A Glimpse into Yesterday: Kalighat’s Timeless Heritage

During Colonial India, the concept of ‘art’ and ‘artist’ underwent radical redefinition. As stated by Tapati Guha Thakurta, “The Colonial rule in Calcutta firmly established its presence through the demarcation of a new world of ‘high art’ along with an elegant and classy category of artists.” Because the European painters and engravers frequented India from the 1780s, they showcased and reflected an elitist patronage, which for the artists then became a “model” look. Inspired by this modern persona of the artist in the 19^th century, a consciousness grew among the Bengali middle class who wanted to emulate and accept this similar identity of an artist as well. The ideology now, rather than only focusing on acquired skills, shifted towards academic training and prospects of a lucrative career through a social and professional ladder. The idea of being an artist evolved from the native strata and showcased a higher agenda, which consisted of social status and respectability. Following this, the Government School of Art was set up in 1854, which, for the Bengali middle-class artists, became an essential institution. The agenda was to personalize and refine those with an aptitude for artwork and help them gain active employment without affecting their social status. An array of Westernization reached, which created a dichotomy between The artist and The Artisans, who were local painters and print-makers getting affected by the new idolized thought process of the society and were swept under the uncanny pressures and demands given out by the high elitist groups. Amongst them were the more expansive enclave of ‘Bazaar’ artists who were migrants in Kolkata; the community of rural Patuas belonged to this group and settled in the vicinity of the Kalighat temple.

History 

Who were the Patuas?

The Patuas were a rural community that migrated and settled in Calcutta, specifically in the vicinity of the Kalighat temple. In Bengali, the term Patua indicates a picture painter who is considered an “artisan” rather than an “artist.” In the hopes of earning money in the thriving market of Calcutta, the Patuas attempted making a good living in the city. Their profession circulated around painting scrolls and displaying them before an audience, which was further accompanied by singing (also known as Patua Sangeet). They are known for the unique presentation of their art; they used Canvas rolls to illustrate their exploits, which demonstrated figures from Hindu mythology, and while unrolling these scrolls, they indulged in a singing narration of these events that were portrayed in the pats. Though unfortunately, after the Patuas moved towards Calcutta, they realized that they had less scope in the market because not only was there a distinction amongst the art styles but also the demands originated from the Britishers, mainly purposed for survey maps, records of different ethnic professions and botanical drawings. What the Britishers wanted was proficiency and accurate technique, and for that purpose, they chose the Murshidabad court artist and their descendants, who were honored with the role of chief recorders.

The Essence and Appreciation of Kalighat Painting 

However, as expressed by Jyotindra Jain,” The story of Kalighat painting is the story of the transformation of a folk art form into a popular genre of a robust encounter of rural artists who had migrated to the city of Calcutta with the forces that operated there in the 19^th century; the new manners and customs of the British settlers that had percolated in varying degrees to different social and economic strata in combination with revivalistic exercises in the past practices of Mughal court culture.”

The term “paintings of Kalighat” emerged after the Patuas took the initiative to take their art and aesthetics and bring them to the city of Calcutta, which became known for its modernization and industrialization with the arrival of the Britishers. Hence, the town flourished and was a hub for new perspectives and ideologies. Studies and research corroborate that it was in 1926 when Ajit Ghoshe phrased the notion “patas of Kolkata.” Similarly, Mukul Dey, in 1932, conveyed the term “drawings and paintings of Kalighat.” Both these scholars referred and brought attention to a class of idiosyncratic paintings that were demonstrated through watercolor on mill-made paper, primarily by individuals who were scroll painters-cum potters. The scholars give us a glimpse of the 19^th-century scenario when the Patuas set up their shops near the periphery of Kalighat, which is why the term “Kalighat” was coined. These paintings were the attractions at fairs and were primarily sold in bazaars and places of religious significance.

Interestingly, evidence foretells that this art form did not exist before the 19^th century and underwent various changes after a certain period. The art form eventually evolved into graphic arts of woodcuts and engravings, and cheap lithographic and holographic prints replaced the material, too. Regardless, if we look at W.I. Wilkin’s “Hindu Mythology,” we will find that the book is full of illustration that depicts Kalighat-type drawings; from this genesis, we get the idea that the Europeans were vastly interested in this said art form and paid avid attention to it. More than as a value of artistic merit, curiosity pushed European visitors in the second half of the 19^th century to bring home these albums that spoke a ton regarding the Hindu gods and goddesses of India. When gradually, after a particular time, the Kalighat paintings started garnering attention, many art critics and scholars put their views about it in front of the general mass, and by doing so, they made this traditional folk art form well favored. Be it contradictory or enthusiastic, any viewpoint regarding this artwork made it a beacon of attraction for the middle and elitist classes.

