Folk Painting in India: Patua Art and Kalamkari Paintings

Patua Art

  • Location: Bengal Region
  • Theme: Portrayal of Mangal Kavyas or auspicious tales about Gods and Goddesses.
  • Characteristics: These paintings are done on patas or scrolls.
  • Present Theme: Nowadays political and social statements are made by using patua art on sewed-together pieces of paper. 

Kalamkari Paintings

  • Location: Machilipatnam in Andhra Pradesh
  • Translation: Kalamkari translates as “painting produced with the help of a pen.”
  • Theme: Hindu mythology
  • Characteristics
    • The cloth is painted using a pointed bamboo called a Kalam, which is employed in this technique to control the flow of the colours.
    • The pen is soaked in a mixture of water and fermented jaggery before the vegetable colours are added one at a time. 
    • Hand painting or block printing is used.
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