Indian artist Udayan Edappal to woo Abu Dhabi with 'sand magic'

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Sand artist Udayan Edappal
Sand artist Udayan Edappal

Abu Dhabi - He is in the Capital for an event to be held at Kerala Social Centre on Friday evening. This is to mark the inauguration of Edappalayam - yet another addition to be burgeoning Malayali-run associations in the UAE.

By Ashwani Kumar

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Published: Thu 29 Sep 2016, 6:00 PM

Last updated: Thu 29 Sep 2016, 9:17 PM

Sand artist Udayan Edappal has God gifted hands. He has carved a place for himself in the Malayalam film industry with promos for movies Maheshinte Prathikaaram (Revenge of Mahesh) and Oppam (Together). Both the movies were well-received by the general public and so was his magical spread.
He is in the Capital for an event to be held at Kerala Social Centre on Friday evening. This is to mark the inauguration of Edappalayam - yet another addition to be burgeoning Malayali-run associations in the UAE.
"I will do live sand art show and has got something special for all. I plan to do a show on the Emirati rulers," said the man from Edappal town of Malappuram district. "There will be a first-time special item at the end."
He is a highly rated artist by Malayalam actors Mohanlal and Manju Warrier. And has done a thread and nail work on Mohanlal. "It took me two days. Once he saw the work he called me. It was one of the best moments of my life."
"I am a two-year-old sand artist but was always interested in sketching."

And how did his first sand work happen?
"It was a local event in my town for a poetry book publication. I was given the matter just five minutes prior to the show but managed to pull it. It was well-received and till date is my best effort," he said.
He has worked in the Capital before. He had worked in Mussafah from 2009 to 2013 doing décor works. "I left Abu Dhabi to enter into Malayalam movies."
His first step in to the cinema world happened when he was offered a chance to be a set assistant for Malayalam actor Mammootty's movie Gangster. And there was no looking back.
Following new trends, he has also done works for wedding invitations. "This is a fad where people just share their invitations through Whatsapp. I have done a few."
He also makes photos on his phone through software Sketch Guru.
Udayan has also done promotional works for politicians too. "I did one video promo for Kerala Assembly Speaker P Sreeramakrishnan."
He has also touched upon socially relevant topics like Jisha rape and murder case.
Udayan said his work is a difficult process. "I have to use each finger very delicately. Each has a different job to do."
And creativity runs in his blood. "All my three brothers are artists. My father is no more but was a sculptor."
Anything he aspires to do? "I want to cover World War and Indian freedom struggle," he added.


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