Etikoppaka is a small village on the banks of Varaha River in Visakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh, India.
The toys are made out of wood and are coloured with natural dyes derived from seeds, lacquer, bark, roots and leaves. The wood used to make the toys is soft in nature and the art of toy making is also known as Turned wood Lacquer craft. While making the Etikoppaka toys, lac, a colourless resinous secretion of numerous insects, is used. The already prepared vegetable dyes are further mixed to the lac, during the process of oxidation. After this process, the end product obtained is rich and colored lacquer. The lac dye is used for decorating the Etikoppaka toys.
