A mini-you in silver

3D printers have given rise to a new trend of miniature sculptures in the city

It’s also a great gifting idea,” says Vidhya Srikanth who started Selfie Miniature a couple of years back. Her office space in Velachery, Chennai, houses four printers imported from Germany, that busily churn out 3D versions of images sent by enthusiastic clients. At a time, a printer can create 20 miniature models up to the height of six inches. “We end up getting at least three to four orders a day. They come from all over India and from even as far as Jammu and Kashmir. Around 70% of the orders are from or for couples,” she says, adding, “Other than our website, we also retail on Amazon and Flipkart.”

Recently, an engaged couple mailed her their photographs. They wanted the miniatures to be dressed in the exact same outfits that Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma wore for their wedding. Vidya also gets requests for bizarre miniatures, that we are better off not mentioning in print. “I just couldn’t get myself and my designer to work on it, so I turned down the order,” she says with a grin.

Clients also ask for images of celebrities. So far, the team has created miniatures of Abdul Kalam, Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli.

“There are a few who want something elaborate. One of our clients wanted his “mini me” to be chilling on a lazy chair on sand, with a pool in front and a lawn behind. We did landscaping for that as well,” adds Vidhya.

Also popular are night lamps with personalised images that glow to life as the lights go off. Vidhya creates images in ceramic and, in a few cases, in plastic. The sizes vary from three inches to 10, with prices starting at Rs. 2,000 for miniatures and Rs. 750 for lamps.

And then there are those who only want gleaming silver version of themselves. Chinmay Rathi, who launched Precious 3D last year, says that he originally started out by creating models for companies such as Ford, Renault and ITC, but over the last few months he’s been receiving a steady enquiry for miniatures of individuals.

“I wanted to do something a little different so I experimented with miniatures in silver. And it worked out quite well,” says the 22-year-old who tied up with Baba Balaknath Silver for the same.

Chinmay is currently working on a 7.8-inch tall image, the biggest miniature he’s made so far. “The silver-plated images use around four to five grams of silver and the hollow silver versions are made with 50-100 grams of silver. Prices start at Rs. 4,000,” says Chinmay. For those wanting to feel like royalty, there is the option of having your face on silver coins. While these are mostly show-pieces, Chimay is working on a range of “wearable art” where you can chose to have your face on pendants as well.