Sutars racing to ready Shivaji statue for Sindhudurg by April

Sculptor Anil Sutar shows a 'guiding statue' which will be replicated into a 60-ft tall sculpture.

- Jasjeev Gandhiok

SAHIBABAD: The high energy among 150 workers at the Ram Sutar Fine Arts Pvt Ltd foundry in Sahibabad, Uttar Pradesh, was palpable on Monday afternoon as finishing touches were being given to parts of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, commissioned by the Maharashtra government in October 2024, at the cost of ₹21 crore.

The deadline for the project was February 19, 2025, when the 60-foot tall statue was slated to be inaugurated at Rajkot Fort, in Sindhudurg district, Maharashtra, to mark the occasion of Shivaji Jayanti. Incidentally, it is also the day when the Padma Bhushan decorated sculptor Ram Vanji Sutar turns 100.

While the lower legs of the statue, measuring 15 feet, have already been sent to Sindhudurg, the upper parts and torso—totally measuring 35 feet—are complete but being given the final touches at the foundry in UP. The Sutars say the statue, created in 50 parts, which will be assembled on site, will be ready by April 15, 2025.

Reasons for delay

Anil Ram Sutar, the lead sculptor of the project, put down the reason for the delay in the project to "acquiring the site of the previously collapsed statue only in December 2024". The collapsed statue had to be removed first before the artisans could take over, he said.