Patachitra, an Innovative Artwork Explains the Fight Against Coronavirus; Know About The Traditional Artform That Spreads Awareness on Social Issues

Since coronavirus lockdown has confined people to their homes, many are experimenting with new things and sharing the results on social media. And artistes have become more active representing quite a lot of thing about the crisis situation through pictorial representation. While we have seen innumerable videos and paintings of the society fighting coronavirus together, we stumbled upon something quite interesting. The art is a Patachitra on the coronavirus pandemic by veteran artist Swarna Chitrakar from Paschim Medinipur in West Bengal. Paintings on Hyderabad Roads to Create Awareness on COVID-19.

HIPAMSIndia shared a video on the art form with the caption, "Art evolves with changing times. Patachitra is known to be a social communique apart from being a traditional art form. Patachitra artists have been painting and composing songs on social issues since a long time. Here we see Swarna Chitrakar, an artist from Pingla, a changemaker, a community leader with her Patachitra painting and a melodious song on COVID-19."

For the artwork on Coronavirus pandemic, Swarna Chitrakar, painted a seven-frame scroll and composed a song about the current crisis. The video highlights everything from where the virus originated and how it has affected countries across the globe. In the seven-minute videos, she highlights different measures have been adopted the flatten the curve of coronavirus. He also talks about precautionary measures other than the works of medical staff to bring the virus under control.

Here is the Video on Patachitra:

Know More About Patachitra

In the Sanskrit, 'Patta' literally means 'cloth' and 'Chitra' means 'picture'. Pattachitra or Patachitra is a term for traditional, cloth-based scroll painting. The artform is based in the eastern Indian states of Odisha and West Bengal. Pattachitra known for its intricate details, mythological depiction and storytelling. Patachitra artists who are known as ‘Patuas’ have been painting and composing songs to explain the meaning of various social issues. Their storytelling combined with art has always attracted people making the concept clearer to them. This Patachitra is an amazing way to teach people locally about coronavirus pandemic and how to protect oneself from the virus.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 25, 2020 09:26 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).