Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
When boredom reigns, creativity blooms... at least that was the case for Ulhasan Puthenpurayil.
Quiet and reserved by nature, there is much more to Ulhasan than meets the eye.
What sets him apart is a rare talent for creating magnificent buildings out of humble matchsticks, a hobby which began when he sat idle in his bakery back home in Kannur, India
He said: "I observe buildings and think of how I can work around them."
When he is not working at the Mothercare warehouse department, Ulhasan, 38, from Gudaibiya, is busy creating models such as famous south Indian landmark the Parassinikadavu Temple or the Taj Mahal or designing miniature homes from matchsticks on cardboard and thermocol plaster platforms.
He said: "Since the Thermocol available here is better than that in India, I once took some of it from here and made the structure of the temple and donated it there.
"People here often ask me to make them this temple, or models of the homes they plan to build."
In just four years on the island, Ulhasan from India has already made a mark in people's hearts as the matchstick man.
K Ramachandran, 43, a manager from Hoora, is one of the many proud owners of his art work.
He said: "Three years ago a friend introduced me to Ulhasan.
"A year ago I went to him with the plans of a house that we planned to build in India and in just two weeks he gave me the house.
"When I saw it I was so impressed and was very happy. All our friends who visit give rave compliments on the model."
From the age of 16, Ulhasan has been creating things. At home in India, he has produced several models including human body parts for the biology department in a school and a boat in a bottle as well as the temples and houses for which he is more well known.
The father of one, whose family is still in India, said: "I randomly began making cards out of laces and then started working on Thermocol.
"Then one day I just decided to use matchsticks and create different buildings."
Ulhasan's tools include cardboard boxes, Thermocol, spray paint, bamboo sticks, X-Ray films and glue alongside a minimum of 15 packets of long matchsticks at a time.
If you would like him to create the matchstick mini-mansion of your dream home, you can contact him on 36700723.
