KALYAN: After the collapse of the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Kalyan-based artist Jaydeep Apte, who had made the statue, and his family have left their house and shifted elswhere out of fear for their safety. According to sources, the family is afraid that someone who feels hurt by the incident may target them. When a TOI team visited the building where Apte resides, no one was present, and the neighbours also refused to say anything.
Apte first made the headlines in 2019 when the UK-based Sikh Soldier Organisation (SSO) through him got a bronze statue of a Sikh soldier made in Yorkshire in honour of Sikh soldiers who fought in both the World Wars alongside the British army.Apte had constructed the 6.5-feet statue in his 250 sq ft workshop. The organisation had unveiled the statue at a special ceremony in West Yorkshire, with the support of the British Army, Royal British Legion and the Kirklees Council.
Apte began his journey into the world of art at JJ School, where he completed his diploma in sculpting and modelling. He then opened his own workshop in Kalyan, where he earlier created the statue of Mahatma Gandhi’s son Manilal for the Dandi memorial in Gujarat, among others. Apte did not respond to calls or text messages, but one of his friends told TOI, “I have come to know from friends that Jaydeep is also saddened by the incident. He is dedicated to his work. Only he can tell how this mistake happened and who did it.”