'Chitrakathi' The art of storytelling- Diagnostic study

National Institute of Fashion Technology, Mumbai

CHITRAKATHI THE ART OF STORYTELLING

CHITRAKATHI A tale of a storytelling craft narrated by Priti Bhengra Sawani Kulkarni Shashank Shekhar Singh Shrishti Bhandari Shikha Anand Sunayani Bhattacharya Unnati Shaurya

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PREFACE This craft cluster study is an initiative taken by National Institute of Fashion Technology under Ministry of Textiles to document and provide a helping hand to the crafts of India.

This document serves as a complete guide to the age old craft of Chitrakathi. it includes the history, process, tools, raw materials, motifs and everything else that makes Chitrakathi what it is today.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT We would like to express our gratitude to Mrs. Sushma Saitwal, Faculty, Fashion Communication Department and our mentor. We thank her for her timely guidance and expertise that greatly assisted the completion of this document.

We would also like to thank Mr. Parshuram Gangavane, Mr. Ganpat Mhasage and all the other craftsmen who gave us their valuable time to show us around and also shared their testimonials.

It would not have been possible without their cooperation.

Lastly, we appreciate the efforts of NIFT for providing us with this wonderful opportunity. This project helped us push our boundaries and learn something new about our Indian craft and culture. It gave us immense pleasure to interact with the craftsmen. It was an unforgettable experience of a lifetime.

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CONTENTS 1. Chitrakathi: The Art of Storytelling

1-2

a. History b. Style of the Painting

2. Kudal: Home to Chitrakathi

7-11

a. About Kudal b. How to Reach c. Pinguli

3. The Thakars

12-22

a. About the Artisans b. Thakar Adivasi Kala Angan (TAKA) b.1. TAKA as a Tourist Point c. The Lok Kalas

4. The Process

23-26

a. Original Style b. Contemporary Style

5. Analysis of Paintings

27-40

a. Social Hierarchy b. Female Costumes c. Male Costumes & Architecture d. Events & Splendour e. Motifs f. How to Recognise Chitrakathi Paintings

6. Artisan’s Say

41

7. Today’s Status

42

8. Preservation of Paintings

43-44

a. Factors b. Problems in Preservation

9. Gap Identification

45-46

10. Study of Similar Arts

47-58

a. Local Scenario b. Global Scenario

11. Awareness Among the Masses (Online Survey)

60-62

12. Interview

64-75

a. Parshuram Gangawane b. Ganpat Mhasage c. V. D. Kapate, MSSIDC d. Devyani Varaskar

13. Schemes

77

14. SWOT Analysis

78

15. Promotional Plan

79-80

16. Our Experience

81-86

a. Day Wise Schedule

17. Appendices

91

18. Annexure

92-96

a. Articles b. Contact List

19. Refereneces

97

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Chitrakathi The Art of Storytelling

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hitrakathi is an enchanting art of storytelling using paintings as a medium of visual communication which is accompanied by songs and narrations in their enthralling traditional forms. These stories usually unfold the tales of Mahabharata and Ramayana, with each frame of painting being a complete piece of art in itself. Its beauty is magnified when supported by the tunes of the Veena, the Taal, and the Hudak.

Pinguli was the area designated by the rulers of Sawantwadi for the Thakar community to perform this art. This was a way of entertainment for them. Thakars were nomads by origin and were believed to be the "secret service agents" to the ruler of Sawantwadi for almost 300 years and to the great Shivaji Maharaja as well. They materialize local versions of Ramayana and Mahabharata on paper.The Ramayana is divided into smaller segments as Bala Kand, Hanumana Prathapa (Lanka Dahana), Rama Ravana Yudha, Lava Kusha (Uththara Ramayana), etc; while in Maharashtra the important stories are the Rukmini swayamvara, Kichak Vadha, Babruvahana's Ashvamedha Yagna, Abhimanyu Vatsala Swayamvara, Jaimini Ashwamedha Yagna and Harishchandra and Taramati.

History Chitrakathi is a form of stor ytelling, using paintings done by the Sutradhars.It is accompanied by songs, narrations, and dialogues. The stories that they per form are from Ramayan and Mahabharata. The per formers would travel from village to village for six months per forming in temples and on occasions (if any).

In return, they would get mobadla grains. The purpose of Chitrakathi was to entertain people and praise the gods. Raja Khem Sawant gave each of the artisan families a temple and area to per form where they per form during Dussehra and Navratri ever y year.

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e

P

n g i t n ai

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hese paintings are done in two dimensions with black outlines. The face most of the time is shown sideways and their hands are shown with palms outwards. The feet are pointed to one side or angle only. The paintings as such have no proportions and perspectives. If the scene is in an enclosed space, a red border is made on the top, and if the scene is an outdoor setting there is no border and the sky is shown. They have a specific way of showing ears, eyes, earrings and even the dressing of the females. The motifs and borders have been used since their forefathers, this they do not want change either. The current motifs that th ey use are derived from the ones before. Their style and motifs, even in the current times are not influenced by the outside world or any other art form. In all the paintings, only three or four colours are used. The animals represented are smaller than humans and again, don't have any proportion. The motifs as one obser ves, are inspired from the nature and environment around them. Wavy lines from the ocean, flowers, and designs from the coconut tree, animal prints from around them, stones. All the motifs are a ver y deep reflection of nature.

Style o f t h

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Chitrakathi painting narrating the wedding of Ram and Sita, two major characters from .Ramayana

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2

Mahatma Gandhi painted on the wall to support Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

Painting promoting the use of cycles for an eco-friendly environment and healthy body.

Painting opposing the use of plastic bags.

'Save water promotion.

One of the most eye-catching sights of the town is the wall in the Kudal market which is painted to convolute various subjects from social to cultural.

Chitrakathi was amalgamated in one of these paintings (the picture on the left) to define Kudal and give its cultural identity.

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Kelbai Mandir located in the Kudal Market

Kudal : Home to Chitrakathi 7

Abo ut K ud al Location:

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ocated at the western coast of India, Kudal is a beautiful town situated in the centre of Sindhudurg district. The climate mostly stays warm and humid with annual temperature rising from 22 to 40 degree Celsius. It is around 16 km away

from its district headquarters, Oros. As it falls under Konkan region, Kudal receives heavy rainfall. The place gets some relief from the scorching heat of the summer when the monsoon arrives. In winters, the weather is quite pleasant.

Kudal is among the most visited places of the region as well as the state. Starting from luxurious to simple hotels, you can get almost ever ything here in this small town of Maharashtra.

How to Reach

Auto: A major mode of transport within the town Nearest Airport -Dabolim (103 kms), Belgaum (116 kms), Hubli (192 kms).

By Railways- Kudal Railway station offers a convenient access to many major city and around the region.

By Road- Kudal is connected by day buses from and to Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad.

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Nearest Airports : 85 km away Dabolim Airport (GOI), Goa 91 km away Sambre Airport (IXG), Belgaum, Karnataka

Kudal Railway Station

Bus Stand

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119

179

Pinguli Road r

Karli Rive

MAHARAHTRA

Road National Highway River

KUDAL

Sambre Airport Dabolim Airport

Transport Lines across Kudal

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Railway

OROS

MSSIDC MTDC

SARSOLI DHAM KUDAL RAILWAY STATION SARAMBAL PRATIKSHA NAGAR

BUS STAND MARKET

KELBAI MANDIR

AMBOLI WATERFALLS KAVLESAD SAATH POINT

KUMBHARWADI GANESHWADI

KUDAL MIDC AREA

MASHAGE’S MHASAGE'S HOUSE HOUSE GUDHIPUR

TAKA SAWANTWADI PALACE & MUSEUM

SUNDAR HOMESTAY

PINGULI GONDHALPUR

RAVALNATH MANDIR

MAHARAHTRA SAGARESHWAR BEACH

VENGURLA PORT KUDAL

Heritage sites and places visited in and around Kudal

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Pinguli

P

inguli is a small village in Kudal Taluka mainly known for Chitrakathi and 10 other Lok kalas practiced by the people of Thakar community who reside there. Pinguli is 3km away from the Kudal railway station. The roads are well connected and one can easily hire an auto or car to reach their destination.

The traces of long artistic and cultural background attract a lot of students and tourists.

People: Marathi is spoken by majority of the people residing in Kudal. Even the Thakars from Pinguli are fluent in Marathi but their mother tongue is a dialect of Malvani. Hindi, Kannada, English and Konkani are also understood by a few of them.

The people in general ar e ver y rooted and traditional and therefore most of the women still wear lugdas or choli or sari and the men are seen wearing dhoti or kurta with a topi. A major chunk of people still live in the villages where the walls of houses are plastered with cowdung and have sloping roofs. The Thakar community of pinguli village is one that is deeply connected to their culture.

Food: Considering this place falls under the Konkan region, it offers a variety of local preparations which are rich and distinct in their own way. The malvani cuisine is famous around the region. The fier y fish curries dominate the cuisine. They use coconut base in almost all their dishes.

They are either cooked in coconut milk or have a coconut paste or are garnished with grated coconut. Their kombdi vada is quiet popular in Maharashtra.

No meal in this region is complete without “ Sol Kadi �,a pink coloured appetizer drink made from kokum fruit and coconut milk which helps in digestion. The vegetarians can feast on simple yet delicious vegetables prepared in a coconut base. And the summer speciality of the area are its world famous mangoes which are not to be missed if you happen to swing by the Konkan region.

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Top: A milkman passing by early in the morning.

Middle: A child at Sundar Homestay.

Bottom: Poha and bananas served with sev for breakfast at the homestay.

his adivasi tribe originally belonged to the forest but now are scattered all over Maharash tra.

They are also called by other names like Thakar, Thakur, Ka Thakar, Ma Thakar, Ka Thakur and Ma Thakur. They come under ST Categor y which consists of 47 tribes. Thakars and Thakurs are IndoAr yans and speak a dialect of Marathi.

They typically speak Marathi language or the dialects that the tribe picked up in the region that they reside in. Some Thakar Tribals came from Sahyadri and are living in Sindhudurg district.

They are scattered all over the district and have been living here for 400 years. Their population in Sindhudurg District is about 6000.

They have rich traditions of folk dance, songs and unique culture of their own. Among many festivals, Diwali is one of themost important which they celebrate in their own unique way. On this occasion, they light lamps made from a fruit called chibra, which are placed on a stand made of cow-dung. At home, the celebrationi is in form of a breakfast of boiled corn, sweet potato and chauli.

The grain stored in wicker basket called kangas is worshiped during the occasion.

The Thakars

T

The Thakar community has also been the subject of the famous Marathi film Jait Re Jait.

The tribe has eleven Lok Kalas and they like to call themselves per formers more than artisans.

Ghirat, an equipment used to separate rice from outer coverings by the Thakar tribe earlier.

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About the Artisans

G

angawane and Mhasage families are two families from the Thakar community, that are still more prominently involved with Chitrakathi more than the other families from their tribe. Both families uphold the culture of Chitrakathi in their own way. Keeping their differences apart, they want this craft to sustain and are doing what they feel should be done for the same.

Ganpat Mhasage, has been per forming Chitrakthi since his childhood, he per forms at a temple in Oros during Navratri and anywhere else he is invited to. He stopped travelling around Maharashtra earlier because he wouldn't get mobadla and was disrespected at times. Now he has his own small business and has started a pre-primar y school in his house for his daughter-in-law. He believes the purest form of Chitrakathi is when its colours are natural dyes and not the ones available in the market. He has stop ped making paintings because extracting natural dyes is a costly process and he can't afford it. He makes paintings on an order basis.

