Master artisan Kamalakanta Karmakar was born in 1905 and learnt the craft of sherpai from his father, Rakhal Chandra Karmakar who was also a master of his craft. At a time when the sherpai craft was endangered because of the switchover to the standardized metric system of weights and measures in India, Kamalakanto was encouraged by admirers of the craft to cater to urban audiences. He altered the shape and size of the sherpais and converted the bowls to table decor.  His workmanship was lauded and he won the first prize in the All India Handicraft Competition of 1955-56, following which, in 1965, he received the national award forhis Sherpai craftsmanship. Thus the fame of the sherpai spread far and wide and was much in demand in foreign markets as well.