Die-cast Saraswati idols lined up for sale at a city outlet. (Sudeshna Banerjee)

In the eternal tussle between wealth and wisdom, this could be the clincher.

Ask any idol-maker which goddess generates more wealth and the answer would invariably be Saraswati, the goddess of wisdom.

Crafting Saraswati idols is apparently more profitable than moulding her divine sister Lakshmi because of the sheer strength of numbers. Schools and colleges, tutorial classes, music academies, para clubs, street corners and households — you name it, the goddess with the veena is everywhere.

“You don’t have to be from (erstwhile) east Bengal or a Bengali, or even a Hindu, to worship Saraswati,” smiles an artisan from Chetla Road, pointing to the popularity of the goddess of wisdom.

Greater demand also means that a Saraswati idol is less likely to remain unsold than Lakshmi. That’s why by noon on puja-eve, not a single piece is left to be sold in the die-cast idol outlets along the Tollygunge-Chetla belt.

Unlike Lakshmi, there is no substitute for a Saraswati idol either.

“Many homemakers make do with shora (shallow earthen plate), ghot (pitcher) or pot (painting) or a kolar basna (dried bark of banana) for Lakshmi Puja. But for Saraswati, everyone needs an idol,” says Jagadish Chandra Haldar of Chetla Road.

That the goddess’s fair complexion lowers production cost is a bonus for the idol makers. “White is the cheapest colour. Chalk sells for Rs 170 for a 30kg sack. Lakshmi’s skin tone is a more complex affair involving yellow, pink and white. The giver of gold also needs a glossy look. But gold dust sells for Rs 650 per kg while a kilo of varnish costs Rs 160,” explains Haldar’s neighbour, Rabinchandra Das.

That means a Saraswati idol can be crafted at one-third the cost of a likeness of Lakshmi.

The skin tone and the glossy finish also make painting Lakshmi more time-consuming. “I can paint 100 Saraswatis in the time I paint 50 Lakshmis,” says Sanjit Dey, pasting silver ribbons to the edges of milk-white saris. “That’s all the decoration she will need.”

Size matters as well in the measure of the maker’s margin. While a Lakshmi of the length of a palm is popular, Saraswati seldom sells at a height of less than two feet.

“We make a profit of barely Rs 2 per idol on the small ones. But bigger idols yield a profit of Rs 15-20 and we can spray-paint them swiftly,” says Manab Das, overseeing a van being loaded with his creations.