before we move ahead.

The problem here is the mould piece in not flat.

As it has uneven shape. placing on the flat bed and pressing will damage the part. it will break in an instant. here we need a solution how we can make mould sit on flat bed and stable.

as on the same day while discussing the problem, we thought of few solution. 

We will be needing to make mould flat from below, so we can place it perfectly flat on the flat bed. Below are the few thought and idea which we considered.