Ahead of the Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha, Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Kshetra Teerth Trust has confirmed that the ‘Ram Lalla’ idol that will be used for the Consecration Ceremony, will be of Arun Yogiraj. Know all about the sculptor…
New Delhi: The entire nation is eagerly waiting for January 22 to arrive as on this date, the Ayodhya Ram Mandir in the temple city of Uttar Pradesh will open its gates for the world. The Ram Mandir Pran Pratishtha will be organised on Jan 22 and will be attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, businessmen Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani among other dignitaries. Even though UP Minister Prahlad Joshi had confirmed that the Ram Lalla idol that will be used for the Consecration will be the one sculpted by Arun Yogiraj, nothing by the Trust was said about it. Now, Champat Rai, General Secretary of the Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Kshetra Teerth Trust has confirmed that the Ram Lalla idol which will be used for Pran Pratishtha, is the one created by Arun Yogiraj. From family and educational qualifications to famous sculptures and awards, know all about sculptor Arun Yogiraj…
Arun Yogiraj Educational Qualifications
Speaking about the sculptor, Arun Yogiraj’s educational qualifications, not much is known about his early life and school education. However, according to various reports, despite his family being into sculpting, Arun Yogiraj decided against it while choosing this as his profession. Arun Yogiraj pursued Masters in Business Administration (MBA) and then worked in a private company for a while; soon he realised that his true calling is sculpting, which his family has been in, for five generations.
Arun Yogiraj Famous Sculptures
Arun Yogiraj, who is currently in the news for creating the 51-inch idol of ‘Ram Lalla’, has created many other masterpieces in the past and he has also been recognised and appreciated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the same. These sculptures include-
- A 30-feet statue of Subhash Chandra Bose, installed in the grand canopy behind Amar Jawan Jyoti at India Gate, New Delhi; it was installed on the wish of PM Modi, ahead of the 125th birth anniversary of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose.
- According to the official website of the sculptor, arunyogiraj.com, the sculptor has also created a 12-feet tall statue of Adi Sahnkaracharya in Kedarnath.
- The 21-feet tall Hanuman statue at Chunchanakatte in Mysore district.
- A 15-feet tall statue of constitutional architect Dr. BR Ambedkar
- The white amritashila statue of Swami Ramakrishna Paramahamsa in Mysore
- A six-feet tall monolithic statue of Nandi
- A six-feet tall statue of Banashankari Devi
- The 14.5-feet tall white AmritaShila statue of the King of Mysore, Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar and other such idols.
Arun Yogiraj Awards
According to various media reports, sculptor Arun Yogiraj has been bestowed with multiple awards and recognition. The list includes a visit to workshop and personal appreciation by Kofi Annan, Former Secretary-General of United Nations Organization, the Nalwadi award 2020 by Mysore District Administration, an Honorary membership by The Crafts council of Karnataka 2021, the South Zone Young Talented Artist award by Government of India in 2014, the Shilpa Kousthubha by Sculptors Association, the Rajyothsava award by Mysuru District Authority, an Honour by Chief Minister of Karnataka, Honour by the Sports Academy of Mysuru District, an honour by AmaraShilpi Jakanacharya Trust.