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Indian Sand Artist Breaks Record for World's Tallest Sandcastle

Who could have ever guessed that one can get so far in life just by playing in the sand? World renown sand artist Sudarsan Pattnaik attempted a world record for the world's tallest sand castle along Puri beach in the Indian state of Odisha over the past two weeks and representatives of the Guinness Book of World Records flew down to check on the attempt. Pattnaik worked with 45 students from his Sudarsan Sand Art Institute as well as about 500 laborers in the sand over a period of 9 days to complete the structure. They focused the design around the theme of "World Peace" and carved global icons of peace, such as Mahatma Gandhi, Gautama Buddha, and Nelson Mandela, into their work of sand art. The team was aiming to beat the previous record held by American master sculptor Ted Siebert of 45 feet ten inches. In the end, the official height came in at a whopping 48 feet 8 inches, helping the team to secure a Guinness World Record on Friday. Pattnaik hopes that the new record as well as some of his other previous victories will draw attention and funding from the Indian government to help him accomplish his main dream - setting up a sand art park in his home state.