India is always a rich country when we are talking in terms of culture, heritage, art and tradition. And these things are visible in its architecture, festivals, weddings, and customs. When were are talking about tradition and art, Odisha is one such state which boasts of its rich art and heritage. It is a state which is famous for its handicraft items, its art, which dates back to ancient times. The tourism industry is trying its best to keep this art in its best form and make it available to the huge number of tourists who visit Odisha every year. The government is also taking utmost care to uplift these artisans and get them maximum profit from their art.
But the thing is that many tourists are not aware of these two heritage villages- Pipli and Raghurajpur, and thus they are not commercialised like other tourist spots. You can make out the difference between the crowd you see in the Sun Temple of Konark and the small village of Raghurajpur. This proves that tourists are not aware of them and the art that they can witness in these heritage villages. Let’s throw some light on these two heritage villages of Odisha and show you what lies in there-
PIPLI
How to reach there-
Pipli is a small village located between the two major cities, Bhubaneswar and Puri, somewhere in the middle, exactly on the way. So if you are travelling from Bhubaneswar to Konark (65km), you can travel via Pipli and ask your driver to take you to Pipli, and I am sure he will willingly take you there as I have seen the people of Odisha love to show you around their art and tradition. The village is located near the National Highway 203.
What to see in Pipli?
Pipli is famous for its handcrafted items known as appliquÊ, and locally it is called chandua. AppliquÊ means the art of decorating a piece of cloth by stitching cut work or pieces of another cloth decoratively. The village is home to around 150 craftsmen and around 600 girls who do the needlework.Â
This handicraft is related to the rituals and traditions of the Jagannath temple, which dates back to the 16th or 18th Century. There is no recorded data as to how the craft evolved, but it is believed that this form of appliquÊ work on cloth is used to decorate the temples of Jagannath and also for the decoration of the Jagannath Ratha Yatra Festival. The umbrellas used are all adorned with appliquÊ work. There are small shops, some of which are also factories or storehouses of these amazing handicraft items.
A huge variety of items, including bedsheets, bed covers, wall hangings, table cloths, table runners, purses, bags, diwali decorations, canopies, decorative umbrellas, wallets, etc, are available. The common appliquÊ works include motifs made of elephants, flowers, tribal art, Gods, Goddesses, artistic designs, etc.
These items are all for sale, but make sure you bargain as they can charge a lot. Ask them to show more designs, as a single design may be available in various patterns, colours, etc. On visiting the Sun Temple of Konark, you can see lots of shops selling appliquÊ items, but I would suggest buying from the village shops as the prices are comparatively lower.
Read more about Pipli and Odisha here-
TOP ATTRACTIONS IN ODISHA COVERED IN A WEEKEND TRIP-Â PART I
TOP ATTRACTIONS IN ODISHA COVERED IN A WEEKEND TRIP-Â PART II
Raghurajpur
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How to reach there-
If you are staying in Puri, it will be easier to reach Raghurajpur. You can hire an auto for Rs 500. It will take around one hour to reach there, as the village is just 15 km approx at a distance from Puri.
Raghurajpur is also a heritage village located in Odisha. It is famous for the ancient art of Patachitra, Pata means cloth, and Chitra means Art. Once in the village, you can watch the artisans as they fill their canvas with colours. You can interact with them, get to know them and their art. As we entered the village, a huge gathering of men circled us, insisting we visit their homes. At first, we were confused, then our auto driver told us these men are the artisans and their homes are the studios where they work and exhibit their art.
There were around 100 households, all painted and decorated. It looked soothing with the temple within the premises and children playing, women busy with household chores, while some were painting with brushes and colours scattered around them.
Patachitra, for which the village Raghurajpur is famous, is a kind of painting originally done with colours acquired naturally from stones, minerals, and soil, but due to commercialisation, these days chemical dyes are also used. It is basically done on cloth like tussar, canvas, palm leaves and also on a variety of items such as wood, coconut, reetha, stones, etc. The white colour is acquired from seashells, and some of the colours from stones which are collected from tribal villages.Â
Sometimes, two colours are combined to achieve a desired colour. To prepare the cloth for painting, first the cloth is soaked in water with tamarind seeds, then a strip of cloth is rubbed with gum (made of tamarind seeds), and coated with chalk, which is first powdered and boiled. Then this mixture is pasted on the cloth. After that, it is polished first with a rough stone and then with a shining stone to achieve the smooth surface required for painting. All the information is given by one of the artisans.
No one knows when this form of painting first started, but as historians say, Patacitra is as old as the Jagannath Temple of Puri. The carvings of the temple are said to be inspired by the paintings of Patacitra. The artisans have been doing this for generation after generation.
The murals depict stories through art, like stories from Panchatantra. Most of them depict scenes from Rashleela, Jhulan, Dashavatar, Naukavihar, that involve stories of Radha and Krishna; some of them also depict the marriage ceremony of Lord Shiva and Parvati. Not only that the paintings depict the tribal life of the people, their lifestyle, adivasi dance forms, marriage processions, rituals, Gods and Goddesses, domestic animals, etc. The main Hindu deities which are widely seen in the paintings are Lord Jagannath, Subhadra, Bolobhadra, Ganesha, Durga, Shiva, and Ram. Krishna.
In 2000, the village was given the status of the first heritage village and developed as a craft village by INTACH. The houses of the artisans can be seen decorated with murals. Gradually, this village is gaining ground as a popular tourist destination in this region.
Not only that this village is also the birthplace of legendary Odissi dancer Kelu Charan Mahapatra. He was born there and started as a Gotipua dancer, and later became a prominent Odissi dancer. There is also a studio in Raghurajpur where students receive dance training in Gotipua.
Most of the artists have won awards and certificates of excellence at the national and state levels, which you can see framed and displayed in their homes.
You can buy the paintings which are available as wall hangings, photo frames in a set of three, small toys, decorated coconuts and reetha. They say these coconuts are very auspicious as they were offerings in the Jagannath temple, a stone replica of the Jagannath temple. Most of them are quite expensive, so don’t forget to bargain. It is better to buy it from the village itself. You can take photographs unhesitatingly; they will be more than happy to show you around their art. Feel free to ask them everything you want to know about Raghurajpur and their art.
Boloram Prusty, an artisan from Raghurajpur, persuaded us from the beginning to visit his house; he also took much effort to show us around the village. His house was towards the end, and he said most tourists return without visiting his house. There are names for each of the studios, and his studio’s name was Bidisha Vaisnavi Art and Craft. He showed us his paintings, and also those of his father, which he claims are of superior artistic quality due to experience and artistic excellence. We bought two tribal painted bottles from his studio. Most of the artisans who are Oriya speakers can speak fluent Bengali, Hindi and a little bit of English too.
Tourists visit here to purchase the paintings. The larger ones are a bit expensive. Carry cash, as most of the artisans don’t have an electronic medium of transaction. Though the village is now gradually getting digitalised. Some do accept Paytm money transfer. Â The government has also sanctioned many schemes and projects for the development of the village and the artists.
Hope you liked reading all about Pipli and Raghurajpur, let me know if you have been to these two villages or are planning to visit soon in the comment section below. Also, feel free to share this post with your friends and loved ones.
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Amazing, Thanks for details post on Raghurajpur and Pipli.
Wonderful art works.
Thanks you liked.