Parshuram Gangawane is tr ying to keep Chitrakathi alive and publicise it by adopting less traditional ways. He uses paints available in the market to make cheaper paintings which could be sold. He has even started printing the figures on various products like bookmark, postcards and t-shirts. He has promoted himself on internet, has started a homestay and museum to let the people know about the Thakar culture. His elder son is a government employee whereas the younger son helps his father. They all travel to exhibitions when invited to per form. Main source of income is from this craft, which they want to take it further even though they have to leave some conventional methods behind.

Parshuram Gangawane

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Gangavane

Mhasage

•They believe in commercialising the craft by promoting and sustaining it, drifting away from the traditional ways.

•They don’t believe in commercialising and promoting the craft by ignoring the traditional ways. They want to keep it as it is.

•The effort taken to revive this craft is commendable.

•The effort taken to revive this craft is negligible.

•They use colours available in the market instead of natural dyes to cut down the cost of production.

•The cost of production is comparitively higher as they still use traditional techniques and natural dyes.

•As the cost of raw materials used is cheaper , the actual production is higher.

•The actual production is comparitively low as the cost of production is high and therefore they only take orders.

•It is less time consuming as they use newer raw material to achieve their goals.

•The process is very engaging and time consuming as they use the older techniques.

•They perform at the Kelbai Mandir in Kudal market during Navratri every year.

•They perform at a temple assigned to them in Oros.

•The main source of income for the Gangavane’s is from the museum,homestay and the sale of the products.

•The whole family is involved in the process.

•They are ready to adapt to the changes and let go of the conventional methods to revive this craft.

•Chitrakathi is an additional way to support the family and not their main occupation.

•Only the older members of the family are involved in the process.

•They are not ready to adapt to any changes and let go of the conventional methods to revive this craft.

Ganpat Mhasage

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Thakar Adivasi Kala Angan T

he ancient village of Pinguli has been home to a wide variety of per formance arts or lok kalas. Due to the lack of support and the pressure of modernity in the region this invaluable heritage is at the risk of disappearance.

With the purpose of preser ving the Adivasi artistic heritage, Shri Parshuram Gangavane and his family built a museum in May 2006 to showcase their traditional wealth. Without any help from the government and people from their own community going against them, the family had to overcome a lot of difficulties to set up the “ Thakar Adivasi Kala Angan� (TAKA).Though the museum is immensely rich in it ’s culture and tradition, the set up is extremely basic. Due to the lack of funds they turned their cowshed into a museum and the walls are plastered with cowdung.

The museum is well maintained by the women of the family.

As soon as you enter the Kala Angan you see well framed Chitrakathi paintings which is said to be 200 or 300 years old. Differe nt musical instruments and kalsutri bavlya, leather puppetr y are arranged and showcased systematically. One section of the museum is dedicated to the new Chitrakathi paintings made by the artists.

T-shirts with interesting chirtakathi prints, post cards and bookmarks are made available to the tourists. The effort taken by the TAKA group to revive the art is incredible.

Statues of ancestors at the entrance of the museum along with various equipments.

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TAKA: Thakar Kala Angan Museum

Sitting area

Statue of a performer with Pangul Bael

Logo of Taka

Paintings framed and hanged in the museum

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35ft (approx.)

Thakar Adivasi Kala Angan

65ft (approx.)

Sundar Homestay

TAKA as a Tourist Point Car parking

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Display of Thakar Adivasi lifestyle

Vishram Puppet theater

TAKA, with the musuem, theater, the front displays and the homestay, act as a complete structure for a tourism point in the town. As soon as any visitor, enters the area they are feasted with dispays of Thakar tribe and the essence of the local heritage of these people. Wells, cart, Tulsi plantation, painings on coconut trees, all rev eal their customs and traditions and enthrall the visitors.

Entry

Display of Lok Kala Pangul Bail

Well

14ft (approx.)

Puppet

Donageet

Pot raja

Shadow/ Leather Puppet

25ft (approx.)

Pangul bail

Chitrakathi

The museum, though made in a cowshed, has been designed keeping in mind the ease of explanation and efficieny for the guide as well as the visitor. It is properly segmented into various areas, where several of the arts of the tribe are on display. One can enter the museum from the left gate, experience the museum and come out from the right gate, allowing for easy circulation in the structure.

Thought the structure suffers from a lack of proper lighting and air ventilation, the people responsible for the structure have done whatevever they could with the resources available for the maintenance of the museum.

Chitrakathi

Boundary used in the museum to demarkate different areas and to prevent children from touching the exhibits. If a child would try to touch an exhibit, the bamboo boundary would fall, tinkering.

The bamboo for the boundary was provided by KONBAC to the museum.

Gift shop

Entry

Entry

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11 LOK KALAS

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•Chitrakathi Veena Taal Huduk •Leather Puppets Zaanj Dholak Watta and Bhendi chi kaathi

•Dona Geet Dona vadya •Pingli Damru •Kalsutri Bavlya Mridangam Jhaanjar Tuntune

•Pot Raja Divil Samal •Gondhal Dholak

Donageet Veena

Somal

Dholak Mridangam Tabla

Watta and Bhendi chi Kathi

Tuntuna

Ghanti

Damru Taal

Musical Instruments

Jhaanjar Huduk

Various kinds of instruments are played in these Lok Kalas, some of them idiosyncratic to the community tending to the adaptation with lifestyle and needs.

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The Lok Kalas

1- Tar va Geet: Its a traditional song to celebrate the planting of rice during rainy season as a request to God for a good har vest.

2- Radha Nrutya: Its a dance per formed by a man dressed as woman on occasions such as weddings and festivals. Usually this dance is per formed on happy and joyous occasions and the community celebrations are incomplete without this.

3- Shadow Puppetry: Unique to Maharashtra, shadow puppetr y with leather puppets is a traditional highly skilled art form of Pinguili, which originated from the tribal Adivasi community that lived in forests. In the still darkness of the night, audiences are left enthralled by the recreation of drama, action, war and death on a cloth screen, which is simple yet in novative application of basic laws of light and physics. The carefully crafted leather puppets cast their shadows from behind the screen as the artist varies the size and focus of the shadow by increasing or decreasing the distance between the puppet from the burning lit flame, creating a sense of action and motion, as the narrators take the stor y for ward.

4- Dona Geet: It is a song where music is produced using the dona- ladle and a container that ’s used to keep rice water. The ladles sticks are rubbed on the container which is kept upside down.

5- Pingli: The Thakars had a d uty to make the sleeping people aware so that they could avoid getting robbed. A Thakar would go

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around in the early morning from 2 o’clock to 5 o’clock in the morning singing along with a damru.

6- Chitrakathi: Art of stor ytelling through paintings that they paint specially for the recitals. An innovative audio visual medium where the artists hold handmade paper paintings depicting scenes from the epics of Ramayana, Mahabharata, Nandi Puran and so on.

With ever y painting the artist conjures up vivid narratives, by modul ating his own voice to create dialogue and drama and is backed up by vocalists and appropriate musical instruments which invariably adds to the culmination of a brilliant theatrical climax.

7- Pangul Bael: Involves the use of the bael or the bullock. The animal is decorated with intricately embroidered and embellished cloth and ornaments worn around the horns, hooves and neck. The adorned bullock is brought to center stage, while a couple of artists play the dollar reciting traditional hymns.

This per formance involving man and beast is interesting yet dangerous and generally was slotted at the beginning of ever y per formance.

8- Powada: The Powada is a genre of Marathi poetr y that emerged during the late 17th centur y in India. The powadas are a kind of ballad written in an exciting style and narrate historical events in an inspiring manner. The composer-cum-singers of the powadas are known as Shahirs. The early powadas are mostly composed by the eyewitnesses of the great events celebrated in these ballads.

Kalsutri Bhavlya

11- Gondhal: Gondhal, an established religious practice of most of the castes in Maharashtra, is an educative, entertaining and important tradition. It is believed that if the Gondhal is per formed in the house during auspicious occasions like weddings and thread ceremonies, then life doesn’t become chaotic.

In order to obtain the blessings of Goddess Renuka or Goddess Tulajabhavani, devotees invite the family ’s traditional Gondhali (artists who per form the Gondhal) and request them to per form the Gondhal in its entirety. Gondhal is one of those few important folk arts of Maharashtra that has become an inseparable part of the lifestyle of the people. It is said that the tradition of Gondhal originates from the homage paid to the Goddess Mother by Parashuram. The stor y goes that Parashuram killed a demon named Betasur, cut off his head, sowed his arteries and veins through the crown of his head and made a musical instrument out of it.

Making a sound trinun trinun from that instrument, he went toward Goddess Renuka and worshipped her. Scholars opin e that the Gondhal originates from this worship.

The Gondhalis believe that Goddess Jamadagni and Goddess Renuka are their ancestors, and Mahur is their place of origin. Some researchers have proved that Gondhal is an art, which is related to the Goddess who is the totality of all Being, and her devotees.

Chitrakathi painting

10- Kalsutri Bhavlya: Influenced by traditional string puppetr y of Rajasthan wherein the artistic team uses their dexterous fingers to create live action animation and transform the lifeless wooden and cloth puppet dolls into heroes, Queens, villains and humble ser vants. Ever y marionette is made to play its role with theatrical abandon, where the good men enter dancing and the demons fly. The team of artists usually includes the main narrator who assumes the role of the sutradhar or stor yteller or even the protagonist, accompanied by an entourage of vocalists and musicians who spew poetr y and song with equal vigour.

Damru

9- Poth Raja: Poth Raja Is a symbol of the traditional family or community goddess Mata Bhavani or Ambabai. Influenced by Rajasthani tradition, the finale of ever y evening ’s per formance marks the invocation and praise of the family goddess.

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Original Style

The Process 23

1. Collecting dr y leaves (palash leaves) to paint on.

2. Extracting natural dyes from bricks, flowers, fruits, turmeric, leaves, cow dung and so on.

3. Extracting gum from cashew tree.

4. Mixing gum with colour dye extracts to make paints.

5. Making brushes and boru from chichuka leaves, horse hair, squirrel hair and bamboo.

6. Laying blobs of colours in areas to be outlined later.

7. Making forms using the patches.

8. Outlining characters and other details using boru.

One of the old Chitrakathi paintings.

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Cost of Production: Handmade paper roll (A1) – Rs. 70 (approx.)

Camel student poster paint (10ml) – Rs. 175 Camel student water colour (cakes) – Rs. 200 Faber Castel pony hair round assorted brush (set of 7) – Rs. 160 One set of these materials can easily be used to make 3-4 paintings.

Thus, cost of one painting today would be = (70+175+200+160)/4 = 150/- (approx.)

Contemporary style with more refined lines and vibrant colours.

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The cost of production of one painting would not be exceed Rs 150. The monetar y investment might not be much but the painting earns its profit for its hard work and heritage and the extra effort these artisans put in to continue this craft.

Contemporary Style

1. Source poster colour and other equipments.

2. Take handmade paper of dime nsions 12" X 15".

2. Make faint outlines with a light shade of colour to get the basic shapes.

3. Fill colours in decided areas.

4. Add details to characters and surrounding using thin synthetic brush and black poster paint.

Final outlined character.

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Bangles

Social Hierarchy

Analysis of Paintings

This study reveals the social hierarchy among the characters and the influence of the region on the style of painting.

