Forty three old Shambhu Nath Das (born on January 1,  1979) belongs to the eight generation of a family of traditional clay doll makers who have been crafting the unique Joynagar-Majilpur dolls for at least  250 years.  

Shambhu learnt the craft from a very young age from his late father, Panchugopal Das and late grand uncle, Manmatha Nath Das. He remembers that as a young boy he would often stand with an umbrella, sheltering his grandfather from the sun and observe him as he lovingly crafted the toys. Picking up the basics in this manner, and experimenting with the clay on his own, he was in a few years able to start helping the elder artisans, right through his school years. Unable to attend college, he focused wholly on clay doll making and after his father’s death in 2010, Shambhu has been the sole keeper of this craft.

Shambhu is the only one among his siblings who has continued with the family tradition. His two brothers had chosen to move to other occupations, possibly because the earnings from the craft was not sufficient to sustain the entire family.  Shambhu feels that it is not enough to be born into a tradition - the artist must have a deep bond with it as well that overrides the most adverse of circumstances. 

Shambhu is now in a position to hire a few interns from time to time, but laments that he cannot give them full time occupation due to a paucity of funds. It takes an intern about eighteen months before he is able to properly assist Shambhu. Shambhu has been able to teach his craft to about eight or ten young men, who now form his “resource pool” as and when he can afford them. 

Joynagar-Majilpur dolls were traditionally sold at fairs and festivals like the local Rath mela, the Dol jatra mela, Goshtho Utsav and so on. But rural demand has diminished over the years and it almost drove his father to give up. But Shambhu refused to lose hope in spite of the penury that his family faced. It was around this time that he met the artist, Tapas Konar  and Shambhu is particularly beholden to him for encouraging him and opening up new paths for him. He is also thankful to the entrepreneurs who gave him the opportunity to participate in urban fairs. All of this helped him stay focused and determined. 

It is also fortunate for him that demand in Kolkata has recently increased – craft shops, online stores and students from art colleges have begun to show a keen interest in his dolls – and it is this developing market that is keeping the artist and his family afloat. Though he is now much better off than his predecessors were, Shambhunath is however disappointed by the lack of support by the government and is keeping his fingers crossed that the urban market will continue to sustain him.