Appropriating Ambedkar

Ambedkar and his legacy have become an integral part of politics in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana

- RAHUL DEVULAPALLI

Race cars clocked forbidden speeds on Hyderabad's most touristy street. The Tank Bund road, on the banks of the Hussain Sagar lake, was transformed into a racing circuit for the final round of the 2022 Indian Racing League in December. The circuit-around 2.8km long-encircled a 11-acre parcel of land, on which stood a pair of giant bronze shoes. As drivers lapped the circuit it seemed they were circumambulating the shoes, as if paying obeisance.

The shoes are the base of a statue of B.R. Ambedkar in his signature pose-book in hand and pointing to the future. When complete, it will be 125 feet tall. Built into the pedestal will be an Ambedkar museum, an audio-visual room and a photo gallery. The project, Ambedkar Smriti Vanam, will be the state government's biggest tribute to Ambedkar.

The statue is expected to cost ₹150 crore; it will use 791 tonnes of steel and 96 tonnes of brass.

The idea of the statue was first floated in 2016, during Ambedkar's 125th birthday celebrations. Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrashekar Rao laid the foundation stone for the project and a cabinet sub-committee went to mainland China, Hong Kong and Sikkim to finalise designs and plans. Now, after multiple deadlines, there is a rush to unveil the statue on Ambedkar's birth anniversary-April 14-this year. It is also an election year. As of mid-January, the statue's legs have started to take shape.

Ram Vanji Sutar, who designed the Statue of Unity, and his son Anil Sutar are the sculptors. Anil is giving the final touches to parts of the statue at his Noida workshop; they will be assembled on site. "Around 200 artisans worked on the model, which took one year to make," said Anil. "We have designed many Ambedkar statues in the past, but this is the tallest. I am happy that it has come out well." Anil is confident that the work will be completed in the coming weeks.