Kamarbandh

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Kings and othe important offici sit on a higher p

s

Patterns on walls, cealing and ground influenced by nature

Flowers on emperors crown/Mukut, a symbol of authority Moustache shown with lines Beards shown with thick lines under chin Armlet on bare arms

Swords and shields

r ials platform 28

Female Costumes

Jhumke instead of ears

Nathni

Kamarbandh

Payal on both feet

This painting gives us important details about the costumes worn by the women in the region.

Bajuband 29

Bang

Long horizontal tikas

Mangtika

Neckpieces inspired by small berries found around the region

gles 30

Male Costumes & Architecture

Bow and arrows

Topi

Shorter dhoti for servants

Longer dhotis for upper class 31

Ring

Spandrel shown to show interiors

While the previous painting gave insights about the female costumes, this one reveals a lot about the male costumes. It also provides subtle insights about the architecture of the palaces, depicted in the stories.

The eloquence and magnificence of these palaces were shown using elaborate line patterns. As an instance, hollow circles could mean the structure has depressed carvings.

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Events & Splendour

Bigul used to announce the arrival of procession

Animals decorated on special occasions

This painting adds to one's understanding of the various events happening in the stories and how they were celebrated with an insight on the facilities and luxuries, enjoyed by the Royal class.

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Emperors protected from the sun by the sipahi’s

Male ears

Females travelled in carriages

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MOTIFS

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Motifs C

hitrakathi is vast and so are the styles adopted by various Chitrakathi artisits. But, there are some elements which are common and these motifs are used by all the artists alike, with little variations. Study of these motifs helps us understand the essence of the art and what actually constitutes and separates them from other similar arts. A brief segregation of motifs used across various Chitrakathi paintings:

1. Animals: The art has unique style of representing each animal, var ying from peacocks and cows to boars and fishes.

2. Human Anatomy: a. Ears: One of the distinguising factors between males and females in the paintings is the stylization of ears. Females are ornamented with large earrings with flowers and leaves whereas males are seen wearing simpler ornaments, though, nowhere can we see the ears (with the exception of Ganesha). b. Moustache: Artists have var ying styles of painting moustaches.

Beards are often shown with thick lines. c. Nose: Females are often shown wearing noserings and ornaments while males wear none. d. Sitting positions: There is a specific set of sitting positions which are repeated ever ywhere across various paintings.

2. Stylization: a. Mukut: Kings and gods are distinguished among other characters by their elaborate mukuts on their heads. b. Weapons: Various kinds of weapons are often seen ornamenting the characters.

3. Decoration:. a. Lamps: A multitude of lamps embellish the environment in the paintings.

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Painting Borders

B

Saree Borders

orders in the paintings are usual ly done on the basis of location of the scene.

Verandas are shown by bottom borders whereas palaces are accompanied by both top and bottom borders.

Borders are also often interchanged with those of the sarees.

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Painting being done by Eknath Gangawane, the son of Parshuram Gangawane

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A

How to Recognize Chitrakathi Paintings

fter having studied style, motifs and gaining a clearer understanding of this art, we can easily summarise few points that one must look for in order to identify Chitrakathi paintings.

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1- It is a flat painting style with no use of ‘chiaroscuro’.

2- Outlined with black lines defining the colour patches as a part of the painting.

3- Red colour is applied last which is understo od by obser ving that the red sometimes comes over the black outline.

4- Faces are shown from side profile only.

5- Both the palms are shown facing outward with all the fingers visible to the viewer.

6- Feet are turned towards the side of the face to show body orientation.

7- The painting style has no proportion or perspective.

8- The body is front facing with both arms visible but the face and feet are sideways.

9- The indoor scenes are shown with borders on the top and bottom and the outdoor scene has no border showing the sky.

10- Female characters have large jhumkas instead of ears.

An old style Chitrakathi painting with limited use of colours.

11- The male characters have heavy beards and moustaches made with thick lines on chins and over lips.

12- The mouth and lips are painted with red.

13- The crown (mukh ut) of the emperors suggest the position or the rank of the person.

14- The social rank of females are differentiated by size of earrings and ornaments.

15- The garments of commoners and royals were differentiated by decorating them.

16- Different shades and tints of orange and blue were used to shown different skin tones.

A new age Chitrakathi painting done on handmade paper with more refined lines and use of more vibrant colours.

40

Artisan's Say

T

he craft is known amidst mainly the art circle in India and

their museum are stuck on a paper and framed. The government

hence they receive a ver y few visitors. Nowadays they don't

hasn't taken any initiative to help them preser ve it yet, the

per form at various places so Chitrakathi is limited to paintings

archeological department had asked them to give all their

which can be sold. Since they get few visitors ( 3000-5000

paintings to them to which they replied by saying it is their

per year) sometimes they have to reduce the price of the

posse ssion and that's all they have, so, there is no way that

paintings, they feel that they aren't getting enough compared

they could give their old paintings away.

to the handwork put in it. Since the audience has become

The artisans have had multiple batch of students and firms

impatient and has turned to other medias for entertainment,

coming and studying and documenting their craft in order to

they have reduced their per formance time and at times they

help them preser ve the craft, none of which has really helped

don’t even have much audience. Their printed products are

them.

sold more than the original paintings.

There is a communication gap between the artisans and the

They have around 400 paintings which are more than 300

government. The government officials said that there have

year old. All this paintings are tied and kept in a cupboard.

been instances where the government has tried helping them,

Since they have natural colours, they are prone damage.

and the artisans say that the government isn't keen on this

Because of financial problems, they can't get the museum

craft because ver y few people know about it whereas other

certified preser vation done on it, each painting preser vation

tribal art in Maharashta - Warli does get attention from the

will cost three thousand rupees. The few paintings put up in

government and people.

1

4 2

41 2

3

1: Framed paintings in museum.

2: Pangul Bail ornaments.

3-4: Brushes and Paints (currently used)

Today's Status

2

1

T

1: Printed post cards and paintings.

2: Painting on tree in chitrakathi style.

he artisans no longer travel around stor ytelling like the

the client wishes. For example a client from Aurangabad invited

ancient times. They only per form during Navaratris and on

them to paint on a car in their campus.

other occasions. The stor ytelling earlier would start at night

The families who practise Chitrakathi are often invited to

after 10 o’ clock and continue till early in the morning ( First

showcase in different exhibitions and also in international trade

prahar - 6 a.m.) . Nowadays they shorten the stor ytelling to

fair, it is displayed in the Maharashtra pavilion. They conduct

one to three hours and sometimes even ten to fifteen minutes

workshops under Guru-Shishya parampara to pass this art to the

because the audience is not so interested like before as there

younger genrations. The family has their own museum and has

are other forms of entertainment. Also now Chitrakathi is ver y

started a website to show their craft types and products. They

limited to painting as those paintings can be sold to earn.

also have a Facebook page to connect to a wider audience.

These paintings are scanned and printed on postcards, t-shirts,

The government until now has done ver y little to help this dying

bookmarks and as small prints that can be framed. Apart from

craft.

the products they also paint on trees, interiors and vehicles, as

242

Par shuram Gangawane thought of painting on tress in Chitrakathi style, for his daughters wedding.

Since then he came to be recognized amongst masses and earned himself various oppotunities to exhibit his skills in Chitrakathi.

37

Product Range

The artisans have incorporated Chitrkathi on various products, making use of its ability of sur face application. Paintings are available for purchase which could be either handmade or digital, which in turn is reflected in their prices.

Products

Price

Handmade Painting (12’’ X 15’’)

1200-1500/-

Printed A4 size painting

500/-

Printed A5 square size painting

250/-

Printed T-shirt

500/-

Printed postcard

50/-

Printed bookmark

20/-

Postcards

T-shirt

*Prices are in INR (Indian Rupees).

Printed paintings

44

Preservation of Paintings

Factors Exp o sur e to light The traditional Indian paintings used natural colours and pigments in their paintings and for them to stay on the sur face it is important for the painting to receive ideal lighting. The painting needs to receive diffused natural light or artificial light whose intensity can be controlled. If an old painting is kept in direct exposure from light or ultraviolet rays the balance and brilliance of the painting would change and it may crack on the sur face.

A t mo spher ic conditions Old and traditional Indian art works, especially paintings, were mostly done on wooden frames. Wood tends to expand and contract due to atmospheric conditions. As a result, the painting is subjected to stress, which is capable of ruining its dimensions. This in turn, causes the painting to go brittle and suffer heavy damages. There is not much that can be done to stop the expansion-contraction except for controlling it. It has been accounted that the most acceptable stress occurs at temperature around 60 degrees and humidity around 60 percent.

Da ma ge due to mois tur e The presence of excessive moisture in the atmosphere around the naturally painted traditional Indian art develops little smelly and dark patches that are a kind

45

of fungus. They are called mold and mildew. Humidity only accelerates the process of formation of molds and it is most commonly obser ved on paper paintings.

Mol d and mildew can be removed by using following techniques: If th e patches are little and fragile, a small brush or a ver y fine and soft cloth piece can be used to gently clean the painting.

If th e patches are big and spreading, alcohol dabbed in a fine cloth piece to clean the fungus can be used.

It is suggested to use denatured alcohol so that the cleaning chemical does not react with the pigments of the paintings.

Varnish is also used to protect the paintings from the ill effects of moisture and humidity. Varnish is a chemical that forms a transparent, protective and non reactive layer over the painting. It acts as barrier between the moisture and the paintings and prevents the formations of mold, mildew or any other fungus.

Phy sical damag e s The most common type of damage experienced by old traditional Indian paintings is in the form physical damages. It is mostly caused due to poor handling, transit and hanging. It is therefore ver y important to make sure that the paintings are hung at a safe distance from the viewer. Physical damages such as chipping, flaking, puncturing and tearing should be carefully guarded against as they are capable of bringing down the whole value of the painting.

Problems in Preservation

T

he preser vation of the Chitrakathi paintings by both the families is a ver y difficult task because of financial probelms. The preser vation of paintings requires high amounts of caution and a large financial background, and both families belong to the lower middle class strata which makes it difficult for them.

Although both the families have tried their best to preser ve the paintings that are 300 to 400 years old, it is still not enough to keep the paintings in their original form for a long time.

G a n ga w a n e' s Effor t The Gangawane’s run their ver y own museum called the Thakar Adivasi Kala Aangan, through which they have tried to revive a dying art form and bring for ward to the people. Some of these paintings are supposedly as old as 300 years old but the condition of these paintings is not ver y good. Most of these paintings have lost their original colours and are cracked on the sur face.

Though the family has done a lot to revive the art, not

Framed Painting at TAKA, run by Gangawane family.

much has been done to preser ve these paintings due to no financial backup. The museum too is a small cowshed with no controlled lighting or atmosphere. According to the family the paintings are kept in a box called the “ pothi � as it was done throughout the centuries.

M has age's E ffor t Though the Mhasage family still does 1 or 2 shows presently, they do not take part in the revival of the art actively. They prefer to work on the paintings in its most authentic form, with natural colours, which is a ver y long process. The family too is unable to do much to preser ve these paintings due to financial issues. The only way they protect the paintings is to lock them up in airtight boxes to control the humidity. They do not open these boxes except when needed for shows. Few paintings that are put up for show in their house have lost some of its colour over time.

