Gangireddu and Gangireddulaata (గంగిరెద్దు మరియు గంగిరెద్దులాట)

Gangireddulaata (గంగిరెద్దులాట) is one of the oldest folk art form of Andhra Pradesh. Like many other folk art forms this Gangireddulaata is also on the edge of extinction because the performers who are surviving on this folk art forms is not able to fulfill their daily life with the small income they received through this ancient art form because of the lack of support from the people of modern society.

Hisotory of Gangireddu: In the olden days there is one demon called Gajasura performing severe Tapasya for Lord Shiva. Then Lord Shiva appeared before Gajasura and asked him what is his wish. Gajasura told to Lord Shiva as he want Lord Shiva inside his stomach and according to his wish Lord Shiva stayed inside Gajasura stomach. While listening about this news Parvati Maa is worrying and requested Lord Vishnu for release of Lord Shiva from the stomach of Gajasura. 

Then Lord Vishnu alongwith Brahma and other Gods and Shiva Ganas decorated in the form of Gangireddula Melam. Nandi is prepared as Gangireddu with colourful decorations and also using various musical instruments like Dolu, Sannayi, Boora etc. This Gangireddu troupe visiting to the place of Gajasura and he learnt about the troupe and request to perform a play in front of him. After watching their performance Gajasura is very satisfied and asked the troupe what is their boon. Then Lord Vishnu informed to Gajasura as "This is Nandi, the vehicle of Lord Shiva is weeping for Shiva and he want Lord Shiva". Then Gajasura understand about it is his time for death and he prayed Lord Shiva and stand in front of Nandi. Then nandi break the stomach of Gajasura and Lord Shiva came out from the stomach of Gajasura. After this Lord Shiva assured to Gajasura as he wears the skins of Gajasura and further his head is worshipping in all lokas in the form of Lord Ganesha (according to Lord Ganesha birth legend). 

From this incident onwards the performers of these folk art are becoming Gangireddula vallu (Gangireddu performers) and the bull is becoming Gangireddu.

These Gangireddu performers singing songs in folk way. In Andhra Pradesh these performers are visible very common in streets during Pongal festival season. At that time these performers came in front of every home particularly in rural areas. At the time of performance they are playing with Gangireddu. 

These performers trained bulls to dance or perform acrobatics to entertain the crowd.  Through the Gangireddu performance the performers earn money, clothes and grains in return to the performance.

The feats of the Gangireddu (bull) are indeed pelasing. The Gangireddu can dance rhythimically, nod in acceptence, deny in negation, kneel down and prostrate, bow down and even stretch its tongue to show it can sing. It can put its four legds in a plate or exhibit more enterprising feats such as standing on its master's chest and bowing down in reverence when he sings in praise of a donor.

It is our responsibility to preserve many age old and traditional folk art forms like this Gangireddulaata for the sake of our future generations by giving money etc. generously to these performers otherwise there will be no heritage to our future generation child from our side.

The above are some photographs which i taken during pongal season in kakinada. In the below photograph i am standing behind Gangireddu.

