The nomenclature of a particular article have some logical reason behind it. I too have a reason to name it with the word “Mithila.” Though this painting is also known as ‘Madhubani painting, due to its artistic influence. But if I name it with the word “Madhubani”, it will be unfair for the artists of other areas and it will also be contradictory with the historical point of view now the word is representing the overall place of artists completely.
Reason to call it Mithila painting & region of Mithila
Origin
The origin of Mithila painting are shrouded in antiquity and mythology. There is a conception behind starting of Madhubani painting as a tradition. It was believed to be started by “Janak” the 24th king of Janaka dynasty on the eve of her daughter Sita’s marriage. He commissioned artists to make paintings for that auspicious occasion and there after this art is transferred from generation to generation. But it might be started from the starting of civilization and the interesting fact is that this art is mostly done by women from centuries unlike we see the male artists in most of the “art gharana”.
The Traces of this painting after the mythological era can be traced from 1097AD-1550AD under the Karnatas and the Oinavaras which continued to Khandavala dynasty (Darbhanga Raj) till present day. It encouraged & flourished from the time of Hindu role in Mithila. Heritage goes back to at least 2500 years and women of Mithila passed this art to their daughters through multiple generations.
History
Though the history should start from the Ramayan era. But there is no perfect evidence from that period. So it would be right to consider it from the time, where Madhubani painting first came into light officially. There is no fixed time, if we go through various sources. But I am taking an approximated span of time. It was a time of 1960s when another drought/famine had gripped Madhubani in its clutches. (First) in 1934, an earth quake had affected seriously most of the parts of Madhubani. Then, William G. Archer, British colonial officer of Madhubani district while inspecting/ going through the damages discovered this beautiful painting on the walls of the houses collapsed in earthquake. He & Mildred Archer took some black & white images and obtained some drawing on paper and sent it to India Records Office in London, where the researchers could do some research on this magnificent folk art of India. He found some similarities to the work of modern artists. Then All India Handicrafts Board sent a team of its members. An artist Bhaskar Kulkarni from the team suggested the women artists to make their traditional paintings on handmade paper for commercial use. The Government of India & All India Handicrafts board have been encouraging the women artists in their works.
Overview
Though it is mostly found in Madhubani & particularly ‘Jitwarpur’ and ‘Ranti’ are the places of madhubani painting artist. But it can also be found practicing in Darbhanga, Samastipur and the areas which came under Mithila. Though I am not sure about the places but I am listing the places which came under Mithila and that’s why I name it as Mithila painting and not Madhubani painting. The areas which can be included under the Mithila region, either because of the migrated Maithils or the Madhubani painting being practiced/used in business are Darbhanga, Madhubani, Begusarai, Muzaffarpur, East&Westchamparan, Katihar, Purnea, Araria, Kishanganj, Saharsa, Supal, Madhepura, Samastipur, Sitamarhi, Shivhar, Vaishali, Khagaria, Nawgachia (Bhagalpur) & parts of Nepal.
About painting :-
Coming towards the painting, there are generally the following types of Mithila painting in use-:
1. Traditional
2. Monochrome
3. Contemporary
4. Animals &Birds
5. Nature
6. Modern
But now a days it’s not just limited to the above mentioned types because due to its widespread acknowledgement, it’s now diversified. The traditional style of painting includes using a bamboo stick wrapped with cotton & dipped in colours to draw the artwork. Traditionally it was being made only on walls but after getting acknowledged about its wide scope, it is now being used professionally. The colours are made with the natural process like for black we used carbon soot or lamp black, for yellow we use turmeric with milk of banyan leaves, for orange the powder of Palasa flower and likewise all the colours are made naturally(red from Kusuma flower).
Generally three types of painting style can be found in the madhubani painting-:
As kayastha women can be found doing mostly the outline painting, Brahmin women fill in outline for colour and harijan women superimpose black dots on thick brown lines done with cow dung & water. A few styles of Madhubani painting are Godana painting, Geru painting, Gobar painting etc. and the most common painting on the basis of platforms are floor painting (aripan), wall painting (bhitti-chitra), paper painting (patra-chitra), cloth painting and due to the professionalism of the art, it is now in use on various platforms like vessel, notepad, cards (playing), Greetings, decorating a model (statue) etc. Most of the paintings which is in common use are based on folk deities, women’s stages of life, marriage ceremonial, women’s condition in society etc. Two type of categorization can be done with the artwork construction of Mithila painting- one is called kachni (hatching) and second is bharni (shading).
Present Situation &Future scope-:
As the coin have two faces, we have to consider also the two sides of situation of Madhubani art which is directly connected with artist. If we compare the present situation from the early 19th century, it’s a plus point for the artist to sell their artworks, having a source of income to earn their livelihood. But due to this money earning attitude, the glory of folk art is vanishing now people are making their traditional art to earn & not to represent this art in its traditional form leading to more number of artists (though amateur) and unacceptable low price. It’s only demolishing its value.
According to a report, there are about 4000 registered artisans working in the field. But what I personally feel, that most of these artisans are working for their self-interest. They are not in contact with the local artists to show them a path to work in that field. Though some learned people may have some objection over my statement. Those who are helping the artists are exception. You can find particularly in Madhubani a lots of Mithila painting artist not knowing even the scope of this art. A lots of NGOS are registered, a few are working for artists and more are working for their own welfare. Artists are exploited between demands & supply these days and not even getting this proper artistic value. The situation of women and girls are not satisfactory in terms of freedom, self-dependence in most of the areas of Mithila.
