Rare works of art by Bengali experts are on display at Kolkata’s Kali Puja celebration

A house in Kolkata has become the centre of attention as it displays more than 70 original artworks of goddess Kali, one of the most potent feminine spirits in Indian mythology, as the country celebrates Kali Puja and Diwali on Sunday.

 

Notably, some of the top artists in the nation have curated the majority of the artworks, which are on display for the first time. Oiendrila Ray Kapur, an art curator, is hosting public viewings of these pieces of art at her home in southern Kolkata.

 

Over a dozen artists and artworks, many of which are private collectors’ possessions like the late art expert Dr. Utpal Ray, have been assembled by Kapur, who is also the show’s curator. The artworks are created using a variety of media, including ceramics, jamdani, textiles, acrylic, graphic art, watercolour, and wood etching.

 

Gosto Kumar, Partha Dasgupta, textile artist Sunetra Lahiri, Tantra scholar Dr. Argha Dipta Kar, Arjun Prashad, Chonddak Majumder, Srikanta Paul, American artist Jonathan Matas, Priti Roy, Gouri Saha, Rini Seal, and Hemal Kapadia are among the artists who have curated the artworks on goddess Kali.

 

The primary idea of the Kali Puja, according to art curator and coordinator Kounteya Sinha in an interview with India Today, was to combat the disappearance of artworks associated with the goddess Kali.

 

‘There is an invisibility of artwork related to the goddess Kali. It is a fight against it. Generally, you would not see such artwork, but mostly related to other gods and goddesses. Kali inspires art like none other. There are different types and kinds of artwork related to Maa Kali. 13 artists have come up with a total of 68 artefacts including paintings, sculptures and models.’

 

‘The theme is to tell the world that such beautiful artwork exists which we generally don’t talk about,’ Sinha stated to India Today.

 

Notably, the term ‘shobar pujo’ in Bengali refers to the global ‘puja,’ which means ‘everyone’s puja’ in English. This is the first instance of a puja like this in Kolkata, where anyone can enter and host the puja.