Page 6 - Jul-Sep 2014

PLEASING PATACHITRA

The Patachitra is one of the oldest folk painting forms of India. It is practised in Odisha. The word Patachitra is derived from
‘pata’ meaning canvas and ‘chitra’ meaning picture. It is rich in colour and mostly depicts mythological themes.

Where: Odisha rAGHUrAJPUr- A PAtACHitrA
done by: Male chitrakars; women assist by preparing the glue and ViLLAGE
pigments.
Style: Mixture of folk and classical elements, folk element being raghurajpur, in
predominant. Odisha, is today a
perfect example of
Medium: Canvas which is prepared by coating chalk and gum a living workshop
extracted from tamarind seeds. Painting is done by brush and then it of craftsmen. This
is filled with colour. The final painting is given a lacquer coating. it is place is home to
also done on palm leaf, and is called Tala Patachitra. numerous chitrakars
Colours used: Vegetable and mineral colours. white is made from who according to legend were commissioned to
conch shells; Hingula is used for red; Haritala for yellow; paint the wooden walls of the Jagannath temple
and Ramaraja, a kind of indigo, is used for blue. and also the rathas during the ratha yatras in
Motifs used: Jagannath and Vaishnava cult, Puri.
incarnations of Vishnu, gita govind, radha- iNTaCh with the help of other
Krishna, temple activities, various gods organisations has tried to breathe
and goddesses etc. life into these dying forms of art.
it has developed raghurajpur in
Odisha as a heritage village.
Patachitra is a term for traditional
cloth-based scroll painting. These
paintings are based on hindu
mythology and are inspired by the For making the intricate
cults of Jagannath and Vaishnava Patachitra paintings, women
bhakti. These paintings are made members of the house prepare
using natural colour.
the glue and canvas and apply
Swetapadma Nanda, X C, D.A.V. Public the fill-in colours, and give
School, Bhubaneshwar the final lacquer coating. The
master hand is mostly a male
member who draws the initial
The Patachitras of Odisha are iconic lines and gives the final finish.
paintings that include wall paintings,
manuscript paintings, palm leaf etchings, Baibhabi Patnaik, IX C, Bharatiya Vidya
Bhavan’s Public School, Jubilee Hills,
and paintings on cloth. Painters around Puri Hyderabad
specialise in this form of art. These paintings
were traditionally drawn by the Mahapatras.
Illustration by: Arpna Jain, X C, Hans Raj Model School, New Delhi
Ayushi Bansal, IX A, Hansraj Model School, New Delhi

ACTIVITY- PReSeNT IN PATAChITRA
Patachitra is the oldest and most popular art form of
Odisha. The tradition of Patachitra paintings are more Make a Patachitra depicting any current issue.
than thousand years old. They are endemic to Odisha You can choose from political, social, cultural, or
but are popular all across the country. environmental themes from the present day. Also
explain why you have chosen the theme.
Kavya, VIII A, Delhi School of Excellence, Hyderabad

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