The name O. Velayudhan Achari may not be familiar to present-day residents of Thiruvananthapuram, but senior folks still recall ‘O.V. The man behind this venture was Kalaratnam O. Velayudhan Achari (1890-1979). He came from a clan of skilled craftsmen from Tirunelveli, who came to Thiruvananthapuram for renovating the Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple. Soon, Velayudhan was enrolled as an employee at an ivory workshop associated with the School of Arts (present Fine Arts College). Accent on qualityThe mass production of craft objects leading to the circulation of inferior quality items in the market was of great concern to Velayudhan Achari.

Source: The Hindu November 24, 2017 10:41 UTC