Patta Chitra (The Traditional Art Of Odisha)
JAY JAGANNATH ! জয় জগন্নাথ ! जय जगन्नाथ ! जय जगन्नतः ! |
| The traditional painting of soulful Odisha. |
History:-
The painting the 'pattachitra' resemble the old murals of Odisha especially religious centres of Puri, Konark and Bhubaneshwar region, dating back to the 5th century BC. The best work is found in and around Puri, especially in the village of Raghurajpur.
This old tradition of Odia painting still survives in the places like Puri, Raghurajpur, Paralakhemundi, Chikiti and Sonepur.In the past professionerise, there was no distinct separation between the master painters and master sculptors; so the possibility of a simultaneous origin of painting and sculptural art in Odisha can not be ruled out. Even today in Odisha, these two crafts are combined in one and these artists and known as Chitrakaras, their title remains mostly Mohapatra or Maharana. Strangely enough, painting appeared in Odisha rather later, several centuries after the construction of the great temples of Bhubaneswar, Puri and Konark.here exists a good number of paintings from 18th century onwards in many temples and Mathas especially in the southern districts of Odisha. Lord Jagannath in the present from is being taken as the origin of the Patta style. The colour schemes of the deities of Puri are quite similar to those of the Patta style. The oldest record of Patta Paintings does not probably go beyond the
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| Lord Jagannath , Lord Balabhadhara and goddess Subhadra (pattachitra) |
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| Krishna leela (pattachitra) |
establishment of the present shrine of Shri Jagannath at Puri. It may be due to the fact that paintings do not survive like sculptures. The paints inside the shrines of Lord Jagannath at Puri make the date probable. The oldest classical marble paintings of Sitabanji at Keonjhar do not conform to the present style of Patta painting wholly. The wooden statues of the three deities are also covered with cloth and then overlaid with glue mixed with chalk, and then given paint only with four limited colours of red, yellow, white and black. The deities who are held in high esteem by the Oriyas and who inspire religion, life and activity of the people also carry with them a tradition of art and painting which is as old as the deities themselves. If the Savara origin of Jagannath is accepted, the date of the Patta paintings can be dated back to an earlier period. These paintings were originally substitutes for worship on days when the temple doors were shut for the 'ritual bath' of the deity.
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Unknown facts:-
1.A single Pattachitra painting takes at least five to 15 days, while some even taking months to complete. The timing to carve one Pattachitra painting depends upon the level of intricacy and size of the paintings. However, it takes years of practice, dedication and skill for an artisan to carve a flawless and magnificent piece.
2.A lot goes into preserving the original appeal of this art form, and the chitrakars of Odisha seemed to have mastered that art. What gives Pattachitra an edge over other art forms is the fact that the colours used are 100% natural and are prepared by the chitrakars using ancient methods. While white is made using conch shells, a mineral colour named hingula is used as red colour and a stone named harikala is used for yellow.
3.The creativity of Pattachitra artists is not just limited to canvas and cloth. They celebrate the art form by painting murals on the outer walls of their houses. These paintings depict mythological scenes from the Panchatantra, the Puranas, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata.
4.The main themes of Pattachitra paintings have always been inspired by Lord Jagannath and the Vaishnava sect. Many Pattachitra paintings are amazing representations of stories of Lord Jagannath and Radha-Krishna, the ten incarnations of Vishnu, episodes from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and many more. So, one can imagine that much before Amar Chitra Katha, mothers were reading out stories to their children from Pattachitra paintings.
5.Pattachitra paintings have an uncanny resemblance to the old murals and paintings done on the wall of religious centres in ancient Odisha. While Pattachitra art is famous all over Odisha, if you want to find the best work then head straight to Raghurajpur. Deeply driven the love and passion for the art, Pattachitra artists from this village have not just kept this art form alive through ages, but have also earned the status of heritage village for the wide and unique range of crafts practised there.
6.Pattachitra is a disciplined form of art with set rules and restrictions. A floral border is a must in Pattachitra paintings, and so is the use of natural colours, restricting them to a single tone. This creates a distinct look and feel that is typical to Pattachitra and cannot be replicated!
7.Generally, Pattachitra art is practised by the entire family of chitrakars. While the women prepare the glue, the canvas and help out in filling the borders, the master painter, usually a male, draws the initial sketch and gives the final touches to the painting.
8.Pattachitra has largely remained uninfluenced by the other schools of Indian paintings, namely the Mughal and Pahadi styles as Odisha had remained uninvaded by the Mughals for a fairly long time, giving the art form a window to evolve its own unique styles which gave birth to the Puri school of painting.
When You visit Puri please do visit Raghurajpur not too far from Puri just about 20-22 KM.
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