A city rich in craft and color
A lovely tiny village in Maharashtra’s Konkan region, Sawantwadi is exactly at the middle. It’s a place where art permeates every corner, not just a map location. Here families have been passing down the custom of making hand-carved and painted wooden toys for many years.
These are toys rather than toys only. Every one has a narrative of pride, heritage, and skill. Sawantwadi is staying strong and maintaining a magnificent art from a long time ago alive and kicking even though many places have abandoned their customary items.
Local Talent and Royal Sponsorship
Particularly with King Khem Sawant III present in the 1700s, this craft started back in the day when the Sawant Bhonsle monarchs ruled. For creative people like painters, woodworking, and artists, the palace was a comfortable place. Queen Satwa Bai herself was a big supporter of the arts and contributed much in establishing this custom.
Originally made only for kings and queens, these toys were not designed for anyone else to buy. They were created and colored with great care not just for kicks but also to learn local carving masters mixed with the opulent painting style of Rajasthan, creating something unique and wonderful.
From Works of Art to Blocks of Wood.
Hale wood, also known as Wrightia tinctoria, is used for these toys. Working with it is really light and easy. Once the artisans have painted the toys into forms such fruits, birds, or humans using natural dyes from substances like tamarind seeds and other local supplies, they then move on to work with them. These paints lack that slick plastic feel. They have a gentle, organic feel, almost like you’re touching actual ground.
More and more families started this craft over time. They instructed children, arranged workshops nearby the palace, and transported their toys to fairs and bazaars. Schools, weddings, and children’s games all included many colorful fruits, dolls, and kitchen sets.
Symbols Speaking without Words
Every toy has a short story about daily life or local atmosphere. Popular forms that represent power, grace, or legacy are elephants, bulls, parrots, and horses. Mangoes and bananas are employed in rituals and as considerate gifts in addition to being aesthetically pleasing.
Some toys show women with pots or males in turbans and dhotis. Basic forms mirroring Konkan life. Though not as dead as statues, they have a little warmth and character about them. In tone, in shape, in narrative, they combine royal history with village life.
Legacy in Every Stroke
Though the toys may first appear basic, the way they are painted adds true appeal. Small touches like borders with dots, eyes drawn in deep strokes, and sarees in vivid reds and greens make the toys live.
Using delicate brushes created of squirrel hair, many painters use patterns like flowers, jewels, or borders. From the time when painters were taught inside the painting chamber of the royal residence, the chitrashala, comes this painstaking painting method. Some artists continue to trace their family’s background to those palace times.
Art Encounters the Earth
Following India’s freedom, sawantwadi toys began to draw interest outside of the village. Craft fairs and displays introduced them to several people. When India started to reintroduce handmade products in the 1980s and 1990s, these toys were included in the handicraft rebirth campaign.
They even frequented movies, museums, and galleries. Bollywood movies have utilized these little and wooden fruits for setting decoration. Designers started incorporating their vibrant patterns in house decoration, textiles, and jewelry, therefore reviving them in the present world.
A Childhood Memory in Every Toy
If you ask someone from the Konkan coast about their first toy, chances are it had the soft smell of wood and faint traces of red paint.
For many, Sawantwadi toys aren’t just souvenirs — they’re pieces of childhood tucked away in memory boxes. Little wooden fruits used for pretend kitchens, hand-painted animals marched across the floor like a parade, or a tiny bride and groom set gifted during a cousin’s wedding — each toy is a small, tangible story. Even today, visiting Sawantwadi often feels like opening a dusty trunk in your grandmother’s house — one filled with laughter, color, and craft.
Craft Currently
Still audible today on Sawantwadi’s streets are the tapping of chisels and the gentle sweep of brushes. While some craftsmen work from their homes, others meet in little groups or co-ops close to the palace.
Although modern toys and video games are somewhat popular, these wooden toys continue as important handcrafted goods instead of as common ones.
New-generation artisans are exploring online platforms, designing educational kits, and adding playful touches like magnets and keychains. Still, many stick to the classic fruit baskets and dolls that remain beloved at weddings and festive gatherings.
Near the palace, there even is a store devoted just to handmade toys. For travelers and artisans seeking a fragment of this live tradition, it has grown to be a favorite stop.
Conclusion: A Story in Every Toy
Being genuine rather than flawless is what Sawantwadi wooden toys are about. Each of them carries a little bit of history, some happiness, and a ton of work. They discuss heritage and family, kings and craftsmen.
These toys help us to appreciate handcrafted, local, and heart-filled items in a world where everything is created swiftly and looks the same.
These are painted stories awaiting to be told once more rather than only playthings.
References
Ministry of Textiles, Government of India: https://texmin.nic.in/
Sahapedia: Sawantwadi Crafts: https://www.sahapedia.org/sawantwadi-lacquerware
Report of the Handicrafts Board, 2020
Chavan, M. 2017 Creating the Konkan: Sawantwadi artisans