Sreyashi Paul

Swadesha Sharma

Text Editor

large_FEATURE-IMAGE-Casting_Dokra_in_Birbhum.jpg

medium_FEATURE-IMAGE-Casting_Dokra_in_Birbhum.jpg

small_FEATURE-IMAGE-Casting_Dokra_in_Birbhum.jpg

thumbnail_FEATURE-IMAGE-Casting_Dokra_in_Birbhum.jpg

FEATURE-IMAGE-Casting_Dokra_in_Birbhum.jpg

“When I first saw Dokra, it felt like magic”, says 41-year-old Pijush Mondal. The artisan from West Bengal’s Birbhum district has been practising the art form for around 12 years now. The process involves the lost-wax technique, one of the oldest traditional metal casting methods in India, dating back to the Indus Valley civilisation.The name Dokra (or Dhokra) refers to a group of nomadic craftsmen who travelled across eastern India.The Chota Nagpur plateau that stretches across Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh has large deposits of copper. This is a primary component of the metal alloys brass and bronze of which Dokra figurines are made. Dokra art is practised in many parts of India but &#39;Bengal Dokra&#39; from Bankura, Barddhaman and Purulia districts has a <a href="https://search.ipindia.gov.in/GIRPublic/Application/Details/563">Geographical Indication</a> certificate.The first step to making a Dokra sculpture involves moulding a clay core – the foundation for the desired figure. Elaborate designs shaped and carved from beeswax, or the gum of the sal tree (Shorea robusta) are layered onto this clay core. Once in place, the wax pattern is enclosed within another layer of clay with a channel or two left open for the melted wax to come out later. Hot molten metal is poured through the same channel.“Nature is immensely important [to the process],” says Sima Pal Mondal. “If there are no sal trees, I cannot use their resin for the wax preparation. Without bees or beehives, I cannot get the wax.” Dokra casting is also heavily dependent on the availability of different varieties of soil and suitable weather conditions.Once the outer layer of clay is dry, Pijush and his assistants fire the figure in one of the two 3 to 5 feet deep brick-and-clay kilns in his studio. As the clay bakes, the wax melts away leaving behind a hollow into which the molten metal is then poured. The clay mould is ideally left for a day to cool down – 4 to 5 hours in case of a quick delivery – after which it is finally broken up to reveal the sculpture within.

Casting Dokra in Birbhum

بیر بھوم کے ڈوکرا کاریگر

బీర్‌భూమ్‌లో ఒక డోక్రా కళాకారుడి కథ

பிர்புமில் தோக்ரா வார்த்தல்

ਬੀਰਭੂਮ ਦੇ ਡੋਕਰਾ ਕਲਾਕਾਰ ਦੀ ਕਹਾਣੀ

ବୀରଭୂମର ଡୋକ୍ରା ଶିଳ୍ପୀ

ബിർഭമിൽ ഡോക്രയെ വാർത്തെടുക്കുമ്പോൾ

ಬಿರ್ಭುಮ್‌ ಡೋಕ್ರಾ ಕ್ಯಾಸ್ಟಿಂಗ್‌ ಕಲೆ

बीरभूम के डोकरा शिल्पी की कहानी

બિરભૂમમાં ડોકરા કાસ્ટિંગ

बीरभूम मं डोकरा के ढलाई

बीरभूम के एगो डोकरा कलाकार

বীড়ভূমৰ ডোক্ৰা শিল্পী

বীরভূমের এক ডোকরাশিল্পীর কথা

Bolpur-Srinikitan

At present, we can only accept donations in Indian rupees by Indian citizens. All donations made to the CounterMedia Trust are eligible for exemption under Section 80G of the Income Tax Act, 1961. Here is a copy of our exemption certificate.


India is bigger than New Delhi. And people need to know more about the rest of this vast nation.


Younger, media-saturated generations are growing up knowing little about their country, but a lot about the elites of a few metros and towns. For a narrowly-owned, commercially-driven media, the dumbing down of a nation is part of standard operating procedure. The last available data of the Centre for Media Studies (CMS, Delhi) show us that reports from New Delhi account for 66 per cent of news on the front pages of major dailies. The CMS data also found that just about 0.24 per cent of front page news came out of rural India. The TV channels are not much better.PARI exists to change that.We are a non-profit organisation. We publish under creative commons, and do not charge readers a subscription fee or put-up advertisements. Nothing is behind a paywall and we are completely free-to-access by anyone. We guard our independence and receive no direct grants from governments and corporations, nor any funding that could dictate our content. So, we are dependent on volunteer labour, donations from individuals, foundations and institutions that see value in independent and free media.PARI is changing the way Indian journalism reports and documents the rural.India is more than the elite of a few metros and towns. We report on rural lives and livelihoods, languages, communities, migrants and more. We need your help to pull off this most ambitious of Indian journalistic endeavours. The scale of this effort costs money. Donate generously - and spread the word about PARI.&nbsp;

Donate FAQs


Let’s get you acquainted

Welcome to PARI

All our content is, and will forever be free to consume. If you enjoy our work, you can support us by becoming a volunteer or by donating to help fund our work.

Want to republish this article? Please write to <a href="mailto:zahra@ruralindiaonline.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">zahra@ruralindiaonline.org</a> with a cc to <a href="mailto:namita@ruralindiaonline.org" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">namita@ruralindiaonline.org</a>

Casting Dokra in Birbhum

Pijush Mondal makes metal figures using the lost-wax casting technique. The skilled Dokra artisan is worried about raw materials and climate which are crucial to the process

Related stories

A rain-scented walk in Sivagangai

Living on ravaged land

Biswas and the bamboos on his bike

Recycling energy, Godda style

Bhadels of Goa

Pookadai: still throbbing with morning life

Koli Kadlas

Malnourishment high among children of migrants: study

Wheels of the rural Indian West

Living Under a Red Cloud in Bellary

Vedla – earrings of the Maher community

Dreaming of water, drowning in debt

Kali: the dancer and his dreams

Farmer's diet worse than a convict's

In Yavatmal, life goes on

Suicides are about the living, not the dead

Death of a carpenter

Hoisa Shigmo!

Women farmers: weaving a life in Anantapur

Defiant in Dhinkia

Spice and all that's nice

Kerala's Green Army

The ‘jugaad’ not-a-mobile

Health as someone else's wealth

Calibrating in a Kudumbashree assembly unit