The Indian state of West Bengal has a rich religious, cultural and traditional heritage. Arts and crafts in West Bengal underwent many changes over time giving an artistic diversity today in the forms of traditional handicrafts, terracotta, painting and carving, dances and music.
Music
The music of West Bengal includes multiple indigenous musical genres such as Baul, Bishnupuri Classical, Kirtan, Shyama Sangeet, Rabindra Sangeet, Nazrul Geeti, Atulprasadi, Dwijendrageeti, Paramartha Sangeet, Probhati Sangeet, Kantageeti, Ganasangeet, Adhunik Gaan, Bengali rock etc. West Bengal has a rich culture with the classical and folk songs.
The Bishnupur Gharana is the sole Classical (Drupad) gharana of Bengal. It originated in Bishnupur, Bankura with the court musicians of the Malla Kings. The bauls are a mystic group of singers and musicals, immensely popular in the countryside. They perform using a khamak, ektara and dotara. Rabindra Sangeet, also known as Tagore songs, are songs written and composed by Rabindranath Tagore. They have distinctive characteristics in the music of Bengal, popular in India and Bangladesh. Rabindra Sangeet has been an integral part of Bengal culture for over a century. Shyama Sangeet is a genre of Bengali devotional songs dedicated to the Hindu goddess Shyama or Kali which is a form of supreme universal mother-goddess Durga or parvati. It is also known as Shaktagiti or Durgastuti.
Kirtan is also a true song which describe the mythological epic. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu starts the Hare Krishna movement from Nabadwip.
Other songs like Hapu song, Bhadu song, Gombhira, Tusu song, Bhatiyali song, Patua Sangeet, Bolan Song etc. are all Bengali folk songs.
Generally all music dedicated to goddess Mother Kali is called 'Shyama Sangeet' in Bengali. Two famous singers of this Bengali Shyama Sangeet are Pannalal Bhattacharya and Dhananjay Bhattacharya. Pannalal Bhattacharya's elder brother Prafulla Bhattacharya and middle brother Dhananjay Bhattacharya were the first music teachers of saint artist Pannalal Bhattacharya. Dhananjay Bhattacharya stopped singing devotional songs after finding devotional spirit in his brother Pannalal. However, after the demise of Pannalal Bhattacharya, he contributed again in Bengali music with many devotional songs by his sweet, melodious voice.
Paramartha Sangeet is a collection of devotional songs, which were composed and sung by Maharshi Nagendranath Bhaduri, a renowned yogi and spiritual figure. Nagendranath Bhaduri founded "Sanatana Dharma Pracharini Sabha" in 1891, a society dedicated to spreading the message of Sanatana Dharma. This organization, later known as "Nagendra Math" under the guidance of his disciple Dhyanaprakash Brahmachari, published a compilation of songs called Paramartha Sangitabali. This compilation includes three songs composed by Nagendranath himself, which were reportedly sung in the presence of Ramakrishna.
Dance
Songs and dances are connected with each other. The rich cultural heritage and creative minds of the people of Bengal are best reflected in their traditional folk dances like the martial dance or the harvest dance. In modern West Bengal rural Bengal takes the lead in keeping the old customs and the associated song and dance. The folk dances of West Bengal deal with a variety of themes such as religion, prayers, festivals and rituals; others talk about society.
Gaudiya Nritya Gaudiya Nritya () or Gauriya Nritya, is a Bengali classical dance tradition.Roma Chatterji (2005). Folklore and the Construction of National Tradition . Indian Folklife 19 (Folklore Abroad: On the Diffusion and Revision of Sociocultural Categories): 9. Accessed January 2014. "a classical dance tradition that has vanished from the urban areas". It originates from Gauda, also known as Gaur, in Bengal.
It has been reconstructed by Mahua Mukherjee. It is not recognised as an Indian classical dance by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, but study of it is eligible for scholarships from the Ministry of Culture of India. Scholarly reception of the reconstruction ranges from caution to scepticism.Utpal Kumar Banerjee (2006). Indian performing arts: a mosaic. New Delhi: Harman Publishing House. . p. 79: "re-creating Gaudiya Nritya as one of the acceptable classical styles will need a formal framework".Leela Venkataraman (2006). Negotiating the Extremes: dance. India International Centre Quarterly, 33 (1): 93-102. "one may have reservations about the classical dance repertoire visualised by [Mukherjee]".Roma Chatterji (2005). p. 9: "Mukherjee tries to reconstitute a Bengali aesthetic within the perspective of pan-Indian civilisation".Susan Leigh Foster (2009). Worlding dance: Studies in international performance. Basingstoke; New York: Palgrave Macmillan. . p. 125: "I urgently distance my project from that of Kolkata-based scholar, Mahua Mukherjee".
Martial dances
As a cultural tradition there are many Bengali folk dances describing the mythological wars. These martial or war dances are Purulia Chhau dance, Raibenshe dance, Stick dance or Laghur Nritya, Ranapa Dance, Dhali and Paika Nritya, Kukri Nritya etc.
Harvest Dances The cultural folk dance is mostly related with seasons, sowing of seeds, rains, harvesting in West Bengal. It is celebrated with much ardor by village folks, especially the farming community. Gombhira dance of Malda district is associated with mythology. Tushu dance, Nabanna dance, Nnoila broto etc. are also related with farming. Some tribal dance like Santhali dance, Rabha dance, Mundari dance, Rajbanshi dance etc. performed to the accompaniment of a number of musical instrument and are quite elaborate in nature.
