Rampur, October 16: Setting an example of communal harmony, a Muslim family in Uttar Pradesh's Rampur city has been making Ravana effigies for Dussehra celebrations for decades. A Muslim by faith, Zaid Khan and his family has been crafting these effigies for decades. Speaking to ANI, Zahid Khan, said, "I have been making these effigies for 35-40 years. My family has been making them for generations. Hindus and Muslims all live together happily here and together make these Ravana effigies. We celebrate each other's festivals as well." Sita Was Abducted by Ram & Not Ravana? Says Class 12 Sanskrit Textbook in Gujarat.

Khan said that labourers working with him belong to both the Hindu and Muslim community. He further said that despite selling around 20-25 statues every year in various parts of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Delhi and Haryana, they could not earn a lot of money out of it. The workers who make these effigies also fill it with crackers for dramatic effects while burning the Ravanas.

Here is Zayid Khan's interview:

"Whoever takes these Ravanas from us praise us a lot, they say we do good work and always come back next year. However, we don't make a lot of money out of these effigies. We work hard, but financially, we are stuck," Khan added. Dussehra 2018: Why Is Ravana Worshipped and Not Burnt In Some Parts of India?

He said that, despite the low-profit business, his family has been making these effigies because of their belief in the message of 'victory of good over evil', one that the story of Lord Ram's victory over Ravana conveys. Not only in Aligarh, in other cities like Delhi and Mumbai too,  the artisans who make these effigies, are also Muslims.

(With ANI inputs)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 16, 2018 03:46 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).