Puri Woman Turns Pattachitra into Livelihood for 15 Women, Paints Story Of Self-Reliance

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Pipili: Raghurajpur has long been synonymous with Odisha’s famed Pattachitra. But the art is no longer confined to the heritage village.

In Chhanaghara, a nondescript village under Rathpurusottampur panchayat in Puri’s Pipili block, a house has turned into a thriving Pattachitra workshop, and its driving force is  Rashmita Das.

From dawn to dusk, the house buzzes with activity. While some women prepare the patta, others draw intricate outlines and fill them with natural colours.

About 15 young women work here, transforming mythology onto canvas.

For these women, the brush is more than an artistic tool. It is a means of financial independence. Juggling household duties with craft, they now earn Rs 5,000 to Rs 15,000 a month, painting images of Lord Jagannath and tales from the puranas.

Rashmita’s own journey with the art began far from Chhanaghara. A native of Baghasahi in Satyabadi block, her fascination for Pattachitra took her to Raghurajpur, where she trained under Guru Sushant Maharana and mastered the traditional techniques, from natural dye preparation to fine line work.

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After her marriage to Pradeep Das of Dasasahi in Chhanaghara in 2015, family responsibilities grew, but her passion stayed. Encouraged by her in-laws, she resumed work from her home in 2017.What started as a one-woman effort soon drew attention. Neighbouring village girls came knocking – some curious to learn, others looking for work.

Rashmita trained them, and gradually her small initiative grew into a collective enterprise.

Today, an art form that she carried from Raghurajpur is not only sustaining her family but has created a new livelihood avenue for more than a dozen rural women, proving that when tradition meets entrepreneurship, it can paint a picture of self-reliance.

Watch the video here:

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