Biodiversity in Folk Art

Bon Bibi, the goddess of Sundarbans, is celebrated locally through Bonbibir Pala or Bon Bibi's play. It is a folk theatre narrating the story of Bon Bibi's supremacy over all other inhabitants of the forest, especially the ravening tiger, seen here.

The tiger is the pride of Bengal and holds a very special place in the hearts of the artists. They craft, paint, and mould the magnificent being through their art forms. This is a wooden tiger mask made by the wooden mask-makers of Kushmandi in Dakshin Dinajpur, West Bengal. 

The royal Bengal tiger has found its way into folk paintings such as Patachitra.

Seen here is a Bengal tiger painted by Patachitra artist Mantu Chitrakar from Naya village, Medinipur.

This is a peacock crafted in Dokra - an age-old metal craft form of our country. Dokra artists in Bengal reside in Bikna, Bankura and in Dariyapur, Bardhaman.

This patachitra depicts the owl as the vahana (vehicle) of goddess Lakshmi, worshipped across India in different cultures as the goddess of wealth and beauty.

Read more about Bengal patachitra here.

The owl is considered auspicious because of its association with Goddess Lakshmi, and thus holds a special significance in social and ritualistic practices. These wooden owls are made by craftspersons of Natungram in Bardhaman who traditionally specialize in making wooden dolls.

These owls are carved out of a single piece of wood and then painted. They are popular home decor items in addition to being important for Hindu rituals. Read about the significance of wooden owls and other crafts of Bengal in a Diwali festival story.

This image shows a Dokra owl figurine. Dokra, the traditional metal craft, involves an age-old process of metal casting using the lost-wax casting technique. This Dokra owl is made by an artist from Bikna Dokra hub, West Bengal.

Seen here is an elephant head made out of sabai, a locally grown grass in West Bengal. Sabai artists use simple tools to make such animal forms from their imagination and creativity.

Seen here is a Patachitra wall painting from Naya village of Pingla in West Midnapore, Bengal. The Patachitra folk painting form traditionally depicts mythological and folk stories. The artists also create their own stories drawing inspiration from nature.

One of the most well known crafts of West Bengal is terracotta or fired clay sculpting found in Panchmura in Bankura district. Terracotta elephants are made both for ritualistic and decorative purposes. The particular shape of the elephant seen here is distinctive for use as offerings in village rituals.

There are fine examples of craftsmanship of the horse in various materials. Seen here is a Dokra horse made in Bikna, Bankura in Bengal.

These stylized terracotta horses are unique to the Panchmura area of Bengal. A traditional Bengal terracotta horse figurine has a long neck and elongated ears. They are crafted primarily for use as tokens of devotion to appease local deities, and for the fulfillment of a wish.

Seen here is a village ritual where terracotta horses and elephants of different sizes are being offered to the serpent goddess, Manasa.

The artistic reflection of the beauty of the animal world demonstrates the skills of the craftspeople in many ways. Imagination and crafting techniques have combined to produce figurines of different animals through generations.

Seen here is a deer crafted in Dokra metal.