Chhattisgarh: The women of Rajwar community of Surguja in Chhattisgarh have contributed immensely to the tradition of making graffiti on the walls known as 'Bhitti Chitra' or muralising.
On the occasion of International Day of Rural Women, ETV Bharat celebrates the spirit of rural women across the country.
Bringing an artistic revolution, Sundari Bai of Surguja has given a new dimension to the art of mural decoration.
The Rajwars are traditionally landowning farming communities and have long held a special affinity with the rich, loamy and varied clay of this region.
After their homes were built by men, Rajwar women plastered the walls of their homes with clay (lepai) embellishing them afresh every year after the rains. This process has nurtured their creativity, for clay embellishment has a special role in their lives and homes.
Sundaribai like all Rajwar Women started practicing the art at a very young age and continued with it till she was discovered for the finer aspects of her work.
Ever since her exposure to formal exhibition spaces in a central Indian town in the early 1980s, she has been commissioned many times by Government Art Departments, Museums, Art Galleries which eventually changed the imagery, aesthetics, and techniques of her work.
She went abroad for the first time in 2003, to showcase her art in Birmingham, England. In an exhibition of tribal-folk art in Paris, the artworks of Sundari Bai were displayed. She also gave a live demonstration of her art in Paris.
Her artworks are also on display at the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya and the Tribal Museum in Bhopal and Culture Museum in Delhi.
Sundari Bai is an inspiration for many other women of their community. She has handled all artistic challenges with grace and has never let anything mitigate or obstruct her artistic spirit or powerful imagination.
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