Thirty-six year old Srabani Baskey is the only graduate in her village with a love for Sohrai wall painting or Sohrai Likhan, the unique Santal tradition of painting on their mud walls in celebration of their harvest festival, Sohrai. Her stylized floral designs are breathtakingly beautiful and reflect the tradition that has prevailed in and around northern Purulia for eons. This is believed to be the oldest tradition among the Santals - in style, composition, and technique.

Srabani started learning the art when she was fourteen years old, observing her mother, elder sister and older neighbours at work. She was born and brought up in a village in Bankura district, bordering Purulia. 

She has been steadfastly adhering to this tradition since then and has continued to do so in her in-law’s home in Purulia. She however does not do this for a living – as Sohrai wall art is a community tradition that is non-commercial.  Unlike urban artists, her walls are her gallery and the spectators, her neighbours and family. This is true of all skilled traditional Sohrai wall artists like her - their unique art is pretty much unknown to the rest of the world. 

Sraboni draws on her memory of past practices mingled with her imagination to create compositions that are deeply embedded with tradition and yet, free flowing, spontaneous and imbued with her personal style. 

Srabani also paints the walls of her neighbours when requested, since all Santal women do not necessarily possess the necessary skills or inclination.  At other times, Srabani performs all the duties of the average Santal village woman, cleaning, cooking and working in the field – cultivating and harvesting their crops. She also goes to pluck sal leaves from the nearby forest early in the morning which she stitches into plates and cups. Like all Santal women during Sohrai, she also repairs her mud walls annually before decorating them. 

Srabani has participated in workshops, organized with the intent of saving this magnificent art, where she has taught other women from the region the traditional motifs, compositions and technique. In fact, she states with pride that, in recent times, she has observed teenaged girls in her village emulating her motifs for their own walls.   

She feels that it is the individual’s passion for the tradition that will keep the art alive, irrespective of background or education - that is, as long as mud walls are not overtaken by bricks and mortar. It is her fervent hope that a recognition of this traditional art will bring forth opportunities that will empower traditional artists like herself to keep their beloved art alive. 

 

Very recently, in an attempt to save their art, Srabani and a small group of traditional Sohrai Likhan artists have endeavored to translate on paper their traditional wall motifs. They have taken the liberty of moving beyond monochromatic tones and adding to their palette, other natural hues.