International Journal For Multidisciplinary Research

E-ISSN: 2582-2160   •   Impact Factor: 9.24

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Kalighat Pat Painting in Colonial Kolkata: Urban Transformation, Social Critique, and Museumisation

Author(s) Ms. Chandrama Paul
Country India
Abstract The study focuses on the emergence, transformation and decline of Kalighat Pat paintings within the confines of the socio-cultural and economic context of colonial Kolkata. Originating from the migration of rural artists to the urban surroundings of Kalighat temple, this art form evolved from a narrative, performative folk tradition into a market-based visual study inspired by Colonial modernity, urbanisation and expanding consumer culture. The paper explores how Kalighat paintings stood between the contrast of tradition and change through shifts in material, techniques and content to depictions of urban life, particularly through motifs such as the Babu and Bibi.
The study highlights how colonial influence, technological change, and mass reproduction led to the marginalisation of the practice, gradually transforming it into a museumised form detached from its community. The study argues that the decline of the tradition not only reflects economic and technological shifts but also the dynamics of cultural validation, in which elites shape the recognition of vernacular art forms. The paper concludes by emphasising the need for context-sensitive approaches to cultural preservation that account for both the material and social life of traditional art practices.
Keywords Kalighat painting, Patachitra, Folk art, Colonial modernity, Urbanisation, Babu-Bibi, Visual culture, Museumisation, Subaltern expression, Cultural identity, Kolkata, Vernacular art.
Field Arts
Published In Volume 8, Issue 3, May-June 2026
Published On 2026-06-04
DOI https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2026.v08i03.80335
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CrossRef DOI prefix of IJFMR is 10.36948/ijfmr

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