Framed Painting at Mhasage's house

46

Gap Identification

T

here are ver y few artists of Chitrakathi today due to many of the problems:

•Today people have little to no time in hand to spare for •The artists of Chitrakath i are often adviced to make changes

luxur y.This craft has a long process of about one to two hours.

in their art form that could make their work much easier without

This craft does not have a large audience because no one is

risking the authentication of the craft. They are unwilling to

ready to spare so much time out of their busy schedule. Still the

modernise their artworks stating that it would lose its identity

craftsment are unwillingly shortening the stories to a great level

if any such thing was done. The artists prefer to work in the

and in the process the craft is losing its authenticity.

manner it has always been done although no value is given to it anymore.

•The artists of Chitrakathi find the process of registering under any of the government schemes or organisations an extremely

•The artists prefer working on paintings personally rather than

long process. They find it exhausting to run to the offices

collaborating with any kind of organisations or brands because

frequently. Many of these schemes require online registration

they fear that the identity of their craft would be lost or

or online transactions which is ver y hard for the artists to

modified. The Chitrakathi art belongs to the Thakar community

understand and hard to operate for people who have been

solely.

involved only in painting since childhood and have not received any kind of formal education.

•The paints that were used during the previous times were natural and required a lot of time and money. These paints

•The craft of Chitrakathi has yet to receive a Geographical

gave an authentic look and feel to the Chitrakathi paintings

Indication (GI) in Pinguili. Hence the royalty of this craft is yet

but that lost now because the cost of production would

to be given to the Thakar community, who have been doing

increase incredibly and profit from this would be hard to make.

this craft since a ver y long period. It is ver y easy for people to copy thes e paintings and cause confusions in GI of this craft.

•Though most of the crafts of India are being supported by the

Each artist has his/her own style and that may cause changes in

government and many schemes exist for the revival of crafts,

the original Chitrakathi paintings.

1

47

there is no scheme made to help the artists of Chitrakathi.

2

1-2: Proper preservations of the painting is not being done.

3: The roof of the museum leaks continuously in rainy season.

3

•The craft is well known among the craftsmen all over

People often back out from buying a costly Chitrakathi painting

Maharashtra and also among the community people but what

with the idea that they are being fooled. But most of them are

is missing is the promotion of the craft on a local level. Even

unaware of the heavy cost of production required in the making

the local people of the place seem to be unaware about the

of the paintings and hence not much value is given to the

craft and the difficult processes required to create authentic

paintings by the general public.

art. To create sense of value of the craft awareness among the general people is needed.

•There is only one museum in Pinguili for Chitrakathi but that museum too is not ver y well made. It fails to protect the

•Many of the paintings date back to the rule of Shivaji Maharaj

paintings. The roof is leaky during monsoons and the lighting

but due to preser vation issues the paintings have lost their

used is the normal bulbs that can cause harm to the paintings.

importance and can no longer be used. The preser vation cost

The atmosphere needs to be controlled so that it does not

according to the artists is ver y high. The artists belong to the

cause any negative impact on the paintings but that too seems

lower middle class and it is ver y hard for them to carr y the cost

to be missing.

of preser vation and they depend on the government.

•Many of the artists refuse to make changes to the original style •The general public is not interested in the Chitrakathi craft

of painting and stor ytelling. The few that do make changes, they

and the reason behind this is the high cost of these paintings.

do it in a manner that the authentication is lost in the process.

48

Various storytelling crafts across India

49

Study of Similar Arts

Local Scenario Gond Painting

work ’. The artist makes sure to draw the inner as well as outer lines with as much

Raw Material: The paints are usually derived

care as possible so that

naturally from objects such as charcoal, coloured

the per fection of the lines

soil, plant sap, leaves and even cow dung. More

has an immediate effect on

specifically, yellow from Chui mitti which is a type of

the viewer. Lines are used in

local sand, brown from Gheru mitti which is another

such a way that it conveys

type of sand, green is readily procured from leaves

a se nse of movement to the

while the colour red is obtained from the Hibiscus

still images. Dots and dashes

flower,canvas,postercolours

are added to impart a greater sense of movement and increase the amount of detail.

Style:One of the distinctive elements is the use of signature patterns that are used to infill the larger

Colour Scheme:bright vivid colours such as white, red,

forms on the canvas. A certain sense of balance

blue and yellow and black

and symmetr y can be obser ved in the pattern used, such as spiral forms along with trees, leaves, animals

Application;Walls and floors of

and human figures. Painted in several bright colors,

homes,paper,canvas,cloth

the placement of motifs showcasing village life and

Uses: Decoration.

the blending of human figures with rituals and nature

Are a: Madhya Pradesh.

depict the Gonds inherited skills and creativity.

Dimensions;Not fixed.

Gond paintings can best be described as ‘on line

How old: 1400 years old.

M a d hub a ni:

has also been known to depict scenes of wedding

Raw Material: Twigs, matchsticks and pen nibs, rice paste,Natural dyes.

Style: Madhubani paintings are characterised by figures that have prominently outlined, bulging fish-like eyes and pointed noses. The themes of these paintings usually include natural elements like fish, parrot, elephant, turtle, sun, moon, bamboo tree and lotus. Geometric patterns can also be seen in these pictures that often symbolise love, valour, devotion, fertility and prosperity. This ancient art form

rituals, religious rituals and different cultural events such as festivals, from mythology like Ramayana.

Colour Scheme: Usually bright colours are used in these paintings with an outline made from rice paste as its framework.

Application: Wall s and floors of homes,paper,canvas,cloth.

Uses:Decoration during festivals,home decor,bags, cushion covers, coasters, mugs, crocker y and mouse pads.

Are a: Madhubani district or Ranti village in Bihar.

Dimensions: Not fixed How old: 2500 years

50

Phad

"extremely complex and intricate." All Phad paintings have certain common features. Ever y available inch of

Raw Material: Brush,twig,flour,gum,colour,cotton canvas.

the canvas is crowded with figures. Another similarity is flat construction of the pictorial space. While the figures are harmoniously distributed all over the area,

Style: The Phad or Par represents, in its painting, the court of Pabuji (as a historical true Rajput chief who sacrifices his life for protection of others), his palace and his divine character as an incarnation of Laksmana, brother of the Rama of the Ramayana Hindu epic stor y, the forts in which he lived as well as the sanctum of his goddess Deval. The back drop of such narrations is invariably in the desert villages of Rajasthan. The images in the painting are arranged logically, also showing

the scale of figure depends on the social status of the character they represent and the roles they play in the stor y.

Colour Scheme: Only earth colours or vegetable colours or indigo are used.

Application: Cloth or canvas.

Uses: Mobile temple, stor ytelling.

Area: Shahpura, Bhilwara - Rajasthan.

Dimensions: 15 to 30 ft x 5 to 10 ft.

Origin time: 10th centur y.

revengeful exploits of his nephew on his enemy, Jindrav Khici. However, iconographically it is considered as

P a ta c h itr a Raw Material: Palm leaf, paper, canvas, vegetable and mineral colours, lacquer coating, brush Style: Themes are chiefly on Lord Jagannath and Radha-Krishna.The dress style has Mughal influences. All of the poses have been confined to a few well-defined postures. These are not free from monotonous repetitions, though at times this is necessar y to accentuate the narrative character of the style. The lines are bold and clean and angular and sharp. Generally there are no landscapes, perspectives and distant views. All the incidents are seen in close juxtaposition. The background on which the figures are represented, is delineated with decorations of flowers and foliages and is mostly painted in red colour. All

51

the paintings are given decorative borders. The whole painting is conceived in the form of a design on a given canvas.

Colour Scheme: Vibrant shades of orange, red and yellow, Krishna is always painted in blue and Gopis in light pink, purple or brown colours.

Application;Canvas, palm leaves, paper.

Uses:Stor ytelling, decoration.

Area:Odisha.

Dimensions;Not fixed.

Origin time:Since 5th centur y BC.

Warli

hunting, fishing, and farming as well as trees and animals. Festivals and dances are common scenes

Raw Material: Branches, earth, and cow dung that make a red ochre background for the wall paintings. Their white pigment is made from a mixture of rice paste and water with gum as a binder. They use a bamboo stick chewed at the end to give it the texture of a paintbrush.

depicted in the ritual paintings. Human and animal bodies are represented by two inverse triangles joined at their tips. The upper triangle depicts the torso and the lower triangle the pelvis. Their precarious equilibrium symbolizes the balance of the universe. The representation also has the practical and amusing advantage of animating the bodies. Another main

Style: These rudimentar y wall paintings use a set of basic geometric shapes: a circle, a triangle, and a square.

These shapes are symbolic of different elements of nature. The circle and the triangle come from their obser vation of nature. The circle is representing the sun and the moon while the triangle is derived from mountains and pointed trees. In contrast, the square appears to be a human invention, indicating a sacred enclosure or a piece of land. The central motif in each ritual painting is the square, known as the "chalk"

theme of Warli art is the denotation of a triangle that is larger at the top representing a "man" and a triangle which is wider at the bottom representing a "woman".

Apart from ritualistic paintings, other Warli paintings covered day-to-day activities of the village people.

Colour Sche me: Red ochre and white.

Application: Walls and floors of homes,paper,canvas,cloth.

Uses: Decoration.

Area: North Sahyadri Range in India.

Dimensions: Not fixed Origin Time: 10th centur y BC.

or "Shaukat". The central motif in the ritual painting is surrounded by scenes portraying

J a in M in ia ture p a inting Raw materials: They were painted on palm leaves, later Jains started to paint on paper. The colors were made especially from vegetables, min erals and even from gold and silver.

Style: The significant feature of Jain miniature paintings is the stylish figures of the women in the paintings. use strong colors and liked to show enlarged eyes of the

with ornaments Colour scheme: Multi colored, especially bright ones like red, yellow, orange.

Application: Palm leaves and paper.

Uses: illustrating manuscripts.

Area: Gujarat, Rajasthan, Deccan.

Dimensions: Generally 20-30 cm sides.

Origin Time: 11th centur y.

persons in the paintings. Also decorate the persons

52

Paintings

Area

How old

Pinguli, Maharashtra

300 years old

Madhya Pradesh

1400 years old

Chitrakathi

Style

Colour scheme

Two dimensional with black outline. Face is most of the times shown sideways, their hands are shown with palms outwards. No proportion and perspective.

Red, blue and green mostly. Yellow ochre rarely.

Filling each area /shape with intricate pattern inside.

Bright vivid colours such as white, red, blue ,yellow and black

Gond

Madhubani district or Ranti village in Bihar

2500 years

Paintings are characterised by figures that have Usually bright colours are used in these prominently outlined,bulgpaintings with an ing fish like eye and pointed noses. Geometric outline made from rice paste as its framework. patterns can also be seen.

Madhubani

Odisha

Patachitra

53

Since 5th century BC

The lines are bold,clean,sharp and angular.

Vibrant shades of The backgroundon which orange, red and the figures are representyellow, Krishna is ed, is decorated flowers always painted in blue and foliages which are mostly coloured in red and Gopis in light pink, purple or brown colour.. All the paintings colours. are given decorative borders.

Paintings

Area

Shahpura,Bhilwara Rajasthan

How old

10th century

Phad

Maharashtra

10th century BC.

Style Scroll painting, done on long piece of cloth or canvas, known as phad.

Every inch is crowded with ďŹ gures. Flat construction on pictorial space.

The scale of ďŹ gures depends on the social status.

White paintings on red ochre background. Use of extremely basic geometric shapes to represent everything from humans to gods to houses.

Colour scheme

Only earth colours or vegetable colours or indigo are used.

Red ochre and white.

