"We drew mythology, you must draw the present"
Days are not far away when people will forget their mother-tongue but they will still remember their ethnic art and paintings. In such a scenario only such paintings will be able to take the role of flagbearer of the culture - a speaker Alok Kumar said this at the event.
Art is not just a matter of expression, it's a matter of existence. Without this you are just a zoological creature and not a human being. Throughout the world, folk arts have evolved and flourished as an integral part of the daily normal life of the inhabitants. They have carved out a niche for themselves by conserving their uniqueness in terms of style and technique. Through the ages, Mithila Art which is a more logical name of Madhubani Painting possesses the commendable features of inclusiveness as it has been adopted not just by the so-called elite Bhrabhmana and Kayasthas but also by the so-called ordinary castes like Dusadhs and others. The techniques and materials used in making of a Madhubani paintaing requires just flowers and other natural colours found easily in the nature. The motifs mainly consists of the nature, Hindu mythology and general life of the masses at large.
Prof. Prashant Das (IIMA) presented the welcome note to the audience and then requested the distinguished guests to come to the dais for the book release. This auspicious act was performed jointly by Chandra Mauli Karn (IFS), Arjun Naraya Choudhary (veteran writer), Cdr Kaushal Choudhary (Rtd.), Savitri Labh (artist), Prof. Prashant Das, Binita Mallik, Dr. Minu Agrawal and the publisher Nirmal Kr Karn from Adarsh Enterprises.
After the book-release, the renowned Maithili singer Sundaram Choudhary presented Ganesh Vandana and Bhagwati geet in his mesmerisingly mellifluous voice. He was accompanied by the tabala player Pratyush and a co-singer Pragya.
Surprisingly two of the three editors namely Minu Agarwal and Laura Zizka have had no past connection to Mithila painting in their life. Only Binita Mallik is the editor who has been born and brought up in Mithila culture.
Binita Mallik propagated that the best friend of a person is not a human but a skill. Every art has a particular language and grammar of expression. She has inherited the art from her ancestors and has put her paintings in several exhibitions. She is a well-known Madhubani painting artist in Delhi.
Minu Agarwal stated, art is something that connects people and we can celebrate the creativity best where it comes from. And the big mass of people who have gathered has some connection with Mithila culture. They have the ability to appreciate our book the most. She described further the nature of different chapters of the book and stressed particularly that the second and third chapter has cultural connection. In the middle of the book parallels have been drawn of Mithila art from some other art movements.
Chandra Mauli Karn (IFS) said it proudly that along with other presents he has presented Mithila art pieces to more than 100s of the foreign dignitaries and he did so because Mithila paintings deserve it. He recounted that some of the dignitaries in Africa said that the Mithila art has some striking similarity with tribal arts. He reminded that many initiatives have been taken from the Central Government to promote Mithila Art.
Alok Kumar drew attention of the people towards the sustainability of paintings. He said that in coming days when most of the people are getting dispersed away from their home villages unfortunately they are drifting away from the use of their language. Though there is a a danger of forgetting the mother tongue (which we must try to avoid at any cost) there is still a high probability that they will relate to their culture mainly through their paintings. So, the book on Mithila painting is a true service in the direction of conserving the culture.
Nirmal Kumar of Adarsh Enterprises is the publisher of the book. He said that this coffee table book will fill the long time gap on Mithila art. Not only the artists of the book but also an editor and the publisher are from Mithila.
Savitri Labh (Artist) described the significance of Kamaladah and Kobar in Mithila art. He also said that even though someone grows old he can make Mithila paintings and can keep themselves enthusiastic and creative.
Ashok Kr Coudhary from Sahitya Akademy also expressed his views on Mithila paintings and said that though he belongs to Odisa still is a big fan of Madhubani paintings.
The released book contains insightful articles and interviews with a view to give full perspective to the readers about the Madhubani aka Mithila Art. Prof. Prashant Das is the managing editor and Binita Mallik (artist and poet), Dr. Minu Agarwal (Prof. at CEPT, Ahmedabad) and Laura Zizka (Prof. at Laussane de Echole, Switzerland) are the editors.
The artists whose contents have been covered in this book include Godavari Dutta, Bimla Dutta, Krishna Kumar Kashyap, Smriti Shree, Sarita Das, Binita Mallik, Ranju Das, Rajani Thakur, Archana Raj. Shreya Sarda from Design Flyover has designed the whole book. The book has been divided in nine chapters as the following-
1. Mithila Art: A survey of what we already know
2. A visual survey of Mithila Paintings
3. The International reception of Mithila paintings in the 1970s A countercultural kairos?
4.Transforming the bride: Gauri Puja in early 20th century Madhubani Paintings
5.Madhubani Paintings reviewed with modern lenses
6. Is the Mithila Painting losing its sanctity because of its excessive access?
7. Godavari Dutta:"The art came as a ray of hope in the otherwise gloomy life"
8. Bimla Dutta: " We drew mythology, you must draw the present"
9. Krishna Kumar Kashyap: "There is no distinction between education and art"
Those who were present at the event included Adhir Mallik, Pranav Priyadarshi, Ravi Shankar, Dr. Arvind Das, Suresh Kr., Ashish Niraj, Uday Shankar, Kumud Das, Radha Raman, Vijay Kr., Ravindra Kr, Sarita, Vidya, Dr. Narendra, Satyam, Rachna, A. Karn, Mamta, Jyoti, Dr. Dhwani and many more.
At the end of the event, Hemant Das Him presented the vote of thanks to the organisers and audience of the event.
Send your feedback- hemantdas2001@gmail.com / editorbejodindia@gmail.com
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ReplyDeleteThanks a lot.
DeleteApt and elaborative.
ReplyDeleteHowever,considering the fact that most of the present were well conversant with Hindi,it didn't mean much to conduct the event in english,even if the book was written in the same language-particularly when one talks of preserving culture etc. Many of the present hardly would have understood those who chose english. Bites/releases to news agencies/media could have been given in english though.
Having said that, it was really appreciable to note that two of the authors have worked on the book while on foreign soil. If publicised properly, the book may prove to be a turning point in drawing attention of the public in general and of the artists in particular worldwide.
Wish the writers and the publisher the very best.
Take a vote of thanks for noticing my presence too!
Regards.
Thanks for your expert comment. It will be communicated to the organisers of the event.
DeleteGreat to know about the book. It's a much needed one.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing the detailed review of function.
Fortunately, I've got a chance to glance through a copy of the book.
This book is really a collectible one and it's design, contents, reviews, printing quality, editing, review, covers color... everything is of high quality.
I am sure that the publisher will place its advt at all the relevant places/ portals to make it a well known book on Mithila Art.
Thanks a lot for your kind views on the event and the book.
Delete