Derived from the Sanskrit word Patta (canvas) and Chitra (painting), Patachitra of Odisha originated in the 12th century. The Patachitra of Raghurajpur uses combination of pleasant colour layout and well-integrated fine lines. The paintings reflect diverse hues of deities Jagannath, Balaram, Subhadra and Jagannath Temple as the theme of their paintings. Later on the artists improvised on themes like Krishna Leela, Raas Leela, Ramayana, Mahabharata, Ganesha etc. In order to cater to the present market the artists have started painting on themes like Buddha and The Tree of life. According to the artists the tradition of Patachitra painting is linked with the Jagannath tradition of Odisha. According to the Hindu mythology Lord Brahma – the generator of the universe drew the figures of Lord Jagannath, Balarama and Subhadra on a piece of cloth with charcoal. It is since then the Patachitra artists of Odisha use cloth as their canvas.
The colours used are bright white, red, yellow, blue, green and black and are prepared from natural ingredients. White is prepared from powder of conch-shell, yellow from Haritala (a kind of stone), red from Geru (red oxide stone) or Hingula and black from burning lamp and coconut shell, blue from Khandaneel. Natural gum of wood apple called ‘kaitha’ is mixed with the colors along with water in coconut shells while painting to ensure their fastness. It was noticed that the artists are rarely using natural colours these days because the process of making natural colours is time consuming and the raw materials required are expensive. The artists use buffalo hair to make brushes for the thick lines while rat or squirrel hair is used for making brushes meant for finer line work.
The extraordinary detailing of the subjects painted with intricate lines by handmade brushes is one of the specialties of Odisha Patachitra.
The artists have their own way of making canvas which are made of cotton clothes but looks like paper after finishing. At the beginning, a strip of cotton cloth is soaked in water which is filled with tamarind seeds. Later on another two layers cotton cloths are added one after another. After drying it in the Sun the artist then adds a coat of chalk and gum and put it under the Sun again to dry. He then rubs the canvas with stones so that it gets a glossy finish and a smooth surface.
There are 140 households in Raghurajpur and more than 350 artists practice Patachitra. The village is home to 7 National Award winners and more than 10 State Awardees. The community is well aware o....
There are 140 households in Raghurajpur and more than 350 artists practice Patachitra. The village is home to 7 National Award winners and more than 10 State Awardees. The community is well aware of their tradition that finds its way back till the 12th Century. Except Patachitra painting the village boasts of art forms such as Palm Leaf etching, papier- mâché toys, masks, cow dung toys etc. The artists are also involved in delicate brushwork on Tussar silk, stone and wood carvings, coconut painting and painted boxes that are displayed on meticulously clean stone front porches. The front room of each house serves as studio cum exhibition space. The men comprise the bulk of painters but the women also play substantial role in different stages of craft making. Preparation of colour, making of Chitrapati (the cloth on which the painting is done) is usually done by women. Some women, one of them is State award winner, do painting and teach the skill to their daughters. Other women are usually engaged in coconut painting, papier- mâché, cow dung toys and wooden toys. The younger generation irrespective of their sex is also taking interest in the traditional art form. Many of the artists had visited countries like France, Japan , England to conduct workshops. The village has provision for international artists to come and stay in the village and learn the various art forms from the experts under Raghurajpur International Art and Cultural Exchange (RIA/CE).
Ever since Raghurajpur was recognized as a heritage village, tourists in greater numbers from India and abroad come here to admire art and purchase it directly from the artists. Also the village is only 11 km from Puri so pilgrims also visit the village and buy Patachitra and other diversified products such as painted kettle, Tussar painting, bottle painting etc. All the artists have a small veranda in front of their houses which they use as their studio as well as sales point. The visiting tourist buy Patachitra and other products directly from the artist. The artists also have their personal contacts through which they get orders. The youths also use social media to market their products.
