Naya: An Artisans Village

It was a winter morning and we were decked up to attend a colleague’s wedding at Pingla. Pingla is a block in Kharagpur subdivision of West Midnapore district in the state of West Bengal, India. We were very excited to see the rituals of a countryside wedding. We heard about the famous ‘Pata Chitra’ (Pata Painting) of Pingla at Naya village. So we decided to visit the ‘Pata Chitra’ village on our way. When we reached Naya we were mesmerized by the beauty of our ancient lost art form. From centuries ‘Pata Chitra’ is a part of the culture in Eastern India but hidden from modern urban civilisation. It is believed that the art form is as old as cave paintings of ancient cave-dwelling human beings.

Paintings on Village Walls

The Naya village is like an open art gallery underneath the open blue sky. Every house of the village has brightly coloured Pata Chitras on its walls. Pictures of a big fish eating a small one, a trail of different birds and animals are beautifully painted on every wall. Paintings of bird’s nest, tiger families, and crocodiles will surely win your heart and lead you to the world where artistic imagination has a language.

Mythological and Historical patachitras and the artist

The word ‘Pata’ is derived from Sanskrit ‘Patta’ means cloth. The artists of Pata Chitra are known as ‘Patuas’. They draw frames on a long scroll of cloth and tell the stories by singing ‘Pater Gaan’ (Pata song) and roll open the long scroll of cloth step by step. The Patuas are painters, storytellers, singer and lyricists; all in one.

A Durga Idol is painted on asaree

A Mythological Patachitra

Naya is home to near about 260 Patuas. The skilled artists make their own colours from natural ingredients. Few of them are listed here from my memory:

The red colour is made from teak wood leave extract.

Blue from Asian Pigeonwings flowers (Aparajita flower in Bengali)

The green colour from green vegetables, yellow from turmeric and white is made from Kusum soil dust.

They make their specialized brushes from goat or squirrel hair.

Hand-Fans

Patachitras on Utensils

The patuas depict different historical events, mythological tales ( Puranas, Ramayana, Mahabharata), regional religious folk tales (Manasa Mangal, Chandi Mangal) and also many contemporary issues (save the environment, save trees, HIV awareness etc.). Keeping pace with globalization today’s Patuas make home decors, apparels, stationeries, utensils, umbrellas and hand fans using patachitras. These things are becoming famous not only in India but abroad also. They have a library full of books which will tell you the glorious journey of our very own Pata Chitras.

Pata Chitra Library

A fair called ‘Pot Maya’ takes place every year in the month of November. Tourists from different parts of India and abroad visit this fair. Recently ‘Pata Chitra’ has received GI Tag. A rural craft hub is developed in Pingla by Department of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Textiles, Government of West Bengal in association with UNESCO. The village has a folk art centre called ‘Chitrataru’ built by West Bengal Khadi and Village Industries board. Enthusiasts can learn the art of Pata Chitra here.

Village Entrance

Places to see:

Mat weaver hub at Sabang

Beautiful flower fields at Khirai.

Best time to Visit:

November to January

How to Reach:

Board any Kharagpur bound train and get down at Balichak Station. Local bus or shared car via Mundamari will take you to Naya.

Where to Stay:

It is a one day trip from Kolkata. No need to stay. If someone wishes to stay then there is Nayagram Resource Centre. They have two double-bedded rooms.

Fooding and lodging cost: Rs 750 per day per person

Phone: 9732731776

Travel expands the minds and fills the gap-------- Sheda Savage