Made in Eral, huge bell to ring atop Ram Temple in Ayodhya soon

MADURAI: Eral, a small town in Srivaikuntam taluk of Thoothukudi district is all set to get a ‘top honour’ in Ayodhya as a bell made in this town will be hung above the sanctum sanctorum of Ram temple there.

According to R Ramanathan, proprietor of Ramakrishna Nadar Vessels Shop, Eral, where the grand bell was made with professional craftsmen two years ago, said 20 skilled artisans were involved in making the bell, which measures around four feet in height. It was created in 2020 and taken to Rameswaram in September in the same year before being transported to Ayodhya. The bell made of bronze weighed around 650 kg. A team from Chennai-based Legal Rights Council inspected the grand bell at the time of its making.

“In my 35 years of service in the metal utensils manufacturing industry, the bell to Ayodhya is the biggest product in my career. It’s a second-generation family business,” Ramanathan told DT Next.

Regarding the methods and materials used, he said old and assorted utensils were melted down to make bronze alloy for the bell. Labour cost alone ran up to Rs 2 lakh then. More temple utensils, including lamps (kuthu vilakku) in small and medium sizes, were being made in his shop. After this grand honour, Ramanathan is confident of getting orders from Tiruchendur and Thanjavur temples.

Another notable aspect of his shop is that bells are also made in Eral for churches in Kerala.

Eral, which is home to production of utensils and vessels, has a significant place in exports to Colombo, Sri Lanka by sea. Still, a few hundred-year-old utensils shops exist in Eral, Ramanathan said.