He is a 24 years old young artist who thinks that a development of the art as well as the village Raghurajpur is needed. He started learning the art form at the age of 12 from Rabindra Mahapatra, a local artist. Pattachitra is his main area of interest. But sometimes he paints on Kettles, coconuts, glass bottles, even makes paper-mache masks.
A pattachitra National Award (2009) winner, Gangadhar Maharana is a vastly experienced artist. He learned painting pattachitra from his father and the pioneer Late Jagannatha Mahapatra. Like most young artists he doesn’t run after the tourists to sell his paintings. His house is in the less populated area of the village where throughout the day he works. He generates new ideas of painting. He gets orders from various organizations and boasts of sending his work to different parts of the world. He will never be seen selling any of his painting in the village. According to him the younger generation should learn more about the art form. The basically learn to paint but not the stories behind the paintings. Even the world should know more about the Odisha Pattachitra. He received his Kalamani Award in 2014.
He is one of the few who makes the ‘chitrapati’ or the canvas of Pattachitra in the village. He does not keep too many pattachitra paintings in his house as most of his works can be found in different showrooms in Bhubaneswar and Puri. Even some people of the village buy his paintings and sell them in theirs shops. As per Ashok Behera, the future of Odisha Pattachitra looks bright. The scenario of the art form is changing rapidly. Previously people used to confuse Odisha Pattachitra with the Madhubani Paintings of Bihar. For the past few years Odisha Pattachitra has come under the limelight and the village has also got recognition. But what frightens him more is that nowadays only a few handpicked artists make the traditional ‘Tin Mandir’ (Three Temples) or the ‘Jatri Pati’ (Travellers’ Scroll’) pattachitra. A revival of such ancient and traditional scrolls is direly needed to keep them in the flow.
He is a retired school teacher and wants to safeguard the traditionality of this art form. Except Pattachitra, the artists of Raghurajpur paint on bottles, kettles, coconuts etc. These are not traditional art forms and he is not at all pleased with these art forms. After retiring from his profession he took up to paint and has indulged himself into the revival and safeguard of the traditional art form. He is also writing a book on pattachitra and the history of the village Raghurajpur.
An artist of more than 40 years of experience, Parikshita Maharana’s first canvas was house walls. At the age of 12 he started learning pattachitra from Dinant Maharana in his Gurukul. After years of training he came up to be a very promising artist. Another guru Bhagwata Maharana sharpened his skills and taught him how to make pick out stories from mythological stories which is the tradition of Odisha Pattachitra. That was the most valuable teaching he has ever received. Even of today he finds subjects or themes of paintings from mythological texts. He has travelled widely and participated in exhibitions in collaboration with the Govt. of Odisha. He has been to Goa, Ooty, Bangalore, Patna, Mumbai, Delhi, Paradip, Sambalpur and acknowledged by the Governors of the states.
A disciple of the magnificent late Jagannath Mahapatra, Sarat Kumar Sahoo is a renowned artist. He has gone to London in 1982 to participate in a Workshop. An artist of eminent calibre, he is known for intricate line works. He wants the youth to participate and learn from the elders as that is the only way to continue the tradition. He is also a State (2010) and National (2014) awardee.He is also interested in teaching others.
A very young and promising artist Sachikanta has very high hopes about his tradition. He started learning to paint from his father at the age of 5. He has travelled to other cities carrying his tradition and took part in exhibitions in Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi etc. Now he dreams of going to the USA to showcase his art form.
He is an artist of immense reputation. Learned from Kailash Maharana, He has been associated with this art form for more than twenty years. Apart from pattachitra he is also adept in palm-leaf etching, coconut paint and bottle painting. He has participated in festivals in cities like Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Chennai.
He has learnt painting Pattachitra from his father who is a State Awardee. Like his father he also excels in his work. He is enthusiastic to inform everybody about the rich cultural heritage of Odisha Pattachitra. During winter the village becomes a destination for the tourists. They come in numbers throughout the day and the artists don’t get enough time to do art work. He criticised that most of the pattachitras have the same designs and line works which have been going on for a long time. Implementing new designs will be something very good for them. He is of the opinion that recently Odisha Pattachitra is losing its market as tourists often get misguided by the cab-drivers. Because of that the future of Odisha Pattachitra maybe at stake as young kids are not interested in learning this art form as soon it will stop generating enough money to sustain livelihoods.
