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Mysuru-based sculptor Arun Yogiraj "had been living like a sage" for the past six months, his family members told The Times of India after his sculpture of Ram Lalla (Lord Ram as a child) was officially chosen by the Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Trust for installation at the Ayodhya temple, which is to be inaugurated on 22 January.
On Monday, 15 January, the temple trust's general secretary Champat Rai confirmed to the media that Yogiraj's idol of Ram Lalla, which weighs between 150 kg to 200 kg, would be moved to the new temple on 17 January. He added that the current idol would also be placed at the temple's sanctum sanctorum.
Yogiraj's idol depicting a five-year-old Lord Ram was one of the three idols which were under consideration by the temple trust for installation.
So, who is Yogiraj? How did he come to sculpt the idol?
MBA Graduate Who Took Up Sculpting
Arun Yogiraj hails from a family of sculptors, who have been involved in this profession for five generations. His father was a skilled sculptor, and so was his grandfather Basavanna Shilpi, who received the patronage of the King of Mysore, as per Yogiraj's website.
The 40-year-old sculptor has been carving since he was a child. An MBA graduate, Yogiraj briefly worked for a private company, but he took up sculpting full-time in 2008.
Speaking to TOI, his mother Saraswathamma said:
"My husband taught Arun the basics of carving when he was a young boy, which continued even during his college days. He would sit with his father for hours and learn the art. Though he went on to do his MBA, Arun preferred to become a full-time sculptor."
In April 2022, Yogiraj presented a two-feet-tall statue of Subhas Chandra Bose to Prime Minister Narendra Modi ahead of the freedom fighter's 125th birth anniversary. He also crafted a 30-foot statue of Bose, which has been installed at the Amar Jawan Jyoti behind the India Gate in New Delhi.
"Glad to have met Arun Yogiraj today. Grateful to him for sharing this exceptional sculpture of Netaji Bose," the prime minister said on Facebook in April 2022.
'Last Six Months Were Like Vanavasa'
Yogiraj is also known for creating a 12-foot statue of Adi Shankaracharya in Kedarnath, a 21-foot Hanuman statue at Chunchanakatte in Mysore district, a 15-foot statue of Dr BR Ambedkar at Mysuru, among others.
"These six months were like 'vanavasa' for my son. He dedicated every minute to sculpting Lord Ram's idol for the Ayodhya temple," Saraswathamma further told TOI.
His wife Vijetha told the publication that "he didn't even get to see his second child take his first steps. He sacrificed a lot and dedicated his life to this assignment in Ayodya."
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