Indian businessman is weapons maker for Hollywood
Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2012 11:12 pm
Indian businessman is weapons maker for Hollywood
Sahibabad: On the outskirts of New Delhi, in a cramped concrete workshop where the air shimmers with the light of welding torches, an Indian businessman has become a master craftsman of Napoleonic swords. And medieval chain mail armor. And World War II hand grenades and helmets.
From Hollywood war movies to Japanese Samurai films to battle re-enactments across Europe, Ashok Rai, 31, is one of the world's go-to men for historic weapons and battle attire.
Mr Rai's workshop reverberates with the sounds of metal being hammered and beaten into chain mail, swords, axes, muskets, sabers, spears and helmets.
Mr Rai, a trapshooting enthusiast, says he has been a history buff since childhood.
"I would watch every war movie that came to town. All my life, I've been reading up on all the major battles in history. Now when we make medieval battle gear it's easy for me to explain to my craftsmen exactly what's to be done."
He dove into the business at age 17, when he heard a French champagne-maker needed 1,000 swords to give away as souvenirs.
Mr Rai, whose father had a small factory making tourist handicrafts, travelled to the northern city of Amritsar, the holy city of the Sikh religion, to find sword-makers to make the replicas.
Here is the link to the complete article http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/india ... herstories
Sahibabad: On the outskirts of New Delhi, in a cramped concrete workshop where the air shimmers with the light of welding torches, an Indian businessman has become a master craftsman of Napoleonic swords. And medieval chain mail armor. And World War II hand grenades and helmets.
From Hollywood war movies to Japanese Samurai films to battle re-enactments across Europe, Ashok Rai, 31, is one of the world's go-to men for historic weapons and battle attire.
Mr Rai's workshop reverberates with the sounds of metal being hammered and beaten into chain mail, swords, axes, muskets, sabers, spears and helmets.
Mr Rai, a trapshooting enthusiast, says he has been a history buff since childhood.
"I would watch every war movie that came to town. All my life, I've been reading up on all the major battles in history. Now when we make medieval battle gear it's easy for me to explain to my craftsmen exactly what's to be done."
He dove into the business at age 17, when he heard a French champagne-maker needed 1,000 swords to give away as souvenirs.
Mr Rai, whose father had a small factory making tourist handicrafts, travelled to the northern city of Amritsar, the holy city of the Sikh religion, to find sword-makers to make the replicas.
Here is the link to the complete article http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/india ... herstories