PRADIP MARAWI – GOND ARTIST of MADHYA PRADESH

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Pradip Marawi started   painting on canvas when he was 20. His mother, Kaushalya is the elder   sister of established Gond Pardhan artists Nankusia and Subhash Vyam.   Pradip’s inspiration, however came from Jangarh Singh Shyam, whom he   considers his mentor. Initially, Pradip wanted to take an office job   after he completed his studies. But Jangadh Singh Shyam was convinced of   Pradip’s potential as an artist, as he had seen Pradip’s woodcarvings   at the Art and Craft Camp in Patangarh, held by Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya (IGRMS), Bhopal   in 1997. Sitting under the peepal tree where Thakur Dev was worshipped,   Pradip had carved images of the goddess Astangini Mata and god Badadev   from wood. Pradip feels that the sanctity of the spot had made his   carving so striking that it caught the eye of Jangadh Singh.

In 2001 Pradip   returned to Bhopal. Everything changed when he found out that Jangadh   Singh Shyam was no more. The news came as such a severe blow that for   days he could not concentrate on his work. Two of Jangadh’s paintings   hung on the wall of his rented house – gifts from the artist to the   house owner. The landlord handed Pradip the paintings, gently telling   him to keep them. From then on, the two paintings became Pradip’s   teacher. One, was of a tree on which were perched several birds. The   other depicted a kakbhakora (scarecrow). Pradip hung them on the wall, and   sitting beneath them, he worked on his paintings. He would think of his   village, Gar-ka-Matta, the vast stretches of land, the trees, the   peacocks, the rains, the ponds, and with poster colours, would recreate   these images.

Pradip Marawi’s   painting of the origin of Pardhans  hangs on the wall of the Museum of   Mankind in IGRMS, where he works. Though his journey as an artist began   only 7 years ago, his imaginative use of forms and colours has already   helped him to carve out a place for himself in the competitive world of   contemporary Gond art.