Clay Images of West BengalCalcutta Notes 14th November 1980 am Patuapara. Whitewash and painting being done. Saw a Santoshima figure-4 hands, seated on a lotus. If you do this puja you have to do it 16 Fridays all in all. It is a puja for brothels (so Prodip tells me). Also saw a small Ganesh figure being whitewashed. Went and bought a 'pat' for Rs10-not really a pat but had a picture of Narashingha with ghorasingho head. The name of one man-chitrakar. Some of the houses-50 years old (did the Bangladeshis come here then or did the patuas become kumars? This chitrakar I was told had forgotten the art of painting since turning kumar. Went to see Nirode Mazumdar. He lived in Lake Town (?over the bridge) He suggested some books. pm Kumartuli. Painting was under way. Some yellow, orange, red Jps, Kartiks also. The Dakineshwari Brahmin family came to take their image-250 years of puja I am told (1730). This is the only puja they do and everyday they worship Narayan (shalgram sila) and Shib linga. Their immersion will take place at @ 7.00pm on Monday. This year their image had a real red sari and was painted orange and 2 munis on bottom. P tells me that the trad Jp had detacheable Jagaddhatri. I only saw one ghorasingho and J was riding on its back as though on a horse. The mound beneath one of the lion's fore paws is taken by Prodip to be the world but it was later replaced with elephant head then whole elephant (meaning a demon). Saw some Jps with ekchalas (also at Pautapara). P pointed out 2 styles of Bangla face-one ugra (the painted nose type) and one mild with normal nose. Both are interchangeable and don't seem to mean very much. Type b comes from Krishnanagar. Prodip's I think was the only studio producing Kartiks with bangla eyes. The Patuapara variety of bangla eye sometimes looks like cats eyes. P showed me a photo of Chiteswari iamge-it is probably of clay in ekchala and leopard-like Dp without family. 15th November 1980 - Krishnanagar 16th November 1980 - Krishnanagar 17th November 1980 - Krishnanagar 19th November 1980 - Calcutta + Dutta family 20th November 1980 - Kumartuli 21st November 1980 - Calcutta State Archaeological Museum 22nd November 1980 - Krishnanagar + Nabadwip 23rd November 1980 - Krishnanagar + Shantipur 26th November 1980 - Mecheda + Tamluk 30th November 1980 - Krishnanagar |