Masks
Mask or Mukhosh of West Bengal, as it known and it has a mysterious history. Mostly it is used for the Mask Dance, a folk dance of West Bengal. The wearing of these masks is connected with early types of folklore and religion. There are various types of masks made of clay, wood, sponge wood or shola, pith, paper etc. Generally, half masks are made up of clay, pith and paper, and wooden masks are very rare. Some of the masks came from the Tribal of West Bengal. Geographically, West Bengal comes well within this mask using culture zone. Masks in West Bengal are mostly used in folk dance.Masks of West Bengal_Publisher:Indian Museum_kolkata_Author: Sabita Ranjan Sarkar UNESCO selected The Rural Craft Hub of Bengal to showcase their artwork in Paris in 2015.
Chhau mask Chhau dance is listed on UNESCO's world heritage list of dances. The main difference between the Purulia chhau and Orisha chhau is in the use of the mask. Purulia chhau used the mask in dance, but Orisha does not have the mask thereby adding facial expression with body movement and gesture. Purulia chhau dancers wear earthy and theatrical masks which represent the mythological characters.
Gambhira mask
Gambhira mask is a part of Gomira dance which originated in North and the South Dinajpur of West Bengal. The word Gomira is colloquial from Gram-Chandi, a female deity. The origin of this craft is no doubt very old and some of the craftsmen claim it is at least as old as the beginning of Kali Yuga. The Gomira dances are organized to propitiate the deity and to usher in the good forces and drive out the evil forces. This mask is used in the war dance. It is also called Mukha Khel meaning the game of masks.
Others Ghurni region of Krishnanagar has been a notable center of clay art for a long time. Their clay masks of Durga and others are well known for their beauty and the masks follow a contemporary style. Kolkata Kumartuli is well known for clay masks. The masks are made in clay and then sun-dried and finally coloured and decorated with sponge wood or foil. Potters have been receiving attention for sculpting Bengali deities. Dokra is unique folk art of West Bengal. Metal casting dokra mask is created various contemporary sculptures with this art form. Gita Karmakar, a female artist from Bankura, has been awarded the President's award. Her works of Dokra art are equally popular in other countries. Durga face is a well known shola mask of Murshidabad. It's mainly used as a decorative ptece. For making this masks, shola is pulled from water and dried. Then it is cut with the knife according to the design. The most attractive fact, Murshidabad is recognize for the shola work.
Terracotta art Architecture
There are significant examples of fine arts in Bengal from earlier times such as terracotta art of Hindu temples. The roofing style of Bengali Hindu temple architecture is unique and closely related to the paddy roofed traditional building style of rural Bengal.3.http://www.kamat.com/kalranga/wb/wbtemps.htm Roofing styles include the Jor-bangla Style, do-chala, char-chala, at-chala, deul, ek-ratna, pancharatna and navaratna. Bishnupur in West Bengal has a remarkable set of such temples which being built from the Malla dynasty are examples of this style. Most of these temples are covered on the outer surface with terracotta reliefs which contains plenty of secular materials making these important to reconstruct the social structure from these times.
The temple structures contain gabled roofs which are colloquially called the chala, For example, a gabled roof with an eight sided pyramid structured roof will be called "ath chala" or literally the eight faces of the roof. And frequently there is more than one tower in the temple building. These are built of laterite and brick bringing them at the mercy of severe weather conditions of southern Bengal. Dakshineswar Kali Temple is one example of the Bhanja style while the additional small temples of Shiva along the river bank are examples of southern Bengal roof style though in much smaller dimension.
Terracotta dolls
Terracotta or clay craft has been the symbol of man's first attempt at craftsmanship, just as the potter's wheel was the first machine invented to use the power of motion for a productive purpose. However, its association with religious rituals has imbibed it with deeper significance. In West Bengal, terracotta traditions are found from the earliest times. They are symbols of fulfillment of aspirations of village folk. In order to cater to the commercial requirements of the modern global market, the village potter is often combining the traditional rural abstractions with refined urban tastes to show pieces of terracotta art.
Bankura Horse
In Bankura, potters create terracotta horses and elephants. Over the centuries they have moved away from a realistic presentation to a representational presentation. Potter-artists of different regions focused on different parts of the animal body in such a manner that representation of the same became more important than representation of the entire body of the animal.Ghosh, Binoy, Paschim Banger Sanskriti, (in Bengali), part I, 1976 edition, pp. 69-71, Prakash Bhaban
Manasa chali
Manasa chali is the idol of Goddess Manasa. It is a unique terracotta sculpture of Panchmura, West Bengal. Manasa chali has a small figure or a group of three figures in the middle, with rows of snake hoods fanning out in a half moon shape.
Painting Pattachithra
Patachitra painting is a true cultural heritage of West Bengal. The patua community of West Bengal has an ancient history practicing the craft of patachitra. A quaint little village of Paschim Medinipur, Naya is home to around 250 patuas or chitrakars. Bengal patachitra has various aspects, like Chalchitra, Durga Pat, Medinipur Patachitra, kalighat Patachitra, mud wall painting etc. D. P. Ghosh mentioned different style of Bengal patachitra in the districts of West Bengal in his book Folk Art of Bengal.Craft council of west Bengal-1985-86, The Jarana Patachitra of Bengal- Mahamaya, p-112