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A transparent Goddess of wealth

G. Srinivasan

NEW DELHI, April 9

FOR Goddess Lakshmi, the very embodiment of fortune in the Hindu pantheon, no price can be fair as she is supposed to be the repository of all riches.

Now with globalisation, Indian deities are being moulded in sparkling materials from fashion-centric places like Paris and re-exported here in limited numbers to cater to the taste of upper echelons and the prosperous. Of course, at a price not easily af fordable by all and sundry.

Thus, at a glittering function at the French Embassy here on Friday evening amid a Bharatanatyam dance performance by Rama Vaidyanathan, the French artware major Daum (in collaboration with its sole Indian agent PCC) launched its master creation of Godde ss Lakshmi in tune with Indian tradition. It is a special edition limited to 100 numbers only solely for Indian art connoisseurs.

A pioneering enterprise with a premium reputation in churning out superior crystalware since 1878, Cristalleries Daum is synonymous with creativity in the delicate art of glassmaking. Each piece of Daum is chiseled and moulded aesthetically in the time-h onoured tradition of the first French Cristalleries.

The Ambassador of France in India Bernard De Montferand told Business Line on the sidelines of the function that Daum is a prestigious name which blends the knowhow of traditional craft with the daring of enthusiastic creators through those exceptional m aterials: crystal and pate de verre to make a lasting impact on the buyers of such artware. He hoped that Daum's latest foray into Indian deities would help cement historic ties between the world's two vibrant democracies and promote bilateral trade to n ew heights.

The Director of Ganga Expressions, the Indian agent of Daum, Jag Mohan Daga, said that the company had earlier wrought in crystal form deities of Lord Ganesh and Tirupati Balaji on a limited scale which was all sold out. Asked about the price tag of Lord Ganesh, he said that originally the company sold at Rs 1 lakh per piece and since it was on a limited scale, the original buyers sold the same piece to Rs 2.5 lakh to others.

Daga said that the company has not determined the exact price component of Goddess Lakshmi which might be in the range of Rs 2 lakh per piece. Asked whether such a price tag would not deter prospective buyers, he said that going by the past sales of such deities moulded in crystal and the enthusiasm evinced by art aficionado, the Goddess Lakshmi in crystal would be sold like hot cakes in no time.

He said that trade enquiries or individual demands from non-resident Indians for purchase of these deities had been received from places like Dubai, Emirates and Singapore and other European countries, but these pieces could be sold only here and the cus tomers must buy it from India as Daum does not retail these scintillating art pieces of Indian divinities in any other part of the world.

Over and above Indian deities which are recent additions to the company's cornucopia of colourful art pieces, Daum has churned out in crystal and other enchanting materials decorative artwares ranging from hippopotamus (for strength and power), heron, sy mbolising vigilance that can easily veer towards invasive curiosity to daffodil which symbolises the languor of love and desire. Franck Lamensons, International Sales Director of Daum, said that his company has carved a niche market among the rich and fa mous the world over in popularising artwares of rare and ravishing beauty.