Pattachitra Art

Pattachitra A Traditional Heritage Art Form :

Pattachitra Art is an old traditional art of Odisha and West Bengal. These paintings are based on Hindu religious stories and folk lore specially inspired by Jagannath and Vaishnava sect. Some of the popular themes of this religious art are The Badhia ,Krishna Lila ,Dasabatara Patti (the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu) and Panchamukhi (a depiction of Lord Ganesh as a five-headed deity).

Origin of Pattachitra :

Pattachitra  art form is  originated  in 5th century and became famous in 7th century but some peoples believes that it is originated in the 12th century as there is a story behind pattachita - On the Debasnana Purnima day (Full moon day of Jyestha month), the Gods of Jagannath, Puri, have a ritualistic bath with 108 pots of cold water to fight the heat of summer. Afterward, the deities supposedly fall sick for a period of 15 days i.e. the first fortnight of Asadha. During this period, known as Anasar, the devotees don’t have Darshan of their beloved Lord at the Ratnavedi. Instead, three paintings, of Lord Jagannath ,Balabhadra and Maa Subhadra, kown as “Anasar Patti” are made by traditional Chitrakaras of Orissa, who are experts in the art of Pattachitra.

Patta paintings of Orissa have evolved and flourished under the cult of Lord Jagannath and therefore considered to be as old as the temple of Lord Jagannath at Puri, i.e. 12th Century A.D.

Places where Pattachitra found:

The best work of pattachitra art  is found in the village of Raghurajpur of puri district .Also This old tradition painting still survives in the places like  Puri, Danda Sahi, Parlakhemundi, Chikiti, Digapahandi, Sonepur, Dharakote of Odisha and Birbhum, West Midnapore, Nayagram of Pingla blockin Jhargram, Bardhaman, Murshidabad district and Kalighat region of West Bengal.

Procedure of creating Pattachitra  :

 The name Pattachitra has evolved from the Sanskrit word ‘patta’, meaning cloth, and ‘chitra’, meaning picture. Pattachitra  are done on small strips of cotton cloth.  The canvas is prepared by coating the cloth with a mixture of chalk and gum ,the gum is made out of tamarind seeds. This is then rubbed into the cloth using two different stones. Finally, the cloth is dried. The mixture of gum and chalk gives the cloth’s surface a leathery finish. The artist paints on this using colours. The artist do not use pencil or charcoal for the preliminary drawings. they simply draw directly with the brush using the colours. After this, the rest of the colours are filled in and the final lines are drawn, A floral border is a must in Pattachitra paintings with applied colours . All colours used in the Paintings are natural and are made using old traditional way by pattachitra artist called as Chitrakaras white color is made using conch shells, a mineral colour named hingula is used as red colour and a stone named harikala is used for yellow color. Ramaraja’ a sort of indigo for blue,Pure lamp-black or black is prepared by burning coconut shells. 

Finally, the brushes that are used by these ‘Chitrakaras’ are made up of the hair from domesticated animals. Brushes are fashioned out of clumps hair tied to the end of a bamboo stick.This brushes creates a distinct look  to the painting after that the pattachitra is given a lacquer coating to protect it from weather. This makes the painting glossy and more eye-catching. Finally the process of glazing or varnishing is done. The painting is held over a fireplace so that the back of the painting is exposed to heat. On the heated surface of the painting a fine lacquer is applied.

Time  to  Fabricate Pattachitra:

You will be surprised to know that Pattachitra paintings require immense patience, intense hard work and skilled craftsmanship. A single Pattachitra painting takes at least five to 15 days, while some even taking months to complete. The timing to carve one Pattachitra painting depends upon the level of intricacy and size of the paintings. However, it takes years of practice, dedication and skill for an artisan to carve a flawless and magnificent piece.

Aspects Of Pattachitra :

The pattachitra paintings of Odisha can be divided into three categories paintings on cloth or 'Patta Chitra', paintings on walls or 'Bhitti Chitra' and palm leaf engravings or "Tala Patra Chitra' or "Pothi, Chitra'. And The Bengal Patachitra is divided into some different aspects like Durga Pat, Chalchitra, Tribal Patachitra, Medinipur Patachitra, and Kalighat Patachitra. 

Famous Artist of Pattachitra  :

Some of the Famous artist of pattachitra are Bijoy Parida ,Pranab Narayan Das, Dilip Kumar Maharana, Swarna Chitrakar, Anwar Chitrakar ,Rupsona Chitrakar, Imran Chitrakar, Soniya Chitrakar ,Rahim Chitrakar ,Jaba Chitrakar ,Sushama Chitrakar and many more contributed themselves in pattachitra .

Pattachitra art Tutelage :

Generally, Pattachitra art is practised by the entire family of chitrakars. While the women prepare the glue, the canvas and help out in filling the borders, the master painter, usually a male, draws the initial sketch and gives the final touches to the painting. Interestingly.

 Chitrakars today send their children out for exposure and education apart from training them in this traditional art form to ensure that they can run their own business rather than depending on middlemen.There are various government-run and private organisations that have opened up in the past several years.

Interpretation as the time changes:

 As the time changes apart from the usual canvas prepared from layers of cotton cloth these artists have also started painting on Tussar Silk, dried coconut shells, glass bottles and Palm leaves with the Stories related to Raas-Leela, Dashavatar, Ramayan, Jagannath, Ganesh, Buddha, are the most commonly painted scenes on the canvas.

       

Before Pattachitra is restricted to mythological characters. However, with changing times and the growing demand for this art, artist also started making tribal paintings that feature their everyday lives.The price of these paintings depends on the painting itself. There is a huge demand for detailed art work, especially with the motifs of idols.

It’s beauty, the traditional methods and the way it holds its place in the heart of people is the reason why this art is still in its full glory and holds a special place in the heart of people and it will live on for the years to come by…