- Toy Origin: NADIA
The clay dolls of Krishnanagar date back to the reign of the renowned Maharaja Krishnachandra (1710-83), who helped the British East India Company against Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah in the Battle of Plassey in 1757. The king was a known patron of the arts, including literature and music, and encouraged the local craft of clay doll making. In 1728, he invited families of potters from Dhaka and Natore (in modern Bangladesh) to settle in Ghurni, which would go on to become the heart of Krishnanagar’s clay doll industry.