Balasore: A group of artisans have made a pair of 5ft-tall lacquer dolls as part of a local culture body's attempts to revive lost lacquer art works and popularise them.

The dolls that have been made to replicate a married couple are being kept on the campus of North Odisha Chamber of Commerce and Industry for public view. Baleswari Kala Kendra, which had taken the initiative to prepare the dolls, has been on a eight-year mission to revive the art form.

Its president Kesu Das claimed that these pair of dolls are the tallest in the world. "We will apply for registration in the Limca Book of Records," he said.

"As far as our knowledge goes, the dolls we made are the tallest and most unique in the world. We also have plans to keep them in a museum in the state," said Das, a renowned artist himself.

"Five artists took about six months to make these dolls The clay and terracotta works for the dolls were looked after by an expert, Ramesh Muduli, while the overall work was done under the supervision of Kanaklata Das," he said.

Each household in undivided Balasore had items made of lacquer - bangles, showpieces or dolls. A pair of dolls used to be in every house as they were considered auspicious and made marital bond stronger besides bringing peace and prosperity, said Subasini Jena, a social activist.

"In those days, the items made from lacquer were exported to other states from Balasore. Since, lacquer work lost popularity, the space was occupied by Feng Shui and other fancy items," she said.