Through 'toy story', Assam designer wants to present local culture to world

The toys come with a story -- some real and some fictional

A 'toy story' is unfolding in a remote village in Assam's Baksa district where real and fiction are coming together as a young entrepreneur is making dolls combining local culture and motifs for a global audience.

If there is a doll of Gambari Sikla who fought against the British, there is another styled on 'Bodofa' UN Brahma, an influential student leader in the Bodo-dominated region of the state.

Then there are fictional characters like Alasi, who has a story woven around her pursuit of higher studies, or little Jarow, who loves to play and eat sweets throughout the day.

"At our Zankla Studio, we are making toys with a purpose. We have a range of dolls, birds, animals and even souvenir pieces," Kirat Brahma, who runs the enterprise at Hazuma, told PTI on Thursday.

The toys are not merely for the children to play, these also come with a story -- some real and some fictional, he said.

"Even in the case of animals or birds, we weave a story around it. For instance, we have a rhino toy, with a back story of how it strays into human habitation during floods and requires everyone's empathy," he said.

All the dolls are handcrafted, made of standard fibre used in soft toys and local fabric for clothing, with Brahma also exploring organic alternative raw materials.

"Our toys come with the pamphlets as children have a very creative mind and love stories," said Brahma, a graduate of the National Institute of Design (NID) in Ahmedabad.

An art enthusiast since his school days, Brahma worked on animated short films and other such ventures, mostly as a freelancer, after leaving NID in 2014-15, and before returning to his roots in 2021.

"I had left my place in Hazuma as a child when I started school. But I always wanted to come back, be with my family and work for my community," he said.

Brahma, now in his early 30s, wanted to take up solution-oriented projects and chose to pursue design.

"Our culture and design are entwined, be it in our dress, our cultivation methods or something as basic as the bamboo fencing around our homes.

"Design means functionality and aesthetics at the core, and I wanted to take up a venture which combines these aspects and is easily relatable to the people," he explained.

"With toys, we are trying to create awareness about design in an indirect way. Also, we want to give our children the chance to play with dolls more relatable to their surroundings and habits," he added.

Brahma also understands the need for the venture to be commercially viable.

"We are trying to develop a model for revenue generation. I don't want it to be a research project, to be put in the archive," the entrepreneur said.

He said that he started off with his own savings and currently employs 11 people. Orders are taken at the studio or through their website, with the toys sent through courier.

"The response has been good and we have got orders from as far as Mumbai as well. We are now looking for additional marketing platforms as well as financial support," he said.

Brahma has plans of expanding his toy-making business to include other communities also.

"Besides my own Bodo community, I hope to skill and encourage different communities like Rabhas and Garos to design toys reflecting their own culture and tradition. The toy market is a huge one and with the correct strategies, gaining a foothold won't be a problem," he added.

Till his dreams take higher flight, Brahma and his team continue making their dolls in between attending to their household chores and farming activities.