A tribal artiste from Madhya Pradesh demonstrates their art at the crafts mela in Bhubaneswar. Picture by Sanjib Mukherjee

Bhubaneswar, Dec. 25: The temple city got a golden opportunity to witness some interesting art and craft of tribal communities.

The National Tribal Crafts Mela at the State Tribal Museum that concluded Monday and a painting exhibition at Institute of Engineers that ended on Sunday spoke volumes about the rich culture and tradition of tribal communities.

Participants from 12 states took part in the fair that was organised by the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya, Bhopal, in collaboration with Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Research and Training Institute.

Madhubani paintings from Bihar, Bhil, Gond and Oraon paintings of Madhya Pradesh and woollen handloom and Meitei bamboo of Manipur were on display at the exhibition.

Mat weaviers of Tamil Nadu, Meena wall painting of Rajasthan, bamboo craft of Chhattisgarh, and Warli paintings of Maharashtra attracted a large number of visitors.

The leather puppets of Andhra Pradesh and wire dolls of Karnataka drew the attention of children. Most of paintings and crafts work were inspired by natural scenery and landscape of the respective states.

“It takes an artisan a couple of days to embroider a shawl. Even the bamboo art of Manipur is quite similar to that of Odisha,” said Sandeep Singh, a weaver from Manipur.

Also on display at the tribal museum were patta chitra of Bengal and Mishing textiles and bamboo craft of Assam. Among the tribes of Odisha, dokra art of Santhals and Bathudi tribes and embroidered garments of Dongria-Kondh tribes were well appreciated.

A photo exhibition on the theme of “Abhivyakti — Diversity of the languages of cultural expression” also drew attention. For five days, the fair saw a decent footfall.

“This is cultural amalgamation. We have such preconceived notions about tribals being very primitive in their outlook but here their art, craft, culture and traditions all appear very sophisticated. They have utter reverence for their work while exuding professionalism,” said Sanjib Naik visitor.

Organised by city-based social organisation Indigenous People’s Forum, the painting exhibition at the Institute of Engineers on “adivasi identity and dignity through creative expression” promoted the artistic skills of the young tribals of the state.

The two-day exhibition showcased about 60-odd paintings. The artists brought out village life, tribal customs, temples and monuments beautifully on the canvas. Tribal music instruments were also put up for sale during the exhibition.