Madhubani paintings

Madhubani painting or Mithila painting is one of the oldest Folk Art form in India developed and practiced by women from Mithila region of Bihar state. Literal meaning of Madhubani painting is "Forest of Honey" and the areas of Mithila. The origins of Madhubani painting are shrouded in antiquity, and a tradition states that this style of painting originated at the time of Ramayana, when King Janaka commissioned artists to do paintings at the time of marriage of his daughter Sita, to Hindu Lord Ram. Madhubani paintings prepared with fingers, nib-pens,twigs and matchsticks by using natural dyes and pigments. Madhubani paintings depicts men and its association with nature, mythological themes etc. Madhubani Mythological themes generally revolves around  Hindu dieties like Lord Krishna, Lord Sri Rama, Lord Shiva, Goddess Durga, Goddess Kali and Sarawati etc.  Natural objects like Sun, Moon and Religious plants like Tulsi and social events like wedding also painted. Madhubani paintings painted on walls during festivals and religious events and other milestones of the life cycle such as Birth, Upanayan (Sacred Thread Ceremony) and marriage. Generally no space is left empty in Madhubani paintings and the gaps are filled by paintings of flowers, animals, birds, and even geometric designs.  There is a theory that different styles in Madhubani paintings can be traced back to different castes. Upper castes of higher class women's styles restricted to religious symbols and gods, while the paintings themselves displayed greater sophistry and intricacy in patterns. These are referred to as the Kanchi and the Bharini styles of Madhubani paintings. While the upper castes restricted themselves to do paintings on religious themes, the lower castes expanded on various themes in their painting style portraying day to day life. There are five distinctive styles in Madhubani art -Bharni, Katchni, Tantrik, Godna & Gobar painting . In 60's Bharni, katchni & tantrik styles were mostly practise by upper caste and Godna & Gobar style by Harijan & Dalits . Now-a-days there is no caste-bar among the artists for their creativity in Madhubani Art . Madhubani paintings are a traditional art form passed from one generation of women to another and only few painters are considered themselves as artists. Madhubani paintings generally carry no mark of the creator. Unfortunately, several styles of Madhubani paintings have become extinct, as there are no practitioners of those styles anymore. Madhubani paintings began to receive national and international attention from 1970s onwards when The President of India gave award to Smt.Jagdamba Devi of Jitbarpur village, near Madhubani. Later many women received awards and recognised by nationally and internationally. Now-a-days Madhubani paintings prepared in Cloth and even in paper also.

In my collection i have several Madhubani paintings which i got from Mr.Ram Kumar Das of Madhubani Mithia Training Centre in Mithila, Bihar.

Recently i purchased my first digital camera and with my camera i am taking photographs of my Madhubani paintings collections. 

I have 2 Madhubani cloth paintings and remaining are paper paintings. These are my Madhubani paintings collections. 

These are 2 different Madhubani cloth paintings which are in my collection.

I am sharing the above cloth paintings with school children at the time of my seminar to them on Indian Heritage and Culture. Below is the photos of my sharing of madhubani cloth painting with school children.

These are several Madhubani paintings greetings cards and big size paintings on paper which are in my collection. Most of these paper madhubani paintings depicts Ramayana theme scenes, themes of Lord Sri Krishna, Folk life etc. 

Apart from these Madhubani paintings in my collection i have Madhubani paintings First Day cover also. This first day cover issued by Indian Postal Department.

Recently on 30th November 2014 i am presented my Third Seminar on Indian Heritage and Culture to younger generation children. In this seminar i am sharing my original paintings collections of Madhubani paintings,Midnapore Patachitra paintings,  Cherial Paintings, Warli Paintings and Kalamkari paintings.

Many younger children came to my presentation on that day and clarified their doubts. Please look into my 3rd Seminar on Indian Heritage and Culture message.


http://indian-heritage-and-culture.blogspot.in/2014/12/my-third-seminar-on-indian-heritage-and.html

Palm Leaf Paintings of Orissa

Palm Leaf Paintings

One of the most ancient crafts of the world, etching and paintings on the palm leaf still thrives in the state of Orissa in India. Called Talapatrachitras there, the art has reached new heights there. The palm leaf etchings are treasured decorations of all Indian home.

The art originated when written communication began. Messages and manuscripts were written on the palm leaf to be disseminated. Gradually the trend to decorate the text with images began and it became an art in itself. The ethnic art were still one of the most respected ones there and is practiced by the artists primarily in Puri and Cuttak.

The ethnic art form essentially consists of inscribing letters and artistic designs on palm-leaf, mostly cut into standard sizes and held together with two wooden plank covers stringed through a hole in the center. To prepare the palm leaf, the unripe leaves of the palm tree are first cut and semidried. They are then buried in swamps for 4-5 days for seasoning and the dried in shade. These are then stitched or stringed together as per the need. At times they are stitched after the etching is complete. 

Etching is done within lines using an iron pen on leaf strips. A paste made of bean leaves, charcoal made of burnt coconut shells, til oil and turmeric is rubbed on the etching that highlights the figures. Colors are hardly used in this are, whatever are used as fillers and in very subdued tones. Vegetable and mineral colors are used for painting.

