Swami Vivekananda had said to Sister Nivedita, “In every corner of India there exists numerous indigenous art forms hidden under sands of time. Search for them as desperately as a mother would be looking for her lost child. Don’t stop until you find them and showcase them for the world to see."

This became a mantra for Anita Bose.

It built in her an ‘eager desperation’ to seek out the unsung artisans and their contributions to indigenous arts and crafts of India.

She seriously took  to educating herself and, in the process, she emerged as a successful artist and a researcher with an adventurous heart.

The book is the culmination of Bose's two decades of nurturing her creative pursuits.

The book launch held at the Ramkrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Golpark, was attended by Swami Suparnananda, Secretary, Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Golpark; Superintendent of Bhubaneswar State Museum, Dr. Jayanti Rath; New York based  author, Professor Jael Silliman; President’s Award winning patachitrakar, Sridhar Maharana;  and the author herself.

Both the Bengali and the English editions were release at the function.

'Patachitra of Odisha and Jagannath Culture' is an exhaustive chronicling of the origin of patachitra of Odisha, the community of chitrakars, the distinct artists’ group and their divisions as per the Jagannath culture and the consequent distinctive forms of  patachitra, the tales of patachitra related to Jagannath temple, the thematic variations of patachitra, the impact of scriptures and contemporary customs on the patachitra and patachitrakars of Raghurajpur, the patachitras of Raghurajpur and other interesting topics related to patachitra.

She also talks about Jagannath culture.

Anga, Banga and Kalinga came together in a geographical union to define the boundaries of eastern India’s culture. Within these boundaries lies the essence of the divine influence— the Jagannatha Culture.

Bose has travelled extensively across India and Southeast Asia for researching and learning about the native art forms.

Her studies included the influence of Indian art and Hinduism on Southeast Asian Countries.

From 2013 onwards, her articles on this subject have been published in magazines such as Udbhodhan, Bali Jyotih, Sala and others both in India and in Bali.

The book,'Patachitra of Odisha and Jagannath Culture', attempts to bring to the notice of the masses, the complicated form of historical art. In this book, she pens down a detailed analysis of the Patachitra that takes place as we trace the beginnings from the ancient periods to its contemporary form in the modern day.

Anita Bose's passion for art led her to learn the finer nuances directly from various artists.

She is a volunteer guide of National Museum Bangkok and a freelance researcher on ancient Indian art and culture.

Her research works include, Patachitra of Raghurajpur and their Artisans Life, 2012, Puranas Pancham Veda, 2013, and Ramayani Civilization and its Influence Outside India, 2017.

(By Arundhati Gupta)