Kabuliwala

Set in the early twentieth century Kolkata, Kabuliwala delicately explores the bonds of friendship, affection and parting in the relationship between a middle-aged Pathan trader and a five year old Bengali girl. It is a simple tale of a father’s love for his daughter and the transfer of that love to another little girl. It is a love that transcends the borders of race, religion and language.

Rahmat Khan is a fruit seller from Afghanistan, who comes to Kolkata, leaving his family and in particular his favorite daughter, Rabiya. In Kolkata he befriends a little girl, Minnie, in whom he finds a reflection of his own little Rabiya. One day Rahmat receives news of his daughter’s illness and decides to go back home. Being short of money he agrees to sell his goods on credit to increase his business. Later, when he goes to collect his money, one of his customers abuses him. In the brawl that ensues, Rahmat stabs the man. In court Rahmat states the truth in his characteristic and simple fashion. He is sent to prison. On the day of his release he goes to meet Minnie, but discovers that she has grown up into a 14-year-old girl that is about to be married. Minnie does not recognize Rahmat and realizes that his own daughter must have forgotten him too. Minnie’s father kindly dips into the wedding budget and gives the money to Rahmat to make the passage home to Rabiya.

Bhanusingher Padavali

At the age of 16, Tagore embarked on a lighthearted literary adventure. Inspired by the young English poet Chatterton, who had tricked the public by composing poetry, under the name of a famous poet. Rabindranath wrote poems in the old Brajabuli dialect under the name of Bhanusingha Padavali. He passed them off as the writings of a famous Vaishnav poet, whose manuscript he chanced to find in the family library.

The appreciative response to Bhanusingher surprised Rabindranath. He poured the romantic passion between Radha and Krishna into his poems. Reference to the Radha Krishna legend of Indian mythology, which pervaded Bhanusingher Padavali, became increasingly rare in Rabindranath’s later compositions.

Rabindranath recalls in Jiban Smriti (My Reminiscences) the circumstances in which he began writing as Bhanusingher Padavali – one afternoon the sky suddenly darkened with dense clouds and filled me with impulsive delight. Lying on my bed I bent over a slate and wrote in chalk gahan kusum kunja majhe mridul madhur banshi baje (In the dense flower grove a flute plays soft and sweet.)

Puratan Vhritya

An old nagging servant in the master’s house is judged a mess in every affair and shunned by all. Although weak, lazy and callous the servant never quits his job; he continued even after much abuse and blame. When the master goes on pilgrimage he finds the servant accompanying him. Although he would have preferred another member of his staff join him. Many days later in a distant land, his companions deserted him when he contacted an incurable disease. The only one who stayed was the old servant who became his steadfast companion.

Chandalika

The story of Chandalika is set against the backdrop of the city of Sravasti. Lord Buddha’s favorite disciple Ananda was returning to the ashram after a meal at a household when he felt thirsty. He spotted the daughter of a Chandal, an outcaste, busy drawing water from a well. Her name was Prakriti. Ananda asked for his thirst to be quenched and after hesitation she obliged – as she was an untouchable. Ananda tells Prakriti that they are both creations of God and there is no difference between them. Prakriti is moved by the appearance of the Buddhist monk and desires to have him as her own. But when he reappears she realizes her mistake and asks for forgiveness. She gives Ananda the freedom to continue on his spiritual journey towards the Divine. Ananda blesses her.

Chitrangada

Chitrangada, the daughter of the King of Manipur, was brought up by her father as a son and taught war craft, politics and archery. Arjuna, the epic hero of the Mahabharata, met her in Manipur during his years of exile. The story of Tagore’s play, Chitrangada, begins at this juncture. Chitrangada sees Arjuna, falls in love with him and awakens the ‘woman’ in her. She knows Arjuna cannot love her the way she is and asks for a boon to transform herself into a beautiful woman. Arjuna falls in love with the transformed Chitrangada. Though she believes she has everything in life, Chitrangada wishes that Arjuna could love her for her true self. Arjuna hears about the warrior princess and wishes to meet her. Chitrangada reveals her true self to Arjuna. No longer in love just for her beauty, Arjuna marries Chitrangada.

Dak Ghar

Dak Ghar is a play by Tagore that concerns Amal, a child confined to his uncle’s house because he has an incurable disease. The boy pines for release but since the doctor would not allow it, he sits in his house morose. Amal stands in the courtyard, talks to passers-by and asks them about the places they go.

The construction of a new post office prompts the imaginative Amal to fantasize about receiving a letter from the king. The village headman mocks Amal and pretends that the ignorant child has received a letter from the king who promises that his royal physician will come to attend to him. The physician comes heralding the news of the imminent arrival of the king. Amal however, falls into a deep asleep never to awake as Sudha, his best friend, comes to greet him with flowers.

Kripon – The Miser

Kripon is an allegory in which the King of Kings, on a rare visit to bless the ordinary people, comes across a beggar to whom he asks for alms. The beggar is amused and considered this a royal jest. In a confused gesture of courtesy, he offered the king a mere grain of corn. On his return home he found a single grain of gold among his meager heap of corn. The beggar was filled with remorse and regret. He realized if he had been generous in his offering to the king he would have been equally rewarded.

