While promotion of Mithila painting began decades ago, now students from far and wide are taking keen interest on learning the nuances of the art
Published : April 18, 2025 at 4:54 PM IST
Madhubani: As the brush strokes swirl to make figures and figurines with precision, the vibrant indigo, red, mustard yellow and leaf green pigments infuse life into peacocks, lotus and forests. The papers, clothes and walls speak one story in hundreds of hues. Be it depiction of an episode from the Ramayana or a generic one showing a woman carrying a potful of water, the colour scheming, geometry, and intricate patterns, in perfect balance with each other, bring alive what is called Madhubani art.
Madhubani painting, or Mithila art, which mostly dwell on mythical stories from epics or everyday life, harps heavily on flat hues with no shading, perspective or illusion. It is a pure form of art which is practised using twigs, matchsticks, fingers, and bamboo brushes. The art that once was limited to mud walls of homes during celebration of marriage, birth, and festivals, is now finding a pride of place in galleries, saris, and scrolls, and most importantly being accepted and appreciated by the younger generation.
The art, Bihar's own, has grown into a Rs 100-crore industry with demand increasing globally. And taking forward this movement is a government-run institute in Saurath village, Madhubani where hundreds of youth are being trained to learn the art and eke a livelihood.
Functioning under the Department of Art, Culture and Youth, the Nitish Kumar government got the Madhubani Chitrakala Sansthan inaugurated in 2022.
Forms for the degree course are released in April while the entire process is completed by July. On the other hand, the certificate course is held twice a year, in July and January. "We also provide scholarships here. Students pursuing degree course get Rs 1500 per month while those in the certificate course are paid Rs 1000 a month. Even the government has made provision of free accommodation and food for students coming from places far and wide," he informs.
The institute charges a one-time registration fee of Rs 3000 while students have to pay around Rs 2000 as examination fee.
Acharya Pratik Prabhakar of Mithila Chitrakala Sansthan says that the students in the degree course are trained in Sikki art, natural art, cow dung painting etc all of which are a part of Mithila painting. The styles can be differentiated as Kobhar, Bharni, Godna. They are also given classes in handling computer, photography, marketing so that they can market their own creations.
"There is a batch of 30 students who are trained by Padma awardee teachers like Dulari Devi, Shivam Paswan, his wife Shanti Devi and many other artists," says Prabhakar.
Speaking to ETV Bharat, Dulari Devi detailed on Madhubani painting and how the students are first trained to make fish, paan, makhana - important motifs of the painting - on the board. Then those are translated on to clothes, paper, statues, terracotta, decorative items and jewelry. "Students are usually from Bihar and also other places like Delhi, Mumbai, Gaya, Sitamarhi. Free accommodation is arranged for those coming from far away places," says Dulari Devi.
Mostly belonging to the younger generation, the students enrolled in the institution are equally passionate about the art and want to take it to greater heights. "We want to move forward with our skills. Since there is no load or pressure on our guardians we learn stress free which is important to pursue any creative art," say students Pranav and Neha Kumari.
No wonder, in the last 48 years, eight artists from the state have been conferred with Padma Shri.
It is believed that Mithila painting, though a very old form of art, came into prominence after the Bihar earthquake in 1934. Then a British officer William George Archer who had come to assess the damage, saw a Mithila painting on the walls. He took its picture, wrote an article and introduced the painting to the country and the world.
Via ETV Bharat
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