AAP chief Kejriwal finds new supporters, this time with Bengal’s Patachitra artists
During his chief ministership, Kejriwal had found huge fan-following amongst the masses which not only hovered in and around Delhi but also reached the eastern corner of the country. His party found many supporters in Bengal too. It was this craze that was picked up by the Patachitra painters who scripted Kejriwal’s good deeds along with myths and folklore.
‘After he became chief minister of Delhi, his supporters grew and he was being regarded as a symbol of change. Also, in Bengal, he found a few supporters. So I decided to draw this through our art,’ said Monu Chitrakar, a Pata artist.
Montu painted a scroll in which Kejriwal was in a helicopter with his broom and people were smiling and waving at him.
‘The painting depicts people’s happiness when he came to power. Moreover, the broom is very symbolic,’ adds Montu.
The Pata artists are now moving towards political and social issues and says that it is their duty to make people aware. ‘It is our responsibility as artists. Through art, we have taken up issues like deforestation, dowry, HIV, malaria and the likes. Also, we have also displayed tsunami and 9/11 terror through our art,’ added another artist from Bengal.
‘Patachitra’ is a unique folk tradition of Bengal where stories are painted on scrolls. The painters also known as ‘Pataus’ sing the stories as they unfurl the scrolls. Known for its bold colours, lines and strokes, originally Patachitras were used to narrate mythological stories like the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Krishna leela and such. Interestingly, the ‘pataus’ are mostly Muslims.
‘We have 80 families in our village and most of them are Muslims. We feel good that despite having a different religion, we are not bias towards our art,’ said an artist.
‘After he became chief minister of Delhi, his supporters grew and he was being regarded as a symbol of change. Also, in Bengal, he found a few supporters. So I decided to draw this through our art,’ said Monu Chitrakar, a Pata artist.
Montu painted a scroll in which Kejriwal was in a helicopter with his broom and people were smiling and waving at him.
‘The painting depicts people’s happiness when he came to power. Moreover, the broom is very symbolic,’ adds Montu.
The Pata artists are now moving towards political and social issues and says that it is their duty to make people aware. ‘It is our responsibility as artists. Through art, we have taken up issues like deforestation, dowry, HIV, malaria and the likes. Also, we have also displayed tsunami and 9/11 terror through our art,’ added another artist from Bengal.
‘Patachitra’ is a unique folk tradition of Bengal where stories are painted on scrolls. The painters also known as ‘Pataus’ sing the stories as they unfurl the scrolls. Known for its bold colours, lines and strokes, originally Patachitras were used to narrate mythological stories like the Ramayana, Mahabharata, Krishna leela and such. Interestingly, the ‘pataus’ are mostly Muslims.
‘We have 80 families in our village and most of them are Muslims. We feel good that despite having a different religion, we are not bias towards our art,’ said an artist.