Distinction & Style 

The Patuas were a vast and hardworking class, and they all came from different districts, namely Howrah, Birbhum, Murshidabad, Burdwan, 24 Parganas, and Hoogly. In Midnapur, this group of painters were namely recognized as “Patua.” Meanwhile, in Bankura and Purulia, they were better known as “Patidar” and in Birbhum as “Chitrakar.” It is believed that the Patuas of Bengal were organized into several endogamous social circles known as Samaj Bandhinis, where each group comprising certain family members lived in a different geographical area. Interestingly, just like any social class, these groups shared trade secrets in order to conserve their unique style and the old traditional cultural art, but having a core root didn’t stop them from adding their own touch to the paintings. The distinguished groups belonging to different regions developed certain peculiarities in their art style that matched with the sociogeographical circle of the said arena, which, in a conspicuous manner, varied from one another. For instance, from the accounts of Jyotindra Jain, we understand that even if the Patuas from different regions decided to paint the same story, their narration, and storytelling would vary from area to area and sometimes from individual to individual. Likewise, their techniques for coloration, figuration, and pictorial narrative never collided. There was also variance in scrolls; the Patuas of Birbhum used scrolls that were 90 cm in width, but the scrolls of Murshidabad and Midnapur were 50 to 70 cm. Accordingly, it has also been stated that the artists of Murshidabad were more elaborate and proposed heightened naturalism through the expressive postures and gestures of the figures; detailed artistry was seen in their work. In contrast, the scrolls of Midnapur had stiff-looking figures that were flat and showed minimum treatment of form, which also lacked expression. But the most splendor were the Birbhum scrolls because they poured more liveliness by portraying them in such a manner that it would naturally exude sentiments through facial expressions and body postures. Since they used wider scrolls, it helped the artisans sketch and design a figure with delicate and intricate detailing. Also, they used a bright red background that markedly complemented the oral narratives. The scrolls painted by the Patuas were Illustrations and Incidents from legends that never failed to captivate the audience.

Moreover, the Patuas, who settled in Calcutta (Patuapara and Patuatola), used watercolors in their paintings and followed a specific sequencing while applying color, i.e., they used to paint the face and the exposed limbs first (both in the case of Scrolls and Pats). However, one of the most significant features of the Kalighat style painting was how the artist evoked a sense of volume by using an emphatic means of light and shade or by procuring a linear treatment on the form. When we have a close look at the paintings, we will see that the idealistic theme of the painters were to construct a three-dimensional image by emphasizing volume more through the vision of a modeller than that of a painter. Hence, several scholars took reference and interconnected a relation between the Kumor potters and Patuas by stating that the Patuas used   to take commissions from the potterers and indulged themselves in modelling or moulding religious images and clay dolls. And accordingly, this is how they developed the said mannerisms. Records emphasize that the women of the Patua scroll painters from Bankura, Howrah, Midnapur, and 24 Parganas were well practiced with the task of making clay dolls, figures of deities and animals, and amongst the religious idols those of Krishna-Radha, Kartika, Ganesha-Janani, Saraswati, Gaur-Nitai, Laksmi, Durga and Mahadeva were mainly painted by the said artists.

The Unfortunate End

The Kalighat Painting with the on course of modern era lost its essence and aesthetics.

The art form enormously flourished in the beginning because they always stuck up to their fundamental values, which were traditional and rural. Moreover, their art form were received by all classes and communities. Hence, in the 19^th century, the pictures found their way into affluent homes, and further evidence of their popularity can be found in the whole series of paintings collected by Davida and Chester Hertwitz. However, this art form diminished because, unfortunately, they were unable to face the competition brought down by the printing press. Because of the printing press, mass production was not an issue, but Patuas faced it because they used clothes, which took time. Thus, to relieve the pressure and accept the demands of society, when they finally took recourse to lithography, their quality fell. Not only that, but the rivals, who were the Bat-tala engravers, started copying the Patua style and sold it at a lower price, hence attracting the market towards them. Similarly, a lot of pirated works concerning the Kalighat pats were found which were done by anonymous artists. As the printing technology and chromolithographs further developed and flooded the market, many of the Kalighat images started being repeated in these prints, which made the quality heavy, rigid, and the colors more loud and garish.