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Joy of Making Indian Toys

By Sudarshan Khanna; Illustrations by D. K. Sharma; Published by National Book Trust, India

MANGO-SEED FAN MACHINE

You need two mango seeds, a pointed bamboo stick and a piece of thread.

(1) One of the mango seeds is hollowed out by cutting one end and scraping out the pulp with a knife.

(2) Also make a hole in the centre of this hollowed shell.

(3) Now take the other whole seed and force the pointed stick through its hard shell. The pulp inside it provides a firm grip to the stick. Tie the thread to the stick as shown.

(4) Now place this stick, along with the thread, in the hollowed shell. Pull the thread out from the hole made in the hollowed shell with the help of a wire. To play with this toy, first wind the thread by rotating the intact seed (A).

Now pull the thread at B with a jerk. You will notice that the intact mango seed (A) spins. With a little practice you can spin it continuously.