Warli

Gujarat, Rajasthan,Deccan

11th century

Strong colors and show enlarged eyes of the persons in the paintings.

Also decorate the persons with ornaments.

Multi colored, especially bright ones like red,yellow, orange.

Jain Miniature painting

54

Phad Painting

Madhubani Painting

55

Jain Painting

Pattachita Painting

Gond Painting

Warli Painting

56

Various storytelling crafts across World

57

Global Scenario

Bali, Indonesia The Batuan school of painting is practiced by artists in the village of B a t u a n, w h i c h i s s i t u a t e d 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) to t h e s o u t h o f U b u d. T h e Batuan artisans are gifted d a n c e r s, s c u l p t o r s a n d p a i n t e r s. B a t u a n p a i n t i n g s w e r e o f t e n d a r k, c r o w d e d representations of either l e g e n d a r y s c e n e s o r t h e m e s f r o m d a i l y l i f e, b u t t h e y portrayed above all fearsome nocturnal moments

around which the scroll i s r o l l e d. W h e n r o l l e d u p, t h e s c r o l l s a r e secured with a braided silk cord and can be s a f e l y c a r r i e d, p l a c e d o n s h e l v e s, o r s t o r e d i n a l a c q u e r w a r e b o x.

Handscrolls range in s i z e, a v e r a g i n g 3 0 c e n t i m e t e r s ( 1 f t. ) i n h e i g h t a n d 9 t o 1 2 m e t e r s ( 3 0 t o 4 0 f t. ) i n l e n g t h. A n o r m a l s t o r y c o v e r s o n e t o t h r e e s c r o l l s.

Eygyptian paintings Egyptian paintings are

w h e n g r o t e s q u e s p o o k s, f r e a k i s h a n i m a l m o n s t e r s, a n d

painted in a way to show

w i t c h e s a c c o s t e d p e o p l e. G r a d a t i o n s o f b l a c k t o

a profile view and a side

w h i t e i n k w a s h e s l a i d o v e r m o s t o f t h e s u r f a c e, s o a s

view of the animal or person

t o c r e a t e a n a t m o s p h e r e o f d a r k n e s s a n d g l o o m. I n

a t t h e s a m e t i m e. E g y p t i a n

t h e l a t e r y e a r s, t h e d e s i g n s c o v e r e d t h e e n t i r e s p a c e,

artists covered limestone

which often contributed to the crowded nature of

walls of tombs with a fine

t h e s e p a i n t i n g s.

l a y e r o f p l a s t e r, o n t o w h i c h

Emakimono, japan

t h e y p a i n t e d v a r i o u s s c e n e s.

Pa i n t e r s u s e d p r i m a r i l y b l a c k,

E m a k i m o n o o f t e n s i m p l y c a l l e d e m a k i, i s a h o r i z o n t a l,

r e d, y e l l o w, b r o w n, b l u e, a n d

illustrated narrative form created during the 11th to 1 6 t h c e n t u r i e s i n J a p a n. E m a k i - m o n o c o m b i n e s b o t h t e x t a n d p i c t u r e s, a n d i s d r a w n, p a i n t e d, o r s t a m p e d o n a h a n d s c r o l l. T h e y d e p i c t b a t t l e s, r o m a n c e, r e l i g i o n, f o l k t a l e s, a n d s t o r i e s o f t h e s u p e r n a t u r a l w o r l d.

g r e e n p i g m e n t s. T h e y m i x e d t h e i r c o l o r s i n a b i n d e r t o m a ke t h e m s t i c k t o t h e d r y p l a s t e r.

Pa i n t i n g s s u r v i v e d d u e t o t h e e x t r e m e l y d r y c l i m a t e.

H a n d s c r o l l s a r e p a i n t e d o n p a p e r o r s i l k, b a c ke d w i t h p a p e r. T h e f a r t h e s t ( l e f t ) e n d i s f i t t e d w i t h a r o l l e r

58

Bali Painting

Eygyptian painting

Emakimono

59

Paintings

Area

Pinguli, Maharashtra India

How old

300 years old

Chitrakathi

Japan

11th to 16th centuries

Emakimono

Bali, Indonesia

14th century.

Bali Painting

Eygpt

3000 BC to 30 AD

Style

Colour scheme

Two dimensions with black outline. Face is most of the times shown sideways, their hands are shown with palms outwards. No proportions and perspectives.

Red, blue and green mostly. Yellow ochre rarely.

Combines both text and pictures, and is drawn, painted, or stamped on a handscroll. They depict battles, romance, religion, folk tales, and stories of the supernatural world.

Often dark, crowded representations of either legendary scenes or themes from daily life.

Gradations of black to white ink washes laid over most of the surface, so as to create an atmosphere of darkness and gloom.

Show a profile view and a side view of the animal or person at the same time. Artists covered limestone walls of tombs with a fine layer of plaster, onto which they painted various scenes

Not specific.

Generally in black and white. Sometimes with green and maroon being the dominant shades used for depicting human beings.

Black, red, yellow, brown, blue, and green pigment.

Eygyptian painting

60

A puppet exhibited at TAKA, used in Kalsutli Bavalya, one of the Lok Kalas practised parallaly along wih Chitrakathi.

2

Awareness Among the Masses A

n online sur vey

Which age group do you belong to?

52 responses

was conducted

in order to study the awareness of Chitrakathi among the masses and its scope for the future. The result

Online Survey

is presented here:

Occupation 52 responses

What do you mean by the word, 'craft'?

52 responses

62

How many crafts do you know?

How many handicrafts do you own?

52 responses

52 responses

Do you recognize this craft?

52 responses

63

Would you attend Chitrakathi style storytelling session if arranged in your city?

52 responses

Would you like to know more about Chitrakathi?

52 responses

Interestingly enough, the youths of our countr y are well aware about crafts and even Chitrakathi. If given the chance, they are eager to witness its brilliance and get to know more about it, which indicates for a healthy opportunity for this craft to flourish and spread.

64

Wooden carved door of Gangawane residence. It was divided into two parts at midway to prevent people from directly entering the house but still enabling them to talk from the outside.

2

Interview

2 66

Name : Parshuram Gangawane

-Male

Sex : Male

-Female

Parshuram Gangawane

Age : 65 Type of work : Artisan (Main craftsman)

How many artisans practice the craft?

Artisans address : Thakar Adivasi kala Aangan

-3 of the family members including his son and

Museum and Art Galler y at post Pinguli Gudhipur

nephew and the women sing the songs while

NH17,Kudal

per forming puppet shows.

Which caste and community do they

Average no of hours devoted to the craft

belong to?

per week :

-Thakar Adivasi community

-Depends on orders.

-1 paintings take almost 4 days to complete.

Education level of artisans -Illiterate

No. of months for which artisan is involved

-Secondar y

in craft related activity:

-College

-3-6 months

-Primar y

-6-9 months

He has studied only till 1st std.

-Throughout the year Are you engaged in any other activity

Languages known-

apart from the handicrafts?

-Marathi

-Yes

-Hindi

-No

-Malv ani Any month/months in the year that is high Comprehend

in demand for the craft?

–Yes

-May-July

-Read -Not much

-Nov-Jan

-Write -Not much Has there been a change in the location or What craft are you associated with?

area of the craft?

-Chitrakathi

No.

-Kalsutri Bavlya

Sawantwadi,Vengurla,Malvan,Kudal,Kankavli,

-Leather puppetr y

Devgarh are the other places where this community resides.

For how many years the craft has been practiced by family?

Are you a member of any of the following

-0-5

organizations?

years

-5-10 years

SHGs

-10-2 5 years

Cooperative

-25-5 0 years

Society

-Beyond 50 years

Any other None

Family members participating in the craft :

67

What is the kind of set up?

When did you build this house and since

-Individual

how many years has you family been here?

-Community

-They build the bigger house in 2010.

-Family -Co-operative

In the last two years, have you purchased/ changed or added any of the following:

Are you planning to train your children in

-Land

your traditional craft practices?

-Cattle

-Yes

-Two-wheeler

-No

-Four-wheeler

They are already in it. His 2 year old grandchild sits with

-Electronics (TV, Mixer, Grinder ,Music system)

him during his per formances and enjoys it.

-Mobile -Gas connection

Current monthly income of the artisan:

-Computer

-Rs- 2500-5000

-None

-Rs- 5000-7500 -Rs- 7500-10,000

Are there any occupational health hazard/

-More than Rs-10,000

dieases,linked with your craft practices?

-Apart from that they get 10,000 from Govt under Guru

-Yes

Shishya Program.

-No -They have back issues as they have to sit for long hours

Do you have a saving account in the:

at a stretch and initially they also had allergies and

-Bank

reactions due to the natural dyes.

-Post Office -Any other

Do you have health/life insurance?

-No

-Ye s -No

Dwelling

-They have it but it ’s problematic to get just as the

-Own house

caste certificate.

-Rented house Are you working on : Type of House

-Traditional design

-Kaccha

-Market demand design

-Pucca

-Latest design

-Semi-Pucca Who gives the design?

If own house, did you

-Own

-Purchase

-Trader/Agent

-Constructed

-Old patters

-Inherited

-Designers

-The land is inherited by the ancestors but the house is

-They usually follow the old patterns or come up with

constructed by Parshuram Gangavane and his family.

their own design using similar forms.

68

Have you developed any new products in

Do you know how to use Computer?

last two years?

-Yes

-T-shirts

-No

-Post cards -Printed painting as souveniers

Do you use internet?

-Yes

Have you explored new raw materials other

-No

than traditional?

-Yes

If yes, what do you use it for?

-No

Personal Business purpose

If yes specify reason-

Both

Better pricing Non availability

Have you benefited in any way by the use

Creative persuasion

of internet?

Market demand

-Yes

Any other Preser ving the natural pigments is tough and

-No

making them is time consuming.

-If yes,specify____________________

Identify the skill level of the artisans(as per

What decides the pricing of your products?

the artisan’s perception),with respect to the

-Self

handicraft only:

-Trader/agent

-Unskilled

-Raw materials

-Semi-sk illed

-Local Market Demand

-Skilled

-Labour cost

-Master craftsmen

-A ny other ______________

Are you self employed-

Are you satisfied with the present system of

-Yes

pricing?

-No

-Yes -No

Which area would you like us to strengthen

If no, then give suggestions____________

for your growth?

-Production

Do you have any problem in buying the

-Design

raw materials?

-Packaging

-Yes

-Marketing

-No

-Any other_____________ Is the economical activity main source of Have you received any training recently for

income?

upgrading your skills?

-Yes. His son has left an IT job and joined him to work

-Yes

on paintings and now they per form shows together.

-No

69

Other sources?

What are the existing skills?

-Museum, Homestay and you can privately book them

-Inherited

for per formances.

-Acquired

What are the different sizes of the painting?

Who is the head of the management?

-All the paintings have the standard size of 12X18�

-Intially it was handled by Parshuram ji but now both his sons take care of it.

Does the craft have any regional charachteristics or any distinct

Who decides the price and how?

identification?

-His sons as they are well aware about the market

-Yes.

conditons, demands and government schemes.

What are the raw materials required?

Do you come up with new designs? How?

-Handmade paper(12X18�)

-They do not make new des igns. They refine the forms

-Water color Paints

from the old paintings.

-Brushes of different sizes How has the process changed with time?

Where are they sourced from?

-The raw materials have changed over the years.

