In the book ‘The Patua Pinocchio’, a folk artist from Bengal helps re-tell the tale of Pinocchio. Swarna Chitrakar took the story of the puppet that wanted to become a real boy and enriched it with drawings in the scroll tradition of her community, the Patuas. Her fellow artists at Tara Books, an independent publishing press and bookstore in Thiruvanmiyur, work on similar lines. They weave tribal art forms into well-known stories and have collaborated with designers and authors, both inside India and abroad, for more than a decade to create stationery and handmade picture books for children.
Many of the artists are from marginalised and tribal communities. “Among the communities and traditions these artists belong to are the Gonds of Madhya Pradesh, the Patua scroll artists of West Bengal, the Mithila artists from Bihar, and the Warli artists from Maharashtra,” according to Sreelalitha, a publishing associate.
With techniques perfected over generations, the artists experiment with unconventional texts. Durga Bai, a Gond artist, was given the task of illustrating ‘Sultana’s Dream’ by Rokeya Sakhwat Hussain, one of the earliest works of feminist science fiction. Coming from a family of bards, the keepers of tales, she enjoys painting women in unusual situations, and saw the book as a chance to explore her passion for subverting gender roles.
These artists use their medium to preserve and pass on folk and tribal art forms to the next generation. The books too are different, such as the Visit the Bhil Carnival, an interactive piece with pop-out pictures that was painted by Subash Amaliyar. The artists also reach out to readers through workshops and open houses.
“People need an opportunity to understand their lives and art better, without making either exotic,” says Sreelalitha.
Artists from various folk and tribal art streams create a diverse variety of stationery and
picture books
