A tribal artist designs the wall for the festival in Ranchi on Wednesday. Picture by Prashant Mitra

Ranchi, March 12: After showcasing their traditional art form, Sohrai, in Geneva and Australia, the state’s women tribal artists are busy designing the walls of the makeshift tribal huts with brushes.

These artists were busy painting the walls of the kiosks today, where different tribal products would be put up at the tribal festival, which starts from March 14 at Morabadi grounds.

The organisers have invited seven women artists from Hazaribagh to decorate and paint the walls with Sohrai art, a tribal art form.

The walls of the kiosks have been made using a material called “doodhi mitti”, which gives cream colour to the walls. The clay has been put with hands so that the impression of hands appears on the wall.

This particular clay is used by tribals when they make their houses. Sohrai painting is made on these walls using black paint, which depicts wildlife and wild flowers.

Other primitive tribal art forms — Jadu Patia, Todka and Kohbar — are also been extensively used in these small makeshift huts or kiosks.

Putli Ganju, one of the tribal artists who had visited Australia and Geneva, said: “The Sohrai art is usually painted by us during the harvest season or before the Diwali. These paintings signify celebrations. We are glad that at least our tribal art is getting its due recognition abroad as well as in Ranchi. We have been invited to this festival in city to create these paintings which will help in keeping alive our tribal culture.”

Another artist Philomina Tirkey, who was busy painting a horse on the clay walls, said she had been painting since childhood.

“We visited Australia for a month and showcased our art. The programme was organised by Sanskriti, a tribal women artists’ co-operative headed by Bulu Imam. This exposure helped us gain recognition and appreciation abroad. Our works were appreciated a lot by the people Down Under,” Tirkey said.

Co-ordinator of this tribal festival, Dilip Toppo, said these forms of primitive tribal art would give a tribal touch to the urban areas.

“We have many artists who have got due recognition not only outside the state but also in foreign countries. They are getting platform to showcase their talent and our art which generally artists like us do not get so easily,” said Toppo.

“Tribal musical instruments like mandar, nagara and shehnai would be displayed to add to the tribal environment in each kiosk at the tribal mahotsav,” Toppa said.

The tribal culture and life is becoming extinct. Efforts are being made to keep the tribal culture and heritage alive among people through these festivals being organised in the cities.

Toppo said small huts in villages are designed using this clay, which makes the huts cool. He also suggested that if this clay is used to make house at the cities then there would be no requirement of air-condition.

Even portraits of freedom fighters and prominent writers of the state would be made for the forthcoming tribal festival.

This is a way through which the festival organisers want to pay homage to these people.

More than 30 artists from Ranchi as well as from the districts have been roped in for the job of painting the portraits of these personalities. Today they were seen painting the portraits at the venue.

One of the painters, Uttam Chatterjee, was seen making the portrait of writer Nirmal Munda.

“The organisers have invited us to make the portraits of writers and freedom fighters. This is a moment of great pride for us because we are getting the opportunity to paint their pictures,” Chatterjee said.

Another artist, Santosh Toppo, who designs signboards and billboards in Ranchi, could not hide his enthusiasm.

“I have been making and designing signboards for the past 20 years but the pleasure I am getting making portraits of these eminent personalities cannot be expressed in words,” Toppo said.