Naya - The abode of the ancient artists

About the village:

Naya is a village in the Pingla Tehsil of Paschim Medinipur district, West Bengal. According to the 2011 census data, the village spreads across an area of 341.78 hectares and has a total population of 3960 peoples with a count of 962 houses.

The village becomes a subject of interest due to a large number of traditional Pattachitra artisans (Patuas) it has – the village is home to more than 250 (approx.) Pattachitra painters or Patuas, as they are traditionally called. Although Pattachitra is a traditional art form found in multiple locations across Odisha and West Bengal, Naya has received special recognitions owing to its large number of Patua population. In recognition thereof, Naya hosts a number of governmental as well as non-governmental initiatives aimed at popularising and commercialising this traditional art form.

Pattachitra – an ‘almost’ lost art:

A Pattachitra is a painting on a piece of cloth (Patta meaning cloth and Chitra meaning painting), generally a long piece of cloth, depicting a story in a series of frames on long scrolls using natural colours derived from various leaves and flowers found in the locality. Such paintings are then presented by the Patuas in a performance where they sing the stories as the unfurl the scrolls. Pattachitra, as a traditional art form, is found in a number of places across the states of Odisha as well as West Bengal. However, the art forms practised in various places are different – which has been now broadly classified into ‘Odisha Pattachitra’ and ‘Bengal Pattachitra’.

A Patta-Chitra - Painted using Natural Colours

Natural Colours, extracted from leaves and flowers

The Pattas contain stories, often revolving around themes starting from mythology, folk lores and local legends to contemporary society and messages. For example, of the few performances we got to witness, there were stories of Krishna and Radha, stories of how a fish got married (a light-hearted comic poem for children), and also stories loosely based on ‘Nirbhaya – the daughter of India’. However, there has been a decrease in the number of Patuas actively involved in this traditional art form, due to number of socio-economic factors which we shall discuss shortly.

Female artists painting t-shirts


Naya and Pattachitra – the ancient link:

The Patuas believe their art form dates back to the ancient times when the early humans used to draw on the walls of the caves to portray stories and incidents, and the practice lived on. Naya, the village of the Patuas, has been traditionally a village of the artisans. Terming the Patuas as mere painters shall not do justice to their multifaceted talent – the Patuas are best described as Patuas, the artists who are painters, story writers, lyricists, music composers, singers, and also performers, all while being a socially backward class. The Patuas whom we had the opportunity of meeting in Naya better liked to term themselves as Chitrakars – the same being a more respectable pronoun.

Painted potteries

Modern challenges have modern solutions:

Earlier, Patuas used to roam from village to village singing stories and showing their Pattas which has been both socially and economically unfeasible today. Responding to such modern contingencies, the artists of Naya have also come up with modern solutions.

First and foremost, comes the GI registration. The Bengal Pattachitra has been granted GI tag under the GI Act of India which has gone a long way in ensuring authenticity in this art form. Although a holistic protection can’t be dreamt for under the GI framework, still a long way can be walked with GI as the support baton.

Next, comes various governmental and non-governmental initiatives aimed at promoting this traditional art form. Government of West Bengal’s Department of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Textiles, in association with UNESCO, has developed the Rural Craft Hub in Pingla. The village also has a Folk Art Centre built by the West Bengal Government where the visitors can learn about the various kinds of scrolls, the stories and legends relating to Pattachitra and others. Non-governmental Organisations have also played a significant role in promoting the art, as the artisans admitted.


Next, has been the way in which the artists have responded to the demands of the contemporary markets. Although Pattachitra is traditionally painted only on long scrolls, the artists have started painting it as wall decors, short post-cards, and most interestingly, on t-shirts! Such a move definitely goes a long way in providing market access and contemporary identity to such an ancient art form.

A community library at the heart of the village

Still, ‘some’ unresolved challenges:

Although the Patuas have come up with modern solutions to the plethora of modern problems as mentioned above, some challenges still remain unresolved. The following can be taken to be a summary of such challenges which need to be worked upon by researchers, academicians, and policy makers in order to revitalise such an ancient art form:
  • Most of the Patuas sing stories only in Bengali, the local language. This makes it difficult for the outsiders/foreign visitors to appreciate the meaning of such stories and the depth/relevance thereof. Language training can be provided for the Patuas to make the performances relevant and accessible/enjoyable for foreign tourists.
  • Falling prey to the commercialised demands and profit cycles, a significant number of artworks lacked quality. Better quality training should be provided to the artists. Also, a quality-checking mechanism at place would go a long way in earning the trust of the visitors who can also be potential customers.
  • Foreign registration is still a problem for the majorly-backward Patuas. While they often are being invited to international art exhibitions and galleries, no efforts are being made to provide international protection to this art form, which may create legal complicacies in the future.
  • The artists are not taking advantage of the technology in marketing/branding/distributing etc of their work. Separate dedicated department of government can be established to take care of the online marketing and branding as well as e-commercialising of the local GI products.
  • On an extended note from the previous point, no use is made of the easily available e-commerce platforms to sell/distribute the artworks. A governmental or non-governmental initiative in this direction may prove to be immensely helpful. 
A performance by the Chitrakars:



How to reach Naya:

We took a college bus from IIT Kharagpur, and it took us around two hours to reach Naya from Kharagpur. Alternatively, you can hire a taxi from Howrah railway station or Kolkata Airport to reach Naya.

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