Nowadays, children are achieving remarkable things at a young age, and ten-year-old Anay Kotecha from Solihull is no exception. He lives with his parents, his sister adopted from India, and their two dogs. A cricket enthusiast, Anay enjoys an active lifestyle as his family follows a mostly no-screen policy, spending time together through various creative and learning activities.
Speaking to Asian Voice, Anay shared, “In my free time, I enjoy doing puzzles, sometimes even 1,000-piece ones. I love building LEGO, I’m currently working on a Van Gogh sunflower set. I also like writing to famous people; I’ve written to Keir Starmer, Rishi Sunak, the King, and even David Attenborough. Besides that, I have three pen pals; one in Tokyo, whom I’ve been writing to for about two years, one in Germany, and one in the United States.”
Passionate about exploring modern ways to connect with his faith, Anay shared some of his creative activities: “I do a Diwali tree, it’s like a Christmas tree, but for Diwali. I also have a Diwali Advent Calendar, a 30-day countdown to the festival. Every year, I make my own dog-friendly Holi powders and prepare Indian sweets like gulab jamun and barfis in unique flavors; Oreo, mango, rose, and Ferrero Rocher-inspired.”
Anay was also inspired by the opening of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. He explained, “For Ram Navami, I decided to study the history of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. PM Modi was inspirational in ensuring the Mandir opened, so I created a complete timeline and sent it to him.”
This year, Anay combined his love for LEGO and devotion by building a 10,000-piece model of the Ram Mandir. “I love LEGO, and I have Ganesh, Ram, and Krishna sets from Index Bricks,” he said. “So, I decided to build the Ram Mandir to put the Ram LEGO in.”
Reflecting on the challenges, Anay explained, “There was a tall tower at the top with a flag. Every time I placed it, it would break, and we had to rebuild it until it stayed. There were at least ten towers all around. It was really hard and took five and a half months. I used to wake up at 6:30, start LEGO while my dad made breakfast, then continue after breakfast. After school, I did my homework and then more LEGO. On weekends, since there’s still no TV except Sundays, I worked on it then too.”
His favourite part of building the Mandir, he said, was seeing how many small pieces came together to create something beautiful. “The bottom floor took me about two months. My favourite part was the back of the Mandir with the tall pillars, I loved putting them in.”
Anay hopes his LEGO Mandir can travel across the country so elderly people who cannot visit Ayodhya can experience its beauty. “A lot of elderly people won’t be able to travel to India to see the Mandir, so LEGO allows them to see it and do darshan. It’s about religion, and everybody can appreciate it and pray. My sister, my two dogs, and I also make cards and wear Indian clothes. This year, we had the Ram Mandir there, and we sent it to everyone we know. If you can’t visit Ayodhya, come and see my Mandir, it’s welcome to everybody. It’s everybody’s Mandir.”
When asked about his favorite story from the Ramayana, Anay said, “I like the story when Lord Ram went to hunt the deer for Sita. Lakshman went to find him, but first drew a protective circle around Sita. When Ravan disguised as a beggar came, Sita stepped out to give him food. Then Ravan took her to Lanka in his chariot. Jatayu tried to stop him but was injured in the process.”
Looking ahead, Anay is already planning new LEGO projects. “I would like to build the Somnath Mandir in India. It will have 3,000 fewer pieces than the Ram Mandir because I haven’t built a project that big yet.”