-Mainly from Mumbai or nearby market from Nagpur,

Earlier boru was used and now they use brushes. Now

Delhi, Jaipur or Goa.

readymade colors are used as making natural pigments is a time consuming and non-profitable process.

Where are they stored/any specific prep aration for the space?

How do you plan and spend your capital?

-Office space, Museum. For preser vation they have

Monthly they spend 10,000 on maintenance of

only laminated the old paintings. The wooden puppets

the museum. They keep on adding or subtracting

are re-colored with oilpaints.

according to the need.

What are the prices?

Future of the carft:

-Market price

-Bad. -Even though it ’s on the verge of dying, he wants to

Is th e market near?

do his all to commercialise it and preser ve it.

-Yes.10 mins from auto.

Area?

What quantity is it bought in?

-They work from their own house. They turned their

-50 papers minimum, paints as required.

cowshed into a museum.

How often is it bought?

What are the facilities?

-2-3 times annually.

-The museum and the house is well equipped.

Food, electricity, Cooler, vehicles and wifi.

Is th ere any specific finishing?

-Nope. The painting are ver y raw but however they are

How do you preser ve the craft?

outlined with black color.

They laminate the paintings to preser ve them and keep them in petis or potlis. The government does not

70

provide them with any help except for one time when

Sawant along with the Kala Angan group.

they funded the family with Rs 50,000 to work on the preser vation of the paintings.

How do you sell your products?

-Directly to customers

How is the craft received in the market?

-Meals and Festivals

-Moderately.

-Dealers/Agent network

-Exports

Would you collaborate with brands and

-Local Markets

designers to keep the craft alive?

-Trade Fairs

-Yes.

-Any other____________

-But they don’t want to lose their identity. They want to commercialise in a way that keeps their name

Are you facing any difficulty in marketing

associated with the craft.

your products?

-Ye s

If there were some reforms in the stories,

-No

would you accept them?

-Not much changes are appreciated in Chitrakathi

If yes, what are the main reasons?

because it is associated with gods and goddess and

-Distance from your unit to market

also that the essence of it is in the stories that are

-Transportation

told. So changes in the stories of puppet shows are

-Middlemen/Agent

more likely to be done.

-Lack of domestic/local market -Any other- Promotion

When d id you make the museum?

-In 2006 after many hardships, he finally turned the cowshed into a museum with some help from Rashmi

71

Do you still make Chitrakathi paintings?

Sex : Male

-Yes

Age : 58

-No

Type of work : Ex craftsmen and now only does Kathakathan.

Why did you stop making new Chitrakathi

Artisans address : Ganpat Mhasage, post Pinguli

paintings?

Gudhipur NH17,Kudal

-He feels that if one cannot follow the traditional methods (natural pigments) to make the paintings than

Which caste and community do they belong

it is not chitrakathi in it ’s true form and the traditional

to?

methods are expensive and time consuming .

-Thakar Adivasi community Do you still perform or do kathakathan at the Education level of artisans

temples?

-Illiterate

-Ye s

-Secondary

-No

-College

-Primary

How many family members take part in it?

-All the family members go to per form at the temples.

Ganpat Mhasage

Name : Ganpat Mhasage

Languages known-Marathi

Which temple do you perform at ?

-Hindi

-In Oros

-Malvani

Ganpat Mhasage discusses about how commercializing

When do they normally call you for such Comprehend

Unlike Parshuram Gangawane,

performances?

–Yes

this craft has affected its authenticity and therefore he does not encourage the

-Read -Not much

-During Navratris they per form and one and a half

-Write-Not much

months straight, Diwali and whenever there is any

function at someone’s house.

What craft are you associated with?

Chitrakathi

methods used by other artists.

Read the questionnaire to know about his take on Chitrakathi.

How long does the performance last?

-Earlier the katha-kathan would start after dinner and

For how many years the craft has been

continue till 6 in the morning but as people don’t have

practiced by family?

time now the stories are wrapped in 2 or 3 hrs.

-0-5

years

-5-10 years

Where all have you performed all over India?

-10-25 years

-They keep per forming in New delhi and they recently

-25-50 years

per formed in Sikkim for some organistaion.

-Beyond 50 y ears

Who funds these trips?

Family members participating in the craft :

-The organisations.

-Male -Female

72

Are you registered with the government?

Dwe lling

-Yes

-Own house

-No

-Rented house

-The process takes a lot of time and the information is not properly given to them and they are not ver y

Type of House

comfortable with handeling things online.

-Kaccha -Pucca

Are you or anyone in your family engaged

-Semi-Pucca

in any other activity apart from the handicrafts?

If own house, did you

-Yes

-Purchase

-No

-Constructed _Inherited

Are you a member of any of the following organizations?

-SHGs

Are there any occupational health hazard/

-Cooperative

dieases,linked with your craft practices?

-Society

-Yes

-Any other

-No

-None

-They have back issues as they have to sit for long hours at a stretch.

What is the kind of set up?

-Individual

Do you have health/life insurance?

-Community

-Ye s

-Family

-No

-Co-operative Are you planning to train your children in

Have you explored new raw materials other

your traditional craft practices?

than traditional?

-Yes

-Ye s

-No

-No

-They don’t see that this craft has any potential to grow in the current scenario and therefore they have found

Are you self employed-

alternate ways to support themselves.

-Ye s -No

Current monthly income of the artisan?

-Depends on the shows they per form.

Which area would you like us to strengthen for y our growth?

Do you have a saving account in the:

-Production

-Bank

-Design

-Post Office

-Packaging

-Any other

-Marketing

-No

-Preser vation -Any other_____________

73

•Have you received any training recently for

identification?

upgrading your skills?

-Yes. The stories are recited in a dialect of malvani.

-Yes -No

Where are they stored/any specific preparation for the space?

Do you know how to use Computer?

-They have a shed like area outside their house where

-Yes

they per form.

-No What are the existing skills?

Do you use internet?

-Inherited

-Yes

-Acquired

-No -Little bit How has the process changed with time?

If yes, what do you use it for?

-The raw materials have changed over the years.

-Personal

Earlier boru was used and now they use brushes. Now

-Business purpose

readymade colors are used as making natural pigments

-Both

is a time consuming and non-profitable process.

Have you benefited in any way by the use

Future of the carft:

of internet?

-Bad.

-Yes

-He feels that without any help of the government it is

-No

ver y difficult to preser ve this craft and the craft will los

-If yes,specify____________________

it ’s essence in contemporisation.

Do you do anything for the upliftment or

How do you preser ve the craft?

the awareness of the craft?

-They laminate the paintings to preser ve them and

-Yes. Hi s son who works as a teacher in Nerur

keep them in petis or potlis.

highschool conducts summer workshops on Chitrakathi for the students.

How is the craft received in the market?

-Moderately

How is the response from the student?

-A lot of students join ever y summer and have a lot of

Would you collaborate with brands and

fun doing it.

designers to keep the craft alive?

-Ye s.

Is the economical activity main source of

-Untill and unless it is used for the commercialisation of

income?

the craft in correct measures and used in an authentic

-No.

way.

Other sources?

If there were some reforms in the stories,

-One o f his son is a set designer in Mumbai and the

would you accept them?

other one is a school teacher in Nerur highschool.

-No, because the stories are about God goddess and Ramayana and Mahabharata,if you change the stories

Does the craft have any regional

then the essence of the craft changes.

charachteristics or any distinct

74

-Trade Fairs How do you sell your products?

-Any other They don’t sell at all

Directly to customers Meals and Festivals

What are the difficulties that you are facing

Dealers/Agent network

right now?

Exports

-1.Lack of interest in the audience

Local Markets

-2.No help from government in preser ving the old

Trade Fairs

paintings

Any other. They don’t sell at all.

-3.Ever y year a bunch of students come and inter view them but no changes have been done for the betterment of the craft or craftsmen.

How do you sell your products?

-Directly to customers

What makes a Chitrakathi artist?

-Meals and Festivals

-Copying the old forms is not Chitrakathi for him. If you

-Dealers/Agent network

can sketch a scene while he is reciting a stor y then

-Exports

you are a chitrakthi artist in true sense.

-Local Markets

75

Name: V.D Kapate

the craftsmen exists and then an official goes to the

CHANDA TO BANDA SCHEME ,

Post: General Manager in MSSIDC

given address to verify if the craftsman still practices

this covers all the crafts which

(Maharas htra small scale industries development

the craft. If yes, then they get registered.

and is yet to be launched but

corporati on limited) Address: Krupanidhi,9,Walchand Hirachand

come under Sindhudurg district

Marg,

Ballard estate, Mumbai 400 001.

Is this a lengthy procedure?

No, it doesn’t take a lot of time.

however is the first initiative by the government which includes Chitrakathi. Having

How many current projects are going on for

Can you tell us more about the Guru

the upliftment of crafts in India?

shishya Scheme?

Ever y year there are workshops held by government

It ’s a central government scheme.

to be introduced for all the crafts that come under

What are your suggestions for revival of the

Sindhudurg district which is called the “ Chanda to

craft?

banda ” scheme and Chitrakathi is also included in it.

It is no more a means of entertainment. Time has changed and a craft is likely to die if there’s no utility. so it should be commercialised likewise.

that are yet to be launched, by government for the general upliftment of the craft in our region. Sir also considered our suggestion of making Chitrakathi a GI(Geographical

No,

Have you ever considered making Chitrakthi

This is the first initiative taken by the government that

a GI( Geographical indication)?

included Chitrakathi.

We have made Paithani a GI and we could also consider chitrakathi to be a GI.

How many people apply for the workshops?

Around 200 people register for the camps and

What ideas other than holding exhibitions

workshops.

and training programs do you have for promoting the crafts or funding them?

What initiatives are taken to promote the

We have thought of coming up with an E-commerce

crafts?

portal where the craftsmen can upload their work and

Government conducts various training camps.

it would be made available to wide range of people.

Ever y year the government holds exh ibitions on both,

And the profit made would be for the betterment of

national and international level where the artisans can

the craftsmen.

put up their stalls.

Government also makes ads, coffee table books or

If we as design students come up with

brochures and distributes them while exhibitions.

some promotional plan,would you consider

There are emporiums that showcase all the products

it?

made by them.

Yes, ideas are always welcome.

What is the process of registration of the

What is the procedure to do so?

crafts?

You can submit your ideas to the general manager or

The craftsmen has to fill an online form and attach all

email it and he will for ward it o n.

V.D. Kapate , MSSIDC

Indication like paithani).

held for Chitrakathi over the past years?

the required and authentic document that proves that

the various E-commerce portals exhibitions and initiatives taken

for atleast 3 to 4 crafts. This year a new scheme is

Is there any other scheme or workshops

said this, he also talks about

76

Name: Devyani Varaskar In our conversation with the Punya Nagri, journalist we found about the “ DECCAN ODYSSEY ”. The tourism department of MTDC allows the Chitrakathi artists to conduct their shows in the train. She also told us that last article on Chitrakathi in Punya Nagri was published 2 or 3 years back.

Profession: Journalist Paper: Punya Nagri What help is provided by the government or the central government to the Chitrakathi artists?

No prog rams or workshops are held by the government for the Chitrakathi artists. People call them on personal level to per form during functions at their home according to the stories they want for the audience.

What is the government’s role in preser ving

Devyani Varaskar

the craft or art?

The government once helped the artisans preser ve few of the paintings and puppets by applying some chemical and laminating the paintings.Other than that no help is given by the government.

Where all the Chitrakathi artists perform around Kudal?

