"The traveller has to knock many doors
and travel extensive lands to reach the innermost shrines...
Maybe I finally reached mine." ~ paraphrasing Rabindranath Tagore
Maybe I finally reached mine." ~ paraphrasing Rabindranath Tagore
Kantha Art cloth cover, Size - A5, 50 pages, Handmade off-white paper, Handbound by me
I have been lucky to have travelled to some beautiful and remote corners of our scenic country, heard many stories from a lot of lovely people and shared great memories with them. These narratives have often found way into my travel diaries and sketch books that I often bind and maintain.
One of these journeys landed me in Shantiniketan, home to many indigenous arts, crafts, traditions, music and our beloved, Rabindranath Tagore.
Quick sketch of Rabindra Bhawan
Shantiniketan is located in West Bengal and is famous for crafts and music. My friends and I visited places like Bolpur, Sriniketan, Amar Kutir, Rabindra Bhawan etc, spoke to many artisans, their families and community and documented their daily lives, work places in a small documentary.
Story of a Kantha artist, Kalpana Didi.
Amongst the many crafts and arts prevailent in this beautiful place, Kantha, Batik, Macrame, Leather work happen to be some of the exemplary art styles. In music, Rabin Sangeet is famous the world over, but the traditional Baul music and singers too make you lilt and happy everytime you happen to catch one of their performaces on street corners.
Mohsina Bibi happens to work with three crafts, besides managing her home and family. She's a genius!
Shantiniketan for me was a quaint old town, with a unique aura and charm. It was serene and peaceful yet had a distinct hustle-bustle sometimes. Its difficult to express in words the magic of that place, so hopefully these pictures from my diary will do the trick.
Rabindra Art pioneered by Rabindranath Tagore. My humble attempt to emulate him @ the Rabinbra Bhawan.
A few images of the Batik art. Samples purchased from Amar Kutir.
Narrative of a Kantha artist, inspired from one of her designs.
A baul singer in Batik art
This diary has elements picked up from the aritists' homes, stories they told, memories they shared and their aspirations so it holds a very special place for me. It encapsulates all the multisensory experiences that I had @ Shantiniketan. It has a narrative of all these artists who work tirelessly everyday and inspire us with their amazing work without expecting any appreciation, fame or praise. If you ever get a chance to visit this beautiful place, don't miss out!
