Sadhus are Indian holy men.
They appear much the same today as they did hundreds of years ago. Their look is quite straight forward, no
clothes and lots of hair-they never cut it. They also like
to rub wood ash into their skin, all over, which makes them appear white or blueish
grey. The effect is striking and somewhat
unearthly which I guess is the point. Sometimes they bleached their hair to a sort of tow colour. The
final touch is accomplished with red and yellow painted devotional marks on the brow or shoulders. During the Great Indian Rising /Mutiny bands
of these devotees armed themselves and fought.
Indus Miniatures do some very nice ones in 28mm but in 15mm there is
nothing.
I decided I wanted a unit of these chaps for my Krishnapur
games. They can lurk in temples or suddenly sally forth. Sadhus have and had a reputation for unpredictability.
First, I needed some naked lads with swords. Easy enough you might say but actually it’s not. I finally chose QRF’s Pict naked fanatics. These had the advantage of being naked and carrying a small round shield with central boss and a sword too. Or at least half of them did, the others have a small square Pictish shield. I had thought the shields to be separate which would be irritating if you were doing Picts but a godsend if you were converting armed Sadhus.
First, I needed some naked lads with swords. Easy enough you might say but actually it’s not. I finally chose QRF’s Pict naked fanatics. These had the advantage of being naked and carrying a small round shield with central boss and a sword too. Or at least half of them did, the others have a small square Pictish shield. I had thought the shields to be separate which would be irritating if you were doing Picts but a godsend if you were converting armed Sadhus.
So, with ‘Green Stuff’ and wearing my new Magnivisor Deluxe
I applied little green sausages to produce enormous beards and ‘dreadlocks’. These I then incised, gentle pressure lines from top to bottom, with an old scalpel
blade to imply hair. This is how they
came out.
If you think those beards excessive have a look at some photos of Victorian British men and they trimmed theirs. Now a rear view.
I would urge anyone stymied for a figure, don't be afraid of the 'Green Stuff' a bit of practice and you will be alright. A good starting point is to look at the figure in your hand-how was it made? Don't like your first attempt? Rip it off and start again.
Now the finished article.
Good enough for 15mm I think. As to their fighting ability, average I think and no firepower. They will keep coming though.
I might be a bit more ambitious, a few bangles and whatnot, with the next eight. I also need to make a temple, maybe two and a possibly a Mosque. I have a cunning plan for the temple It might even work.
Now the finished article.
Good enough for 15mm I think. As to their fighting ability, average I think and no firepower. They will keep coming though.
I might be a bit more ambitious, a few bangles and whatnot, with the next eight. I also need to make a temple, maybe two and a possibly a Mosque. I have a cunning plan for the temple It might even work.
They do look the biz OB, great conversion work.
ReplyDeleteMuch appreciated Ray. I might add a trident or two to the next batch.
ReplyDeleteI stumbled across this quite by chance. Thanks for leading the way. I need to field a unit of 5,000 "fakirs called aityles and brackys" (bairagis or sadhus) who sided with the Rathors against De Boigne at the Battle of Patan in 1790.
ReplyDeleteYou are very welcome Sukhe.
ReplyDeleteHow did you get the green stuff to stick? I'm trying my own but I can't get the damnable stuff to adhere to the metal.
ReplyDeleteMake sure you have your green and blue strands properly mixed. You need half of each.
ReplyDeleteBlend it until both original colours have disappeared and the mixture is a uniform darker green.
The more blue you use the harder the mixture. The more green the softer and stickier it will be.
For this job you need a half and half mix.
Keep the blade of your sculpting tool wet, not dripping wet, just wet. It will stop the green stuff sticking to your blade and lifting off the model.
Let me know if that works for you.
Thanks for the tip. I know some modellers adjust the blue/yellow proportions while some add a drop of glue into the mix. I wondered if you'd tried that. I have enough sadhus to represent the two main sadhu factions the vaishnavites (U shaped pundra forehead marking) and the shaivites (the tripundra 3 horizontal lines and dot marking). I have enough figures to want to experiment with the hairstyles from full Muppet Animal look, to Bob Marley dreads, and have given them axes, daggers, iron-shod lathis and spears. I tried adding beads, but the closest I can come is gluing thread onto them which is proving fiddly enough since in 15mm scale even a 1mm line is the equivalent of 4 inches.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy to help if I can. I've never tried adding glue.
ReplyDeleteOn the beads, it's a challenging one. I've done something similar. Roll a very thin line of mixed green stuff between your thumb and forefinger, you finger tips need to be damp to stop it sticking. Lift it off with a scalpel or some such and put it of the figure. Use the point of the scalpel to to get it in place. When you're happy wet the scalpel and very gently pat it down just so it sticks. 15 minutes later it will have begun to harden. Wet your scalpel and using the blunt side indent at regular intervals to produce the beads. I find it useful to have a paper tissue to hand to dab on the work area if any water runs down the blade and obscures what you are doing.
As with most things practice really helps.
I should have said earlier that it's best to work in stages. For example do the beards first and then set aside and allow to dry. Next day begin the hair.
It's tricky work in 15mm but it's doable with patience and your technique will improve as you go.
I look forward to seeing your first models.
So do I - thanks again for the tip. I'm familiar enough in 28mm but 15mm is quite another proposition...
ReplyDeleteI can imagine its a big transition to pretty much half the size.
ReplyDelete