They per form in temples around Kudal during Navratris and at functions on demand.They also per form at the Sindhudurg festival ever y year.

What role does MTDC play in all this?

The tourism department of MTDC allows the Chitrakathi artists to conduct their shows in the train “ Deccan Odyssey ”.

Do the local newspapers have articles on Chitrakathi?

Yes, a few.

Earlier a lot of articles used to get published but with time it reduced.

According to you, when was the last article published on Chitrakathi?

2 or 3 years back.

77

Displays are arranged a t the entr y of TAKA, the museum, w here several of the pots and utensils used by the Thakar tr ibe in the ear lier days can be seen.

278

Schemes

Interest Subvention Scheme: -Credit access for handicrafts artisans, through

T

he following list consists of some schemes offered

introducing interest subventions for scheduled banks.

by the government that the craftsmen could avail

-Issue of Identity Cards and creation of data-base.

but they might not be doing so because of lack of

-Financial Assistance for supply of tools, safety

knowledge:

equipments, looms, furnace etc.: -Improve the productivity of the craftsmen and their

Upgrading Skills and Training in Traditional Arts/Crafts

income.

for Development (USTTAD) :

-Shilp Guru Award, National Award & National Merit

-For minority community of artisans.

Certificate for outstanding contribution in Handicrafts Sector.:

India Handmade Bazaar:

-To get recognition for the outstanding craftsperson in

-Direct marketing portal for handicrafts and handloom

the handicraft sector.

products.

Human resource development : Janashree Bima Yojana: -For Handicraft artisans.

Training through established institutions: -Upgrading skills in different trade of handicraft.

Babasaheb Ambedkar Hastshilp Vikas Yojana (AHVY):

Handicrafts Training Program:

-Development of typical handicraft and artisans,

-To fill the gap of the skilled work fo rce.

especially into a well-organized market.

Training through Guru Shishya Parampara: -For handling over of traditional knowledge from master

Rajiv Gandhi Shilp Swasthya Bima Yojana (RGSSBY):

craftsmen to the new generation.

-Financially enabling the artisans community to access

Training the trainers :

the best health care facilities.

-Course for master craftsperson /trainers for refreshing and honing up their skills under which the master

Aam Admi Bima Yojana (AABY):

craftspersons /trainers are exposed to new designs, use

-Life Insurance protection.

of improved tools and new production techniques and technologies.

Credit Guarantee scheme

79

SWOT Analysis

Strength:

Weakness:

-A strong cultural identity.

-Time consuming.

-One of the unique documentations techniques of Mahabharata and Ramayana in India.

-Limited flexibility.

-A strong medium of storytelling.

-Can be easily taught and learnt.

-Materials for production are easily available.

-A strong reflection of the lifestyle of the tribe and locality.

-Gives an insight to the culture and beliefs of the tribe.

-Variation in the effects created by natural and artificial colours.

-Difficult to preserve.

-More appealing in paints rather than in prints.

-Limited awareness outside the local region.

-Limited penetration among the population due to restriction of performances and language.

-Limited practitioners.

Opportunity:

Threats:

-Appealing to the art enthusiasts.

-Language barrier.

-Collaboration with brands.

-Monopolising attitude of the practising family.

-Scope for adaptation to several media.

-Extensive changes in the style and materials of the paintings by the current practitioners.

-Introduction in the school curriculum.

-An attraction point for the tourists.

-Annual festivals, local fares, trade fares, etc.

-Application on various merchandise and products.

-Might be undermined by the more popular crafts of the region such as Warli.

-Unwillingness among the audiences/ consumers to pay a reasonable price.

-Quality of the production is deteriorating.

-Can be turned into a global and national phenomena by integration with the transport industry.

-A window for researchers and historians to study the tribes of India.

80

Promotional Plan Brand Development

Transport System

Products Electronics :

Laptop skins, laptop sleeves, camera straps, phone covers, mouse pad

Stationery: Book covers, stamps, paint boxes, sketch book covers, bookmarks

Airway, railway and public transport. * Initiative is suggested to be taken up by the Government.

Electronic Media Social Media : Instagram, facebook,twitter page.

Website: Work on their TAKA website.

Blog Musical Instruments: Tambourine, guitar, harmonium, drums

TA K A Redesigned Logo The redesigning of logo: The redesigned logo is inspired from the “Tulsi Vrindavan” and is used as a symbol of “Aangan” , where the museum is established.

The tulsi puja is the first thing done in the morning to pray for goodwill of the family, so by using that as the logo we say that the family is extending their home for everyone.

It is deeply rooted to our traditions and is worshipped, therefore is an integral part of our cultural identity and festivals.

The logo has 11 leaves suggesting the 11 lok kalas celebrated by the Thakar Community. The logo welcomes the viewers and visitors alike into their world to have a look at what they offer.

812

Apparel: Ties, T-Shirts, kurta, skirt, leggings, jackets, stole

Home Decor: Room separator, curtains, lamp shades, bed sheets, pillow covers, cushion covers,walls

Kitchenware: Tray, coasters, cups, mugs, plates * Colaboration with brands which are ready to give financial support and credit to the artist's.

* The artist's family does not want any brand name associated with the art but financial help is welcomed.

Promotional Videos: Better video documentries in major indian languages.

Artists, Government, *brands, magazines, photographers.

Print Media Brochures, catalogue, pamplets,calenders, magazines.

(Can be taken by Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC), Craft Emporium.)

Articles in newspapers (well known ones in all languages).

Bloggers & journalists.

Events & Workshops Colaborate for workshops with brands such as Iteeha, Craft Kutir etc.

Organizing workshops in schools & instituions.

Artist's & Official Institutions.

Gain out of the promotional plan: Visibility of the art increases.

The art will sub-consiously get stored in the minds of people.

Create an visual appeal and identity of the craft.

Help in employment generation of the region.

Since the craft has a scope of innovation, it will be fulfilled.

The export will grow which will in turn increase the GDP of the country.

It also helps relating industries ,like the transport and printing industry.

It promotes rural litracy which happens when rural employment and wealth increases.

It creates a craft tourism hub.

82 2

environment made a lot of difference

and helped us understand the craft and the problems better,. The Gangawanes have been ver y kind and helping in ever y manner, be it regarding the craft or general help. The day we reached we planned our schedule. Interaction with the main craftsmen and visiting the nuseum was given the first priority. In our free time, we would sit and interact with the family which helped us learn new things ever yday. They made us feel like home , with good home cooked food and their warm behaviour. One week of being with the craft helped us get an insight of the reality of the craft. The government officials with whom we interacted also helped us in ever y way we asked for.

83

Shot at lake near Ravalnath Mandir in Kudal

Our Experience S

taying with the artist in that

284

2

From top left, in anticlockwise direction: Unnati Shaurya, Shikha Anand, Sawani Kulkarni, Priti Bhengra, Sunayani Bhattacharya, Shashank Shekhar SIngh, Shrishti Bhandari

D

ay 1: We learnt about the place from the local people and the the craftsmen we were staying with. The craftsmen were ver y friendly and cooperative. The rooms provided in the house for our homestay by the craftsmen were ver y

comfortable and spacious.

Day 2: We indulged ourselves in learning about the craft as much as we could. The artist himself explained about the craft and its processes in a ver y detailed manner. Mr. Gangawane’s plan of making us stay with them, the craftsmen, resulted to be ver y helpful for we got to see the craftsmen’ lifestyle ver y closely. The hospitality provided by the craftsmen in their house was ver y warm and welcoming. Mr. Gangawane gave us a little tour through his museum explaining the evolution of the Thakar community and the lok kala ’s of the community. The utensils they used and the instruments used for the lok kala ’s are still ver y well preser ved by the family.

Day 3: The start of our 3rd day was with a workshop given to us by Mr. Gangawane and his son. During the workshop his son gave us helpful insights of the craft and its process and the problems faced by the presents craftsmen. Then he ver y willingly allowed us to make a video on the museum. We then visited a temple on the suggestion of Mr. Gangawane from where we could further our study. Luckily we ran into Mr. Hardikar, a lawyer, who gave us information about another family who still practiced the art but was not as popular as the Gangawane family.

Day 4: Our next day was planned according to the information we had gathered from Mr. Hardikar about the other family. The Mhasage family was not as cooperative as the Gangawane’s but we still were able to give us some insight on why this craft is practiced by ver y few people. He himself is not much involved in the craft because he believes that the craft should be done authentically.

Later in the day, when we were done with our inter view with Mr. Mashge and were done for the day and seemed the study could not be taken any further, we spent our time on the Sagareshwar Beach in Vengurla.

Day 5: Sushma Ma ’am helped us get an appointment in the MSSIDC office which helped us understand why there are no government schemes particularly for Chitrakathi. Mr. Suraj Sawant helped us understand that some initiative needs to be taken to popularise the craft with the help of the Government. We were then able to get an inter view with the PRO, Mr. Milind Bandivadekar, who gave us further direction to the news reporter, Devyani Varaskar, who had written an article on the crafts of Maharashtra. But it seemed that she too could not do much for the craft herself. The investigation was further taken to the MTDC office where we were able to obtain some magazines in which detailed articles about the Thakar community were present.We visited Sarsoli Dham later which is a temple of three gods on the suggestion of the local public. After a calm walk through the Dham we took a ride to the Vengurla Port which was refreshing after the tiring day.

Day 6: We planned to take a look into some other crafts in Sindhudurg district the next day. We took a ride to the Amboli Falls and the Kavada Point to enjoy some peaceful moments in this new place.

We also visited the Sawantwadi Palace to understand the craft of Ganjifa and took a tour through the museum in the Palace.

Day 7: We were then able to film the process work of the Chitrakathi paintings done by the craftsmen using the present available materials. We got to understand that the process has had a major change which modifies the effect of the painting.

Mr. Gangawane then allowed us to sit through and film the puppet show that was organised for some tourists that were there for the day. It was a new experience for all of us and helped us understand the lok kala that he had been talking about since the first day.

Day 8: We boarded our train to Panvel after thanking Mr. Gangawane and his family for the warm atmosphere created by them throughout our stay.

86

Meeting with Suraj Sawant at MSSIDC

Talk with Mr Milind Bandivadekar from PRO Workshop by Eknath Gangavane

Interview with journalist Devyani Varaskar

Videography of the museum

Arrival at Kudal

MTDC Ravalnath Mandir

Checked in at Sundar home stay

Sarsoli Dham

DAY 7

Departure from Panvel

DAY 3

DAY 1

DAY 5

DAY WISE SCHEDULE

Kelbai Mandir

Elaichi coffee with Eknathi Gangavane

Vengurla port

Meeting with Masage family

87

Exploring the city

Area mapping at Vengurla

Amboli waterfalls

DAY 6

Interview with Parshuram Gangavane

DAY 4

DAY 2

TAKA

Sawantwa & museum

Kelbai Temple

Kalsutri bavlya show

DAY 8

adi palace

Photography

Back to square one

2

2

Painting displayed at Mhasage's house.

2

Appendices

Appendix 1: Maps List of Maps •

Map 1

Location of Pinguli in Maharashtra and heritage

sites visited in and around Pinguli •

Map 2

Various stor ytelling art across India

•

Map 3

Various stor ytelling art across the world

Appendix 2: Flow Charts •

Lok Kalas

•

Process work

-

Old Style

-

New Style

Appendix 3: Timeline Day-wise schedule Appendix 4: Infographics •

Musical Instruments

•

Comparative study

-

Local Scenario

-

Global Scenario

Appendix 5: Quesionnarie Appendix 6: Online Sur vey

91

Annexure

Articles I . M a h a r a s htra unl imited a rticl e Magazine: Maharashtra Unlimited Volume 4 Issue 1

the traditional style.