Dui Bighe Jami

In this poem a king orders one of his subjects to sacrifice his house and land for a royal pleasure garden. The poor subject faced total disaster when the king issued a decree and forcibly acquired the land – he threw the hapless man and his family out to survive on nothing. They became homeless vagrants, roamed from place to place and tried to survive.

Many years later nostalgia for his village and a desire to see his familiar surroundings brought him back to his native town. The royal pleasure garden bore no resemblance to what he remembered as his land. But in one corner he found his favorite old mango tree still bearing luscious fruit. He sat under this tree, his only thread with the past, and picked two ripe mangoes. A guard saw him and took him before the king who accused him of stealing from the royal garden.

The poem ends on an ironic note – who should be called the thief?

About Tagore in Kantha

The kantha is the story of the ingenuity and creativity of the women of rural Bengal.  Centuries ago they began to transform tattered cloth into beautiful warm quilts by recycling and layering old saris and dhotis. The imagery included simple, traditional village vignettes, scenes from the Raj and pictures of deities. These were stitched onto layers with such precision that often the reverse was as neat as the obverse.  And each kantha told a different story.

In the 1940s the kantha revival movement started in Kala Bhavan, Santiniketan, as a rural reconstruction program promoted by Protima Devi, the daughter-in-law of Rabindranath Tagore.  Srilata Sarkar, a student of Kala Bhavan, was a great artist and a promoter of kantha and aided Protima in her efforts.

In 1985 Shamlu Dudeja revived these earlier initiatives and expanded the scope to reach outside of Bengal. She began work with a group of casual kantha artists from Shantiniketan who were inspired to stitch on one layer of silk rather than the multi-layered cottons previously used for quilts.

Under the brand name of Malika’s Kantha Collection, Shamlu picked up the threads, carried on with relentless effort and brought the kantha to the attention to people in India and Britain. Her daughter, Malika, helped her in the initial efforts of promoting kantha to the urban elite in Kolkata.  With the help of a group of team leaders they started a non-government organization called Self Help Enterprise (SHE), which employed women in rural Bengal.

Shamlu Dudeja’s efforts transformed the kantha and she developed it from a poor man’s quilting stitch to an exquisite decorative stitch suitable for fashion and home furnishings.  These kantha textiles now appeal to a large section of socially conscious citizens of the world and their worth is appreciated far beyond the borders of their native Bengal.

To honor the 150^th year of Rabindranath Tagore’s birth Shamlu Dudeja conceived a magnificent project to honor the poet laureate – Tagore in Kantha. Rabindranath Tagore, the Bard from Birbhoom, echoed the spirit of Bengal in his songs and literary masterpieces. Although Bengal’s signature craft, kantha, does not find mention in Tagore’s writings his family probably used them.

Rabindranath Tagore, writer, philosopher and painter was the ambassador of Indian culture to the rest of the world. Although most famed for his poetry, Tagore was a creative genius who played a crucial role in the cultural renaissance of India and Bengal in the 19th and early 20th century. His multifaceted talent also found expression in reviving traditional and folk art forms while at the same time drawing on world cultural influences. At Sriniketan, adjacent to Tagore’s university town Santiniketan, there was a focused attention on imparting fresh life into traditional handicrafts and rural skilled work.

Tagore in Kantha is Shamlu’s latest contribution to the cultural heritage of rural Bengal and it is a masterwork of creativity and artistry. The concept was to illustrate the scenes from Tagore’s writings on tussar silk panels in fine kantha stitch. The creativity and talent of the rural women was at their best and resulted in 65 brilliant panels. The work they produced was comparable to fine art and worthy of any art gallery.

Under a full moon on 18 February 2011 His Excellency, Shri MK Narayanan, Governor of West Bengal launched the Tagore in Kantha exhibition on the lawns of the Raj Bhawan, Kolkata. That evening the kantha artisans sat on the floor of a replica mud hut and embroidered until they were invited to the well-lit stage where they received SHE Awards for Excellence in Kantha from Shri MK Narayan. Against the backdrop of the grand heritage building, the women shone with smiles on their faces and their heads held high. The effect was magical. The story of their lives, from a village hut to the stage of Raj Bhawan, was told amidst the thunderous applause of the eminent guests.

Kantha embroidery is treasured not only for its unmatched beauty but also for the role it plays in empowering the daughters of rural Bengal with confidence and a sense of self-worth.  Creating these fine textiles enables women to lead a more dignified, independent existence as a result of their hard work and initiative. Their exhibit was so popular, that it was moved to Nandalal Bose Gallery at the Indian Council of Cultural Relations, Kolkata for a month. It has traveled to Cairo, Egypt, Dhaka, Bangladesh and Yemen.

For further information on scheduling an exhibition or purchasing kantha panels contact:

Shamlu Dudeja, Chairperson
Calcutta Foundation
Self Help Enterprise (SHE)
4/1 Alipore Park Road,
Kolkata 700027
dudeshamlu@gmail.com

Lihaf cont.

The proverb to “stretch your legs according to the length of your quilt” is also remembered as, “A man should undertake a race only as far as he can run; and so he should stretch his legs only to the length of his quilt.” Within the Indian culture this may mean to live within your means or only undertake what is possible. A western interpretation however, of eastern folklore is risky business. Therefore I stick with the tangible arts, like quilts.