Process, Talent & Skills needed

The "pattas" are made from silk or cotton through an arduous process that takes the women a minimum 5 days to complete. First, a natural glue made of tamarind (imli) seeds is prepared. This paste is made by (i) soaking tamarind seeds in water for about three days, (ii) grinding them with a pestle till they are jelly-like in consistency, (iii) mixing the ground pulp with water in an earthen pot, and (iv) heating this into a paste traditionally called niryas kalpa. The canvas on which the painting is executed is then made by sticking together two layers of (traditionally) cotton cloth using this natural glue paste.

Then, soft clay stone is powdered and mixed with the glue paste and 2-3 coatings of this mixture are applied on the prepared canvas on both sides. This stone is is found in the Nilgiri mountains and is chalk-like in consistency and white in colour. The canvas is then left to dry completely, which takes more than half the day, after which the cloth is cut into the required shape and size. Finally, the surfaces of the patta are polished using a rough burnishing stone, and later with a smooth stone or wood. After the above steps, the patta is ready to be painted on.

The powdered colours are made by grinding stones that yield particular colours. The color pigments are mixed with glue made from the sap of the elephant apple and the chitrakar mixes these colours in dried coconut shells. The chitrakar starts and ends his painting with the colour white. First, the painting borders are drawn on all four sides. Next, the chitrakar outlines the figures with very thin white lines. Body colours are then added, shells. The chitrakar starts and ends his painting with the colour white. First, the painting borders are drawn on in white. After the painting is complete, it is lacquered, thus making it water-resistant and durable.

Materials used, durability

The artist's palette comprises a variety of colors - white, red, yellow, black, green and blue, all of which are derived from natural sources. Conch shells are used for white, black comes from lamp soot, yellow from 'Hartala' stone, red is made from 'Hingulal' stone, green comes from plants and blue from indigo. These extracts are then cooked with the gum from the 'kaintha' (elephant apple) fruit tree, and the colours thus become easy to work with.

The paintbrushes used by the chitrakars are typically made of the keya root. The finer ones have wooden handles and are made of mouse hair. At the centre of the brush are about a dozen long mouse hairs, which when dipped in paint, have a needle-point edge.