The mo st interesting factor though is that it requires no props except a bench or so for the act. Another unique feature

Date of Issue: January 2015

of this act is that there is no need for a written script for

T

narrator or sutradhar. None of these actors get any kind of

here are some folk art forms and other artistic representations that are specific to the Konkan region.

This includes the popular theatre presentation of Dashavatar and the ver y creative approach to stor y telling in the form of Chitrakathi.

Age-old traditiona l folk arts and culture are ingrained in the blood of the citizens of the beautiful and scenic Konkan region. Its almost like ever y village has its own artist excelling in one or more of the many artistic forms practiced there. This land of beaches and picturesque villages have ver y grand celebrations on festivals, precisely on Ganpati and Holi.

Da s h a va ta r It is the most celebrated festival in the Konkan region, especially in Malvan, Kudal, Sawantwadi, Vengurla, and Devgad. A popular traditional theatre form with a histor y of hundreds of years is a stor y of the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu.

It is a theatrical per formance that begins late at night and continues till early morning and is per formed during many other occasions like Jatra (an annual fair honouring the village deity). It has been adapted to shorter three-hour versions but it isn’t that popular among people who prefer

this play and is based highly on the coordination of the special training and are simple farmers who are called the Devali. These actor have their own metal boxes containing necessar y materials and are used to doing their own makeup and drape their own costumes though all the characters are per formed by men and includes no women.

There are a few Dashavatar per forming group in the Konkan region including Naik Mochemadkar Group, Valavalkar Group, Chendavankar Group though the credit for popularising this art form goes to Mr Shyamji Naik Kale who introduced to the Konkan region in 1728 CE bringing it from the Karnataka. The ver y first show was held in Mahakali temple in Ratnagiri district.

It is an art form that is ver y similar to Yakshagana per formed in the coastal areas of Karnataka. The similarity lies in the themes and styles of presentation with the difference in the emphasis given during the play. Dance and music is the emphasis point in Yakshagana while in Dashavatar dialogues and acting is stressed upon.

The artists faced many problems in d earlier times such as they had to carr y the huge boxes and walk for miles to different villages to per form but today they have been provided with buses and other facilities by the government who have been encouraging and helping it to flourish.

92

Pinguili

widespread for a six month advanced booking had to be

Counted among the traditional art forms of Pinguili

done for the show and the meals of the artists were taken

Chitrakathi is a stor y telling art in which stories of Ramayana,

care by the villagers. Each household contributed a

Mahabharata and Puranas are displayed in sequential order

kilogram of rice for the artists. Many elite families would have

b y paintings on handmade paper along with the narration

special per formances by the bahulekars on occasions such

of a stor y teller. This art form that is on the verge of getting

as Tulsi Vivah.

phased out is presented by being pasted on the top of a

A unique tradition of distribution of fish in each household

wooden strip. The only family that has been identified and

of the village by the chief of the group was followed to

working against all difficulties as the artists of Chitrakathi in

invite them to the show by saying ‘ bahulekar ilo’ meaning

the present day is Parshuram Gangavane and his family, who

the artists have arrived and so they must come and watch

also run a museum “ Thakar Adivasi Kala Angan”. There had

them. Over the years the popularity of the artists decreased

b een the support of the royalty in the earlier times but that is

and they were fo rced to per form the Potraja act to beg for

no more true.

alms. The Potraja had to carr y a green broom made out of

Belonging to a tribal community of Raigad district, the

peacock feathers which was a representation of their green

Gangavane’s migrated from Raigad to Sindhudurg in

God Hiroba. The community continues to practice many

search of employment and were supported by Jayram, Bapu

of their traditional rituals, especially that of the marriage

Maharaj and Khem Sawant, the king of the princely state

being solemnised in front of the village panch rather than a

of Sawantwadi. Eventually the per formances came to be

Brahmin priest. There is distribution of moh, a wine extracted

known as “ Thakarancha Gondhal ” which included various arts

from flowers and blessings are received from the Potraja

like painting pictures and making puppets from goat skin.

while the main attraction lies in radhanrutya which includes

Inspired by their dedication towards the art, Bapu Maharaj

puppet show and Chitrakathi.

provided them with handmade papers to draw on leading to

.

the creation of Chitrakathi which was earlier done on tree

The Pinguili Museum

leaves. Together Chitrakathi and the puppet show produced

There is a museum constructed by Parshuram Gangavane

the per formers the nickname of ‘ bahulekars ’.

in Pinguili which showcases the many tribal arts and the

The Kelbai Temple in Kudal was the per formance stage

instruments used by the Thakar community. It is an attraction

for these bahulekars during the night which started with

point for college students pursuing creative arts as 2-3 days

worshipping the tanpura. The popularity of the show was

of workshops are conducted by them at a nominal entrance fee added to it the expert points of the local art forms.

93

I I . F r om S h a d o ws to Light Newspaper: Hindustan Times

their nomadic background they were also appointed as spies during the rule of Chhatrapati Shivaji.

Date of Issue: not mentioned

But this craft has been losing its touch even with its rich

A

members have turned to farming or fishing for their livelihood.

cowshed might seem as the most unlikely place to preser ve any kind of folk art but Thakar Adivasi Kala

Aangan is making it possible in all manners for the revival of Chitrakathi of the Thakar Adivasis in small village of Pinguili on the borders of Goa-Maharashtra and has been attracting visitors from all around. These nomadic artists relied on this style of art form and shadow puppetr y during the 18th centur y. The stories shown on these paintings were epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata on handmade paper. The leather puppets were managed by the highly skilled artists by projecting the shadows of the puppets on a screen with the help of a burning flame and controls the size of the shadow b y controlling the distance of the puppet from the flame.

Traditionally the art has been managed by the men of the community and has been passed down orally since ages from father to son. Eknath Gangavane, a 22 year old artist of Chitrakathi of Pinguili is the son of Parshuram Gangavane and has been learning this art form since the eight. He has taken on the responsibility of keeping this art form alive by popularising it through puppets camps across many states in the countr y and prides himself in receiving no formal training learning only by watching. This nomadic community travelled

histor y due to dying patronage many of the community In this cowshed turned museum Eknath Gangavane has tried to restore some 200 year old paintings and puppets handcrafted from soft wood called pangara and hand stitched leather puppets. These artists have shown creativity even in innovating musical instruments such as a twig from the bhendi (Thespesia Populnea) tree and watta (large bowl) is used to produce sound exactly like that of a harmonium and a donavadya (vessel used to remove excess water from boiled rice) is used to produce what is called donageet, or music from the dona. Instruments such as a shankh (conch shell) is an important instrument for its a cue by the puppeteer for when it's blown to a crescendo, the shadow of the puppet grows to its full size, and when it trails off, the shadow diminishes.

The Kala Aangan has been organising workshops for many artists and students and selling it too to popularise the craft among the new generation. They plan to open residential facilities to provide a place for aspiring artists and grab the attention of neighbouring children. These art forms involve lots of drama and the shadow puppetr y plays with and so is mostly conducted in the dark.

from village to village per forming in gatherings and festivals in exchange of food and shelter in the earlier times. Due

94

Contact List 95

Organization/ Authority/ Person-InCharge

Contact

Mr Gangavane (Thakkar Adivasi Museum)

Pinguli (Gudhipur), BKG Road, Sundar Niwas 1183, Opposite Shri Nursery 9987653909

Arts of the Earth

taka.museum@gmail.com No.1, Hauz Khas Village, New Delhi-110016 919811672731

Culture Aangan Tourism Pvt. Ltd.

artsoftheearth213@gmail.com B 16 Osman Chambers, Juhu Tara Road, Santacruz West, Mumbai- 40049 info@cutureaangan.com

Directorate of Art Maharashtra

Sir J.J. School of Arts Campus, Dr D.N Road, Fort, Mumbai400001 022 2262 0231 doamumbai0@gmail.com

MTDC (Tourist Office)

Sindhudurg Paryatak Suvidha Kendra, National Highway 17, Oros, Sindhudurg- 416812 2362 228785/ 1800229930

MSME (Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises)

Room no.- 123, Udyog Bhawan, Rafi Marg, New Delhi110011 011 13061431 Js.sme@nic.in

Craft Council of India

GF, Temple Trees Apartment, 37, Venkatanarayana Road, T Nagar, Chennai- 600017 (44) 24341456/ 24327931/ 9940194997 info@craftcouncilofindia.org

All India Artisans and Craftworkers Welfare Association (AIACA)

Basement, B-223, CR Park, New Delhi (011) 26277491/ 92/ 93/ 94 contact@aiacaonline.org

Ritika Jhunjhunwala (Iteeha)

Matunga, Mumbai 7506122332 ritika@iteeha.com workshops@iteeha.com connect@iteeha.com

Dr Bhau Daji Lad Museum

91A Rani Baug, Veer Mata Jijbai Bhonsle Udayan, Dr. Baba Saheb Ambedkar Marg, Byculla East, Mumbai (22) 23731234/ 655603894/ 2371 5991/ 6556 0394

Gaatha

NDBI, NID, Paldi, Ahemdabad- 380007 1, Ranjan, Vishwakunj Char Rashta, Paldi, Ahmedabad380007 79 26671008

Organization/ Authority/ Person-InCharge

Contact

Mr Hardikar, retired lawyer from Kudal

9421149158

Ganpat Masaghe

9404944194

Gangawane

9987653909

Hemant (Auto driver)

9421147472

Origo Design Studio

9604170616/ 9158717705/ 8856003463 origo.hubs@gmail.com www.origo.co.in

Shreeram S Patil, Branch Manager of MSSIDC

9967781884

Devyani Varaskar, Punyanagri

9423856529

Tejaswi Kadsekar, Live Sindhudurg

9423316660

Sheil B. Sadwelkor, visitor of TAKA (1979 & 2017)

9860610605/ 9890804443

Dr Prasanna, Curator of Prince of Wales Museum

9860023275

Mr Gavde, Project Officer at MSSIDC

9403078767

MSSIDC Mumbai

Krupanidhi, 9, Walchand Hirachand Marg, Ballard Estate, Mumbai- 400 001 022-2262-624/ 2261 1121-22 vdkapate@gmail.com mssidc.maharashtra.gov.in

96

References

Newspaper article- Hindustan Times by Kinjal Dagli Magazine article- Maharashtra unlimited, Volume 4, Issue 4, 2015, Konkan Special by Ashutosh Bapat

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chitrakathi http://pingulichitrakathiart.com/ http://www.natgeotraveller.in/folk-art-frisson-paintings-and-palaces-in-pinguli/ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Reviving-a-dying-art-form-with-visuals-of-another/ articleshow/16361065.cms https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thakar_tribe http://www.onefivenine.com/india/villages/Sindhudurg/Kudal/Pinguli http://maharashtratribalmuseum.blogspot.in/ http://www.konkanonline.com/art/chitrakathi.html https://dgipr.maharashtra.gov.in/UPLOAD/ELOKRAJYA/2017/02/8203.pdf https://www.sahapedia.org/mahabharata-chitrakathi http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/handle/10603/110264

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HfYbEDXrFSo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1fIFDO4-Xw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efyKkKhcNjw https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pz6x76Bhs-o&t=3s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4CoNXWPJCQ

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