Artist to re-do former Kerala Chief Minister Karunakaran's statue for 'lack of resemblance'

Thiruvananthapuram: A bronze statue of former Kerala Chief Minister K Karunakaran that was unveiled by President Pranab Mukherjee in Thiruvananthapuram recently will be redone by the artist who made it after several Congress leaders said it didn't resemble the late Congress veteran.

The artist says he has decided to re-do the face of the structure after Congress leaders including Mr Karunakaran's son and party MLA K Muraleedharan voiced their dissatisfaction.
The leaders have complained that the face of the statue, that has been installed in the Kanakakunnu palace grounds in the heart of the state capital, didn't resemble Mr Karunakaran's facial expressions and did not carry his trademark smile. They also pointed out that as a result of the flaws in the work, the structure "failed to reflect the essence" of the personality of the four-time chief minister.

K S Sidhan, the artist who cast the statue, has admitted that there have been some lapses in the work but argued that authorities forced him to rush with the completion of the work so it could be unveiled during the President's visit. He said he has sought the permission of the state government to rework the face of the structure.

"The enduring image of the late leader in the minds of all Keralites is when he was at the height of his career in the 1980s. Now I am planning to re-do the face of the work to correct whatever flaws are there," he told PTI.

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Mr Sidhan, who has cast statues of several famous personalities, said he has never faced criticism like this for any of his works before.