The artists of palm leaf etchings capture the themes of mythological incidents, Gods and Goddesses figures complete with details of hair style and dress, animals, flowers and trees etc. Radha and Krishna, Durga, Ganesha and Saraswati are the most commonly used themes. Stories and incidents of Mahabharat, Ramayana and other epics are also etched. The paintings and drawings also present excellent scenes of nature.

The above text courtesy on Palm Leaf paintings from the website of  odisha.gov.in 

http://www.odisha.gov.in/portal/ViewDetails.asp?vchglinkid=GL010&vchplinkid=PL060&vchslinkid=SL038

Palm Leaf Painting and Etching

Palm leafs have been used since very early days of civilization as a medium of written communication. Dried palm leafs are stitched together to form booklets or long pages and they are scribbled on with a sharp metal pen. Slowly, over a period of time, illustrations were included along with the text and that eventually evolved to a full art form. Colors, derived from vegetable dyes, charcoal and other natural products are used to give vibrant colors to the paintings.

The skillful hands of master artists produce unbelievably intricate pictures on palm leaves. This art form today is much respected and still practiced in may places. They can be seen prominently displayed and traded in the lanes of Cuttak, Puri, Raghurajpur and Chitrakarashi.

The above text and image courtesy from the blog of Mr.Tanmay of Bangalore, Karnataka  http://elusive42.windforwings.com/2009/07/bhubaneswar-wall-paintings-art-and.html  with his permission. Mr.Tanmay has a great blog on Indian Histry, Heritage and Culture which is a very worthy blog. Mr.Tanmay thanks for sharing very valuable information on various aspects of Indian heritage etc. through your great blog of elusive42.windforwings.com.

In  my collection i have a book on Palm Leaf Etchings of Orissa written by noted research scholar Shri Durga Prashad Patnaik. This is my book on Palm Leaf Etchings of Orissa.

Also in my collection i have one Miniature Sheet issued by Indian postal department on Jayadeva and Geetagovinda.

Jayadeva (Oriya: ଜୟଦେବ, (Bengali: জয়দেব) Sanskrit : जयदेव) was a Sanskrit poet circa 1200 AD. He is most known for his composition, the epic poem Gita Govinda, which depicts the divine love of Krishna, an avatar of Vishnu, and his consort, Radha. This poem, which presents the view that Radha is greater than Hari, is considered an important text in the Bhakti movement of Hinduism. Jayadeva was born to a Hindu Brahmin family.

The Gita Govinda (Oriya: ଗୀତ ଗୋବିନ୍ଦ, Devanagari: गीत गोविन्द) (Song of  Govinda) is a work composed by the 12th-century poet,  Jayadeva, who was born in  Kenduli Sasan near Puri in Odisha. It describes the relationship between Krishna and the gopis (female cow herders) of  Vrindavana, and in particular one gopi named Radha. This work has been of great importance in the development of the bhakti traditions of Hinduism.

The Gita Govinda is organized into twelve chapters. Each chapter is further sub-divided into twenty four divisions called Prabandhas. The prabandhas contain couplets grouped into eights, called Ashtapadis. It is mentioned that Radha is greater than Krishna. The text also elaborates the eight moods of Heroine, the Ashta Nayika  in its verses, which over the years has been an inspiration for many compositions and choreographic works in Indian Classical dances.

The above text courtesy on Jayadeva and Gita Govinda from the website of wikipedia.org  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gita_Govinda

This Jayadeva and Geetagovinda miniature released by Honorable Chief Minister Shri Navin Patnaik of Orissa (Odisha) State on 27th July, 2009. This is the Jayadeva and Geetagovinda miniature sheet release function photo.

Post Master General Yasodhara Menon (Left) and Hon'ble Chief Minister Shri Navin Patnaik released this special miniature sheet on Saint Poet Jayadeva and Geetagovinda at Bhabaneshwar on 27th July, 2009.

This is Jayadeva and Geetagovinda miniature sheet in my collection. Also i have a set of 10 maxim cards on Jayadeva and Geetagovinda in my collection. These maxim cards prepared by Sri Hemanth Kumar Jain of Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh state.

In my collection i have some Palm Leaf paintings of Orissa. I got them from Orissa state.