26 year old Gaurav Malakar belongs to the 6th generation of a family of traditional shola artisans. Shola artists, known as Malakars (the term malakar means maker of garlands and is one of the nine traditional artisan castes), do exquisite, intricate work by cutting and carving the shola reed to make decorative objects and masks.

Making delicate shola flowers, garlands, votive objects for the serpent goddess Manasa, traditional wedding headdresses (mukut for the bride and topor for the groom) and ritual Gomira masks, Gourav learnt his craft from childhood under the guidance of his father, Gurukinkar and award-winning uncle, the late Madhumangal Malakar. The traditional shola artisans use only the best shola for their work – only reeds that are thick, soft and white are used. 

Gourav, an English Honours graduate from Dr Meghnad Saha college, Itahar in Uttar Dinajpur, divides his time between teaching children online, helping villagers with their digital requirements and his traditional craft. 

From 2012, he began to accompany his uncle to melas and exhibitions across the country, until the latter’s recent demise. At all these exhibitions in Surat, Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi etc, their flowers would be the biggest draw among urban clients. Gourav, since his uncle`s passing has also exhibited at fairs in Bangalore organized by the popular A Hundred Hands.

Gourav hopes to follow in his renowned uncle’s footsteps and take his craft further. Though his uncle worked in the traditional idiom, Gourav has been experimenting with newer designs and decorative motifs. Though the shola flowers continue to sell out wherever they go, Gourav hopes their ritual crafts like the masks and