Covid19 pandemic forced me to think of the ‘Durga Pata’ for this years celebrations . The first few months were spent in deliberating whether or not to have a full fledged durgotsav this year . When we finally decided to go ahead , it was too late ( for the lazy me ) to sculpt a clay pratima . So I thought I will go by the proverbial Bengali expression “ ghat-ey pat-ey puja “ , meaning puja in ghat and pata chitra .
Out of the various materials that may be used to sculpt an image of a god prescribed in the shastras , one is painted medium . The deity may simply be painted and worshipped . Bengal have had a long lasting tradition of worshipping durga in painted patachitra images . However Bengal has also been the land of much political turmoil starting with coming of Islam and ending with east india company and the partition . And that has taken a serious toll on bengal’s artistry and continuity of traditions . Today the pata traditions of Bengal are sitting on the verge of extinction , having been severely distorted by british induced realistic art and lack of patronage . So much so that most “scholars ” now classify it as a ‘folk’ art form . However these scholars fail to question themselves , how can an artform whose very name originates in Sanskrit ( patta meaning cloth and chitra meaning painting ) and whose subjects are sourced from puranas , can be classified as ‘folk’ . The same old question strikes again - what makes an art “folk” or “classical” ?! It is extremely important for every scholar to realise that demarcations between folk and classical are not well definined in India as it is in the west . Folk often gives rise to the Shastriya ( classical ) , and shastriya gives birth to new folk traditions !
Coming back , the harsh fact is that bengal’s patachitra traditions have been severely distorted in the last 300 years of its history . The finesse , skill and expertise that one sees in patachitra paintings from just a 150 years ago , are no longer to be found in modern patas anymore ! Therefore the modern Durga Patas failed to provide me with any substantial inspiration . My inspiration came from those antique patas which are now housed in museum collections spread over the world . And my target was to resurrect the lost durga pata of Bengal as it would have been , say a 150 or a 200 years back . A durga pata which would be truthfull to the style of pata painting and stand out in all its glory . The trick here was not to end up drawing a copy image of a clay pratima . A pratima has its own artistic style . A patachitra’s stylisation is very different !
I would also like to take this opportunity to draw attention to the artform of chaal-citra paintings that adorn the backdrop ( prabha ) of a typical traditional durga murti . That artform is also sitting on the brink of extinction . Talking about art , even Swami Vivekananda had once praised chaal chitra paintings ( which in his days were way more meticulous and classic ) . His praise was because these artforms are India’s own art . They speak of our culture and our land in our own terms without having to mimic western art . Much later Vivekananda’s western disciple , Sister Nivedita would persuade and encourage great artists such as Abanindranath tagore and others to break away from European painting norms and start painting in India’s own style . Thus began the famous Bengal school of art movement which grew in force alongside the rising current of indian freedom movement , and eventually gave way to modern indian art in 20th century .
It’s a real shame , that we are letting go of that chal-chitra paintings so easily . Most family pujas are opting to buy cheap readymade printed patas for their pratimas .
A 100 years ago when Kalighat paintings went extinct under ever increasing pressure of lithograph prints , no one seemed to take notice . Today people all over the world are treasuring kalighat and wanting a comeback . Shall we let the same fate happen to chaal-chitra paintings too ?! If Bengal has given you such a beautiful festival as durgotsav , can you not give back to Bengal by vowing to buy only hand painted paintings for your family durga pratima ?!
15 окт 2024
