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Question 3 of 58 · Paintings, Crafts, Dress & Tribes
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Pattachitra painting is a traditional art form of which state?

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Answer: Option B — Odisha

Detailed Solution

Pattachitra is a traditional cloth-based scroll painting of Odisha, also practised in West Bengal. The name comes from the Sanskrit words "patta", meaning cloth or canvas, and "chitra", meaning picture. It is one of the oldest and most popular living art forms of Odisha, dating back to at least the 12th century.

Pattachitra is closely associated with the worship of Lord Jagannath at the Jagannath Temple in Puri. Paintings of Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra, called "Anasara Patti", are traditionally used in the temple during the "Anasara" period, when the deities are believed to fall ill after the ritual bath (Snana Purnima) and are kept away from public view for about two weeks before the Rath Yatra.

Features of Pattachitra:

  • The canvas is prepared by coating cotton cloth with a mixture of chalk and gum made from tamarind seeds, which gives it a smooth, leathery surface.
  • Artists, called chitrakars, use natural colours made from materials such as conch shells (white), lamp soot (black), hingula (red), haritala (yellow) and indigo (blue).
  • The paintings have bold outlines, intricate details and decorative borders with floral motifs.
  • Common themes include stories from Hindu mythology, especially of Lord Jagannath, Lord Krishna (Krishna Lila), the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Dasavatara (ten incarnations of Vishnu).

Raghurajpur, a heritage crafts village near Puri, is the most famous centre of Pattachitra, where almost every household practises the art. Odisha Pattachitra received a Geographical Indication (GI) tag in 2008. Artists also paint on palm leaves (talapatra chitra) and tussar silk.

Other folk paintings of Odisha include Saura (Idital) paintings of the Saura tribe.

Other famous folk paintings of India:

  • Madhubani (Mithila): Bihar.
  • Warli: Maharashtra.
  • Phad: Rajasthan.
  • Kalamkari: Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
  • Kalighat: West Bengal.
  • Gond: Madhya Pradesh.
  • Tanjore: Tamil Nadu.

Why not the other options?

  • ✗Rajasthan is known for Phad and Pichwai paintings.
  • ✗Bihar is known for Madhubani paintings.
  • ✗Andhra Pradesh is known for Kalamkari paintings.

Quick tip

Remember: Pattachitra = Odisha (cloth scroll paintings of Lord Jagannath, Raghurajpur, GI tag 2008); Madhubani = Bihar; Warli = Maharashtra; Phad = Rajasthan; Kalamkari = Andhra Pradesh.

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Paintings, Crafts, Dress & Tribes — Preparation

This question tests your understanding of Paintings, Crafts, Dress & Tribes, a key topic in the General Knowledge section. The detailed solution above uses a step-by-step approach to show the reasoning, and where available, a shortcut that helps you solve similar questions in under 90 seconds during the actual exam.

This topic covers India's traditional painting styles (such as Madhubani, Warli, Pattachitra, Kalamkari, Gond and Tanjore), handicrafts and textiles, traditional dresses, and the major tribes of each state and their customs. It also includes Geographical Indication (GI) tags given to crafts and products. Questions usually ask which state a painting or craft belongs to, which tribe lives in a region, or what a traditional dress is called. Warli belongs to Maharashtra, Madhubani to Bihar, Pattachitra to Odisha and West Bengal, and Gond art to Madhya Pradesh. Grouping tribes by state, and noting the largest tribe of key states (such as the Bhils and the Santhals), helps with elimination. Practise the paintings, crafts and tribes questions below, written in the style of the general awareness sections of exams such as SSC, banking, railways, CUET GAT, MAH CET and CLAT. Each question comes with a detailed explanation that adds related facts, so every question helps you revise more than one point.

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