Raslila- Bengal Pattachitra

The term Ras means “aethetics” & lila means “act” which roughly translates to “play (lila) of aesthetics (rasa),” or more broadly as “Dance of Divine Love”.

Raslila or Krishna Tandava, a story of Krishna, where Gopis of Vrindavan, upon hearing the flute of Kirshna sneak out of their house holds to the forest to dance with Krishna through out the night. Krishna stretches the time supernaturally to a Kalpa which is a Hindu unit of time lasting approximately 4.32 billion years. In the Krishna Bhakti traditions, the rasa-lila is considered to be one of the highest and most esoteric of Krishna’s pastimes.

Rahim Chitrakar has endeavoured to bring the essence of Krishna Bhakti through Pattachitra.

Bengal Pattachitra paintings are priceless collectibles. The pattachitra painting is an art form that originated in 19th century Bengal, in the vicinity of Kali Temple in Kolkata and is considered to be one of the earliest forms of pop art in India.

Craft: Bengal Pattachitra by the Patuas (State of West Bengal)

Artist- Rahim Chitrakar