Diwali/Festival of light

Jharkhand, Hazaribagh "Diwali at the Sanskriti Centre" — part 4

As night falls, the house is buzzing with activity as everyone waits for darkness to light the oil lamps in the centre's three houses. The children, grandchildren and my hostess Elisabeth prepare the clay lamps on a tray and place them in key locations.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, Hazaribagh "Painting the walls for Sohrai" — part 3

In Hazaribagh, this art of scratching is the hallmark of the Kurmi tribal farming community to which Rudhan Devi belongs. I watch as she prepares a new section of a wall to be coated with manganese oxide, or “kali-mati,” mixed with water. This deep black pigment was used in cave paintings.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, Hazaribagh "Painting the walls for Sohrai" — part 2

The autumn rains have receded and the married women, whose names are always followed by the title Devi in honour of the goddess, are once again whitewashing the walls of their homes to restore the surfaces on which they will paint.

Hazaribagh paintings

Jharkhand, Hazaribagh "An endangered heritage" — part 1

Upon leaving the city, the beautiful hills and lush green nature immediately dominate the landscape. Cows graze in the shade of tall evergreen sal trees (Shorea robusta), while the paddy fields, which are dry in November, are ripening.

Mandana/Rajasthan

Rajasthan mandana, "Adorning the floors and the home for Diwali" — part 6

In Rajasthan floor paintings, most patterns of animate beings come to life on the vertical surfaces of the house, except for the symbolic representations of the footprints of Goddess Lakshmi, called paglya, and the hoof prints of the cow which are drawn on the floor inside and outside the house.

Mandana/Rajasthan

Rajasthan mandana, "Adorning the floors for Diwali" — part 5

During Diwali, houses are renovated, mud houses are repaired, the thatched roofs are redone. Walls, courtyards, cooking hearths, inner rooms, pillars, doorways are decorated with mandana, and women draw inspiration from various sources.

Mandana/Rajasthan

Rajasthan mandana, "Villages around Bundi" — part 4

Perched on a hillock, it is a densely built up area and houses adapt themselves to uneven grounds by spreading harmoniously their volumes on different levels. Alignments, projections and recesses allow glimpses of terraces overlooking other open spaces. This is how I notice freshly painted mandana.

Mandana/Rajasthan

Rajasthan mandana, "Preparing Diwali, Bundi and nearby villages" — part 3

Among birds, the peacock has been a source of inspiration for poets, bards, dancers, and painters since antiquity. In the mandana, it is an immensely popular design and is most often depicted in pairs, flanking a central flower on the gables of houses or on walls.

Mandana/Rajasthan

Rajasthan mandana, "Preparing Diwali at Lakshmi's home" — part 2

Drawing mandana is described as subhkarya ( an auspicious activity) and emphasises the idea of centre, symmetry and multiplication.

Mandana/Rajasthan

Rajasthan mandana, "Jodhpur, the quest begins" — part 1

Holding a sword in both hands, the tip of the blade touches a metal plate placed on a floor painting made of several squares enhanced by a stylised flower in the center.