The tradition of pattachitra painting runs in his family. The son of State Award winner Gopal Maharana, Akash himself was awarded with Parampara award. Krishna-Leela, Hanuman-Katha, Stories of Lord Ganesha and other Gods find life in Akash’s canvas. He has gone to Kolkata, Delhi, and Mumbai to participate in exhibitions. Every year he goes to Delhi in the month of June to paint the temple of Lord Jagannatha.
He is a renowned Pattachitra artist and palm-leaf etcher. After learning from his father and elder brother, he started his career as a pattachitra artist and it’s been 35 years. Mostly he sends his works in Bhubaneswar and Puri and sometimes to middlemen who buy his work and send to other places. He has participated in many exhibitions throughout the country that includes Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Delhi etc. As he says the art has survived and will always be there, but the traditional heritage which is a non-separable element, is on the verge of extinction. The youths are intelligent and skillful artists but the story that lies behind every pattachitra is completely unknown to them and they are making copies of what their ancestors have done so far.
A very young artist and art enthusiast, Prakash Swain started learning Pattachitra after finishing his studies in 2013. His guru is Universe Maharana who is also a noted pattachitra artist. Pattachitra is Prakash’s primary area of action. He can also do palm-leaf etching.
Abhiram Das’ has learnt painting Pattachitra from his neighbour Sarat Kumar Sahoo. He has spent almost 20 years with the art form and hopes to safeguard the originality of it. He has put all his concentration on producing excellent work since he was 15. He is also adept in palm-leaf etching and cow-dung toys. He has travelled almost every part of the country to showcase his work.
The most popular figure in the village Raghurajpur, Sridhara Moharana is a happy-go-lucky person. His smiling face and childish behaviour attract everyone towards him. Krishna Moharana, his father, guided him in the path of pattachitra painting and later on his father-in-law Padmashri Jagannath Mahapatra illuminated his world of painting with finer hemisphere and devotion. The Ansara Pattachitra of Lord Jagannatha is painted by him. He has been to many European and Asian countries such as France, Russia , Thailand etc. to conduct workshops.Throughout India he has travelled widely to showcase the art forms. He has been awarded with the ‘Srikhetrasree’ award.
Swarnalata started painting patachitra at a very young age as this is inherent in her family. She has learnt to paint patachitra from her brother Binod Maharana. She paints stories of Puran, Ganesh, Lakshmi and Saraswati. She has participated in fair in Bhubaneshwar, She has won the State Award in 2016.
Sarojani is a veteran patachitra artist of Raghurajpur and has been painting for the last forty years. She has learnt from her husband Praful Kumar Moharana. She paints Ramayana, Mahabharata, wooden painting and paper mache. She has showcased her talent in Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi, Lucknow, DehraDun and Mumbai.
Radhamani has been painting for the last twenty years. She has learnt from her husband Harihar Moharana an established patachitra artist himself. Apart from Pattachitra, she is a renowned cow-dung toy maker.
A versatile human being, Jitendra Behera is a pattachitra artist and also a guide to the visiting tourists. He spent two years under the guidance of Rabindra Mahapatra and Bhaskar Mahapatra and learnt the basics of pattachitra painting. Harihar Maharana further sharpened his skills and made him what he is today.In his span of almost 15 years he has worked with Dakshinachitra Museum of Tamil Nadu. He has also conducted workshops in DakshinaChitra Museum of Tamil Nadu.
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This research project, Heritage Sensitive Intellectual Property and Marketing strategies: India (HIPAMS - INDIA), is funded by the British Academy's Sustainable Development Programme, supported under the UK Government's Global Challenges Research Fund 2018-2021.
