President's Independence Day reception handmade invites reflect traditional art
Artist Jaba Chitrakar and her family in West Bengal's Naya produced 750 invitations, measuring five by nine inches. 'A representative from NID called and asked me to complete this order for the August 15 celebrations,' said Chitrakar's husband and artisan, Montu.
The Chitrakars used natural colours, turmeric, neem leaves, mud, white sand, bel fruit, and coconut garlands for the cards. They dried the colours in sunlight before mixing them with water. The designs painted on chart paper feature Goddesses Mansa, Durga, Saraswati, Laxmi, etc.
The Chitrakars art has been awarded a Geographical Indication tag. Montu, Jaba, and their daughters are award-winning artisans.
Sibanarayan Swain and his community from Raghurajpur in Odisha's Puri contributed 500-600 invites in the patachitra tradition painted on palm leaves themed 'Tree of Life' carrying the message of saving the environment. 'A team from NID came to our village. They saw all our work and ordered samples from us. After that, they said they want us to work on this,' Swain said. 'We are very grateful for this grand project. Our artisans were very happy with this assignment too.'
Raghurajpur is home to 160 families practising patachitra and other crafts such as cow dung painting. It has produced three Padma awardees and 15 national awardees. Raghurajpur has also won the 'Best Rural Tourism' Award. It is the birthplace of Odissi dance founder Guru Kelucharan Mohapatra.
Tikuli artist Shanti Sinha created handmade invites using wall paint in Bihar's Bata Chowk. Sinha, who teaches girls this art form traditionally made for festivals such as Diwali and Chhath Puja, said the Independence Day project allowed their work to be adapted for a national celebration.
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