People are always in search of souvenirs and gifts for friends and relatives all the time. Here is something different to look for. A food lover makes Miniature Dishes of India food.
Chennai based artist Shilpa Mitha's Miniature Dishes Will Make You Hungry! The little plate of chicken biriyani or appam stew or Vada Pau and many more Indian dishes are nothing less of a visual treat to the eyes.
The story behind how the miniaturist in Shilpa came to being is in fact quite amusing. Speaking to SBS Hindi Shilpa shares,
"Started out as a hobby. Wanted to make burger earrings for myself. That day I never realized where this was going to take me!" Shilpa made the first pair of burger earing in the year of 2011 and hooked on to miniature food art and wanted to explore further.
She says, "We do see food miniatures abroad (dollhouse minis), but no one had ever tried working on Indian food. So I started experimenting, and over the last few years, I think I've gotten a lot better than from when I started! Also, there's so much variety in our country. Every city and state has their specialties. So I'd like to do justice to our food culture, so I mostly focus on Indian food!"
Shilpa used to like her craft classes in when she was in school, and she loves food- this combination of interest makes Shilpa's art Unique.
Every single miniature piece is made of clay, and it is handmade. Shilpa's Mother assists her to craft the miniatures. Shilpa's mother kneads and rolls the mud for the dishes. She also explains that Indian food is colorful. Each recipe has its texture and shades. If people cook the same meal with the different method, the dish looks different with different. For her, The plate is the canvas, and the food is art!
Soon after she began making fully-fledged food platters, she found great appreciation from friends and family members. She has started showcasing a variety of brilliantly handcrafted miniature Indian dishes to the world with the use of Social Media.
The miniature looks a little piece of art, but it takes considerable effort.
So how long does it take Shilpa to make one miniature dish on an average? "I sculpt them all by hand.. each element. Simple ones take 15-30 minutes, but they have to be done over a few hours or days. Complicated ones with rice take almost five days."
She describes the process and says that it’s a step-by-step process and can’t be done at once. She first makes the base, then the plate or the cups and finally the food and condiments. She has to work on each component differently because each has different Each color and texture.
Shilpa works close to 15 hours a day, which includes even weekends.
Shilpa finds excellent support from her family. Her mother assists her to knead and roll the clay.
