DHOKRA ART - ART AND CULTURE
News: Bengal
village Lalbazar basks in the glory of an ancient metalcraft
What's in the news?
● Lalbazar,
also known as Khwaabgram (‘village
of dreams’), is located about 4 km from Jhargram and is inhabited by members of the Lodha tribe, once outlawed by the
British.
● Nestled
in the forests with a population of not even a hundred people, Lalbazaar was a
non-descript village until not too long ago.
● Today
it’s not only an art hub but also moving towards becoming a center for dokra, a metalcraft popular in
Bengal, all thanks to a Kolkata artist who made the place his second home
four years ago.
Dhokra Art:
● Dhokra
sculptures, a type of folk art, is an
age-old wax-casting technique also known as Lost-wax process.
● Dhokra
is an alloy of brass, nickel and zinc
which gives an antique look.
● The
oldest specimen using such technique was during
Harappan Period (famous Dancing Girl of Mohenjo-daro).
Key takeaways:
● Dhokra Damar tribes
are the traditional metalsmiths of West
Bengal and Odisha.
● Their
technique of lost wax casting is named after their tribe, hence Dhokra metal
casting.
● In
May 2018, Dhokra craft from West Bengal was presented with the Geographical Indication (GI) tag.
Recent changes in the craft:
● Beeswax,
which was one of the primary inputs, is not used any more, since it is far more
expensive and no longer easy to procure.
● The
traditional animal figurines - horses, elephants, camels and so on, are slowly
being replaced by more functional things
such as paperweights, pen holders etc.