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Knowledge Nugget: What President's invite box to Independence Day guests contains — A quick look for UPSC exam
Take a look at the essential concepts, terms, quotes, or phenomena every day and brush up your knowledge. Here's your knowledge nugget on the President's invite box on Independence Day.
(Relevance: The items in the invite box, both on the occasion of Independence Day and Republic Day, are carefully selected to showcase the rich culture of our country. These items are also important from an examination point of view, as the UPSC has asked questions on such art forms or GI products that have been in the news.)
The eastern states are the focus of around 450 invites being sent this year by Rashtrapati Bhawan for the 'At Home' to be held on August 15 to mark the 79th Independence Day. The invite box has been curated in a way that the paintings and other artifacts can be used independently by the invitees as souvenirs. The guests at the event include the PM and his Cabinet, diplomats from various missions, senior officials and eminent personalities.
1. A cloth bag with a hand-painted Madhubani tag holds a box woven from sikki grass, a lesser known traditional craft form from Bihar. Inside the box is a bamboo frame carrying an invite and four other paintings, showcasing popular artforms from West Bengal, Odisha, and Jharkhand, besides Bihar.
2. The invitation kits have been put together by the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad, in collaboration with over 100 artisans, mostly women, from the four states. While nine Madhubani artists from Bihar and 15 bamboo artisans from Jharkhand worked from NID Bengaluru campus, the others worked from their respective villages.
3. According to an official, the idea behind the August 15 invite is to showcase both popular and lesser-known art and craft forms from the four eastern states – Bihar, Odisha, West Bengal, and Jharkhand.
4. The choice of craft form is also symbolic. The openable frame carrying the printed invite is crafted by tribal artisans from Jharkhand, where bamboo weaving is deeply rooted in tradition. The invite takes the symbolic form of a door, representing the welcoming spirit of Rashtrapati Bhavan.
5. The frame has hand-painted Madhubani motifs and houses four paintings typical of the four eastern states. These are Tikuli art, Pattachitra, Talapatra Chitra, and Paitkar painting.
⇒ Tikuli art is an 800-year-old folk painting style from Patna. It dates back to the Mauryan period. Ashok Kumar Biswas, a prolific Tikuli Painter credited for revival and modification of this art, was awarded the Padma Shri in 2024. The name Tikuli comes from the word 'tikli', which means 'bindi' or 'dot' in Hindi.
⇒ The Patua community of Medinipur, Bengal practises Pattachitra. According to the government website of paschimmedinipur, 'The word 'pata' is derived from the Sanskrit word 'patta' which means painters are called Patuas.'
⇒ Talapatra Chitra is the palm leaf scrolls of Odisha. In this a long rectangular piece of palm leaves are joined one after the other with the help of cotton thread to perform the painting. It has received the GI tag.
⇒ Paitkar painting is an old tribal scroll tradition from Jharkhand's Amadubi village. The word Paitkar is derived from the local word Patekar, or the Pata artists of the region. It is known for its narrative tradition and performance.
1. During the 76th Republic Day celebration this year, the invites for the At Home, hosted by the President on the evening of January 26, showcased a selection of unique artisanal handicrafts from the southern region of our country.
2. It included Pochampally Ikat fabric (Telangana), Etikoppaka toys (Andhra Pradesh), Kancheepuram silk (Tamil Nadu), Ganjifa art (Karnataka) and Screw-pine weaving (Kerala).
3. A roll-up pencil pouch made of Pochampally Ikat fabric of Telangana was included. The symmetrical pattern in the fabric is achieved through the Ikat resist-dye technique. It is a GI-tagged product.
4. Etikoppaka toys of Andhra Pradesh are a 400-year-old craft that has become synonymous with eco-friendly creativity and cultural heritage. In 2017, the toys received official recognition with a Geographical Indication (GI) tag, a hallmark of their authenticity and cultural significance.
5. A pouch made of Kancheepuram silk (Tamil Nadu), and a screw-pine weaved bookmark (Kerala) were also included. The craft of Kanjeevaram sari weaving spans 400 years, and is traditionally practised within temple confines by dedicated artisans.
6. The items are enclosed in a bamboo box with Kalamkari (Andhra) motifs. Kalamkari originates from the words 'Kalam', meaning pen in Persian and 'Kari', an Urdu word for craftsmanship. It is a work of art created by a pen. The 'pen' is a short piece of bamboo or a stick from the date palm tree, pointed at the end to form a nib.
Consider the following pairs:
How many pairs given above are not correctly matched?
(a) Only one pair
(b) Only two pairs
(c) Only three pairs
(d) All four pairs
(Source: Message from eastern states in President's 'At Home' invite to Independence Day guests )
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