History of Patachitra

Shambhu Acharya, a torchbearer of a family tradition of 450 years of doing scroll paintings, is back with 41 eye-catching patachitras (scroll paintings) at a solo show now running at Gallery Chitrak in the capital. The artist, however, has not displayed any particular story or legends in the show, as patachitras usually do. But, following the styles and compositions of traditional scroll paintings, he has rather painted rural men and women in beautiful rural setting for the show titled ‘Patachitra Parampara’. Visitors will nonetheless get the taste of scroll paintings as Shambhu has followed the pata style to paint his characters and landscapes. As always, Shambhu has used handmade patas (scrolls) and colours. Shambhu makes his colours by using natural materials like seeds, leaves and flowers. ‘Patachitra is a family tradition for me. I learnt it from my father. For the last few generations, my family has been doing patachitra in the traditional way. We do not use ready-made patas or c