Barbrik Chowk gets new look with bow-arrow art piece

After installing an artistically designed, hand-crafted clock tower at Geeta Mandir Chowk in Model Town, the Municipal Corporation has unveiled another striking landmark for the city. This time, it’s a beautifully sculpted bow and arrow made of iron, now standing tall at Barbrik Chowk in the Jalandhar West Assembly segment — a must-see symbol of craftsmanship and civic pride

The striking iron art piece was unveiled on Tuesday by minister Mohinder Bhagat and Mayor Vaneet Dhir. Painted in gold and mounted on a round platform designed with open lotus petals, the sculpture depicts the legendary quiver of Veer Barbrik — the mighty warrior from the Mahabharata. It features three divine arrows, as described in the epic. Fittingly, the chowk where it stands was already named after Barbrik, the grandson of Bhima and son of Ghatotkacha.

Dhir said the structure had been sponsored by Universal Sports Industries located closeby. "The sports group had shown keenness in getting it designed well. Their teams coordinated with MC officials and local artists to ready the concept and get it designed to perfection. They shall also ensure its maintenance", he said.

Anurag Chadha, owner of Universal Sports Industries, said, "We were approached by Bhagat to sponsor a landmark structure for the chowk. Our GM Ajay Aggarwal coordinated with Joint Commissioner, MC, Mandeep Kaur and artist Pragati Gupta for creating the beautiful piece which has become a head turner for all commuters passing by this busy intersection of the city".

Artists Pragati Gupta and Gurpreet Singh, who run Sculpting Together Art Studio at Rama Mandi, along with their team of craftsmen have worked for over 40 days to get the piece readied. The studio, which came up just three years ago, has to its credit the designing of 7-8 metal sculptures of Lord Shiva ahead of Kumbh Mela which found place at Shivalaya Park at Prayagraj.

Says Gupta, who graduated in fine arts from Lovely Professional University, "We were consulted for designing an art piece for the chowk. We suggested that the best option would be to erect a piece which would symbolise the name of the chowk and hence the idea came up. We shared a few design concepts and finally this piece with three arrows in the quiver got selected". The artists are also designing a 'matka' like structure with two-way water flow at Sri Guru Ravidas Chowk which too is set to be inaugurated any time soon.

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Historical background

Veer Barbrik and his three infallible arrows

As per the epic, Veer Barbrik had learnt the art of warfare from his mother Maurvi. He had received the three infallible arrows from Goddess Agni, which made him so powerful that he could defeat any enemy. The warrior was heading to participate in the Mahabharata with his three arrows and directions from his mother to support the side that was losing the battle. Lord Krishna knew the power of his arrows and asked for his head, which he offered. His head witnessed the entire war and he was named Khatu Shyamji after the name of Khatu village in Rajasthan, a prominent site for worship in the Hinduism.