Folk Art of Bengal

Folk Arts of West Bengal and The Artist Community

The subject of folk art is one of great importance, and Mr. Ajitcoomar Mookerjee's contribution is very much to the point. Such a work, a promising introduction to a study of folk art parallel to that which my old friend Dinesh Chandra Sen has carried out so admirably for the Bengali folk songs, should lead to further local research. Mr. Mookerjee's pioneer work will no doubt stimulate others. To discover and publish local examples of this peasant art, so admirable in its naive presentment of story, image, so powerful and resourceful in fanciful design.

Such discovery, alas, is but a second best. The beat would be that this vital creative and spiritual impetus should have continued among the Indian peasantry. Something has happened to chill this activity throughout the world. We may have to wait decades for the re-emergence of a living popular art; meanwhile it is right that we should value and preserve every garment woven for the ingenious spirit of man. Such a work as that of Mr. Mookerjee will increase our respect for the genius of the peasant hand and mind.

My knowledge of the traditional life in rural Bengal came to me from my grandmother with whom I spent my early years at a village in this province. I am deeply indebted to her for the experience which I then gathered and which has always proved useful to me. A folk art should be distinguished from a highway art both of which, however, can grow at one and the same time. Folk art is always traditional but all traditional art is not folk art. Innumerable motifs, figures, terra-cottas, drawings, etc., either in Alipana, dolls and toys, wood and metal works, embroidery and textiles or in minor arts have to be excluded from the present work as they are cultivated from folk art and are nothing but its elaborations and transformations. Folk art is not the accidental discovery of an individual; it is the product of the people, of the whole community. It is an art confounded with superstitions and religio-magical beliefs tinged by folkloristic fantasies of the masses and what died everywhere else in the contemporary world still lives on in the domain of Bengal's folk culture which belongs to that common fund of primitive or primordial conditions. (Here, the word 'primitive' always means the psychologically primitive.) Its survival to-day in its pristine form evokes the greatest interest in all students of art and ethnology. Ethnology may be of high importance in the determination of the habits and characteristics of the Bengali people, their origin and expansion.

The overwhelming conservatism of Bengal's folk tradition keeps alive this culture, specially such forms and motifs of it as are noticeable in the various designs of Alipana, dolls and toys, wood and metal works. They bear a close resemblance to the heritage of ancient art and culture to which the Western Asiatic and the Indus Valley civilization belongs. It is, therefore, a negligible question whether this simple culture is intelligible to the sophisticated few or not, it comes down in pupillary succession from an indeterminably distant past and it does not require any force of prophecy to assert that it will continue to exist for untold generations until the tradition as a whole disappears.

During the last eight years of my studies in the domain of Bengal's folk culture, I came in touch with the great scholars of this country and outside, specially with Dr. Dinesh Chandra Sen and Mr. G. S. Dutt, I.C.S., whose encouragement and help I gratefully. Acknowledge. Mr. Dutt's appreciation of Bengal's folk art greatly helped me to explore new field in my study of the subject.

Dr. Syamaprasad Mookerjee, formerly Vice-Chancellor, Calcutta University, whose interest in the past of our country has led to the most far-reaching results in the domain of scholarship, has by his help and encouragement made it possible for me to bring the present work to its completion. I gratefully acknowledge his generous patronage.

**Contents and Sample Pages**

Rahul Bengal has always been a treasure trove of folk art in diverse from which found expression in almost every conceivable item of Village life in earlier days, starting from clay built houses and corn-bins to folk painting, kantha embroidery on patched cotton, alpona floor painting, hand woven sitting mats, hand-fans, dolls, terracotta horses, masks worn in folk dances and even moulds for making sweets. What made these items unique was the use of inexpensive and easily available ingredients, which the creative passion of the rural artisans transformed into exquisite objects of art.

In this book, Tarapada Santra delves into the intricacies of the creative pattern of folk arts of Bengal, providing on overview of the vast array of art forms and analysing how regional influences and political changes where reflected in the creative styles of the artisans, who braved innumerable hardships to pursue their trade for generations and made significant contributions to the onward progress of rural society.

This first ever English translation of Tarapada Santra's work carries the flavour and essence of the original Bengali text and introduces the reader to rural lifestyle of Bengal and its many traditional forms of folk arts – which are bornd to draw the interest of researchers and art lovers all over the world.

Born in an obscure village of West Bengal, tarapada Santra struggled against acute poverty and stringent social constraints all his life to be recognised as an authority on the folk arts of his state. Through his exceptional talent, determination and untiring diligence, he evolved a unique system of field research after spending years in studying the lifestyle of people of different districts of west Bengal, their history, culture, occupation and festivals and the many objects which they produced with simple ingredients for beautifying their homes and serving their day to day needs. He recorded his findings in twenty one books, ten of which were published during the last two years of his life, which he lay in a hospital bed, knowing that death was not far off and anxious that his life's work might remain undisclosed in the end.

The diversity of Ingredients used in the folk art of Bengal reflects the colourful splendour of the secular life of her people. This art not only reveals the nature and many customs of rural life and the diverse livelihoods of the rural society, but also helps us to identify a deep and meaningful expression of social significance. What is manifest from the ingredients used in the folk arts of Bengal is the adoption of Items which are most easily obtainable, such as clay, old cloth and cotton threads. Added to this is colour prepared by local process at nominal costs. It is in this simple background that we find a clay-based culture of the people of all sections, both high and low, which had come to exist – a culture which was centred around reforms and blind faith and yet succeeded in spreading happiness in the set lives of the people.

Those who were the creators – the artisans of this industry – had to put in their hard labour and strive against the pangs of hunger to keep alive the traditions handed down by their forefathers, while they also tried to maintain an onward progress of their art. Even today, we can see their struggling pursuit in thatched huts at every corner of rural Bengal. Sadly, these village crafts, their innovative charm and the skill of the craftsmen had failed to attract the proud pundits, who were acknowledged as the sole authority on fine arts and culture at one time. The many qualities of the folk art of Bengal were recognised for the first time by three of her eminent sons, Dineshchandra Sen, Abanindranath Tagore and Gurusaday Dutta. It was through their sincere and untiring efforts that the significance and true value of this simple and yet grossly neglected chapter was brought to light, and the folk art of Bengal was accorded its befitting status. What had been initiated as an enter prose for individual collections was later laid out for public display for the first time at the Ashutosh Museum. This was made possible through the commendable efforts of Calcutta University, which set up a large collection of carefully selected items of folk art from all over the state. With the passage of time, folk art has now become one of the cultural heritage of this state.

Rabindranath had once said, A country is created by her people; the country is not an inert mass of soil, but is alive and conscious; if her people can express themselves then only shall the country find expression. It is true that a country finds expression through the many creations or her people. And it is only by stretching our eyes towards our rural life, which reflects the conscious spirit of Bengal, that we can come to learn about the creative expressions of the people of this state through the splendid diversity of their folk arts folk sons, folk music and folk dances. But the ambit of Bengal's cultural expression is so extensive that it cannot be fully described in this brief volume. All that has been attempted here is to present in this brief volume. All that has been attempted here is to present an introductory description.