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Women’s Craft and Toil Bring Durga to Life
Many people help make Durga Puja special, including women whose work often happens behind the scenes.
Kripamoyee paints pictures of Durga that families keep at home.
Chandana and Bandana decorate model weapons for Durga idols.
Mukti makes ornaments and still uses an older method involving fine metal wire.
Reba paints curved backdrops for idols, though she says printed versions now compete with her work.
Khairunissa and other women turn rough jute into curly hair for statues of several gods and goddesses.
Their skills help create the images and decorations seen during Puja.
Some of these crafts bring less work or income than before, while demand for others is growing.
Kripamoyee Karmakar paints traditional Thakurani Pats in Bonbirsingha, Bankura.
Chandana and Bandana Kar decorate weapons made for Durga idols in Boalia, Howrah.
Mukti Pramanick makes Durga ornaments in Kumartuli, preserving the traditional bullen wirework technique.
Reba Paul has painted chaalchitros for six decades, but says computer prints have reduced demand.
In Domjur, women including Khairunissa Begum process jute into hair for deity idols.
- Who
- Women artisans including Kripamoyee Karmakar, Chandana and Bandana Kar, Mukti Pramanick, Reba Paul and Khairunissa Begum.
- What
- They make painted panels, idol weapons, ornaments, backdrops and jute hair for Hindu deities.
- Where
- Artisans work in villages and craft hubs in Bankura, Howrah, Krishnanagar and Kolkata.
- When
- Work is tied to the annual Durga Puja season; jute tress-making is especially busy from August to January.
- Why
- Their work supplies traditional art and decorative items for worship and Durga Puja.
Key facts
- Thakurani Pat artist
- Kripamoyee Karmakar has worked full-time on Thakurani Pat since 2002.
- Mahamari Pat
- Kripamoyee recreated the rare work in 2011 for the erstwhile zamindar family of Jamkuri.
- Astra workshops
- Chandana and Bandana Kar paint and cover faux weapons used on Durga idols.
- Ornament making
- Mukti Pramanick has made ornaments for Durga for 40 years and continues to use bullen.
- Chaalchitro painting
- Reba Paul has painted chaalchitros for six decades.
- Jute tress-making
- About 35 families in the village described by Sheikh Ansar rely mainly on making tresses for idols.
- Jute work rate
- Khairunissa Begum says she earns ₹150 per bojha.
Quotes
Kripamoyee Karmakar
Bankura artist who paints traditional Thakurani Pats.
“Since 2002, I started working full-time on Thakurani Pat. In the beginning, I copied my father-in-law’s work but gradually developed my own style.”
telegraphindia.com
“We don’t do this just for the money; it gives us immense joy that our weapons adorn the hands of the goddess in faraway places.”
telegraphindia.com
Sources
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