He acted as a catalyst in introducing Nepal as one of the pioneers in metal craft business. Few have dared to walk in his footsteps to join the path hardened by copper sheets and the only way to ease it is through a right stroke.

Shakya came with a succinct stroke, he flourished in the field of repousse, he achieved and his story will be a legend for many to hear.

Every minute aspect of the art runs throughout Shakya’s family, an art that stemmed from his great grandfather to his sons. The way he transformed his humble profession into an empire has a simple formula; the abundant mixture of hard work and proper connections. Even though he started learning the particular art at a tender age of seven, it took him 7-10 years to master it.

"My great-grandfather, my grandfather, my father worked in this profession with deliberate precision and passion. As there were no enough workshops, we worked at home and that is where my journey had begun. The first time I ever picked up that small hammer was to embroider an artifact which is also called Katanjya. As time moved on, I wanted to switch into a different stream, architecture. But the fact that I was the only son during that time put a lot of pressure in me to focus solely on the business," recalls Shakya.

His early years comprised of learning simple tasks that laid foundation for more complex works in coming days. He remembers the Tibet-China conflict, a torrid time for the Nepali artists who didn’t get as much of work as expected. The financial turbulence his father went through for several years was a lesson for him.

"All of us thought there would be a crane to lift them without much of fuss. I didn’t really give it much of a thought but when the time of placement came, there was no crane in our disposal. Instead we had to engineer a pulley system. But hardship is what made this statue worth the wait," remembered Shakya elaborating on the lengthiest process to give it a final shape.

"According to the agreement, we had to complete the statue in three years but that wasn’t really possible due to the magnitude of the project. We were successful in assembling the hands and the feet of the Guru but what about the parts above that? We improvised on it by accepting the nut bolt system. The head, the upper body had to be broken down into pieces and assembled like cars with its parts in a factory."

The harsh reality of the vanishing occupation struck him hard when he saw several youngsters distancing themselves from it. The young generation, with lots of options regarding its professional interest, has moved on to something upbeat and happening. "It leaves me broken-hearted to see the tradition disappear, especially when you are in love with it. This profession could reap good fruits but it is rarely advertised."

Shakya is a symbol of eternal hope to revive a field whose value has been diminishing. "The art and culture which we proudly boast at might be in dire need of our attention. If we don’t preserve our identity with respect, then who will? Like the last generation that missed its babies’ snaps in the phone, I don’t want be known as the last generation of Nepalese who lost their sight in metalcraft road. I have a dream for my country to have a temple or a statue as big as I made in Bhutan, may be even bigger. We have artists, the art, the talent but all of the works are being imported abroad. "