ARTIST BIOGRAPHY: Pulaba Mandal

Pulaba Mandal

How old am I? Whatever you think: I was married when I was around sixteen and my eldest son is six. My parents never sent me to school because they were poor. After they had six girls they had two boys who were sent to school till class 3. So I worked for neighbors, putting mud on houses during Deepawali, or cutting grass. When I was thirteen or fourteen neighbors were going from place to place cutting rice, corn and grass. I packed rice, lentils, salt and took enough money for a bus fare to work in other places for one or two weeks.

I learned to make designs on houses from my mother. People would say, look at how her daughters can make designs. I saw my mother and sister do it, then I did it. We used lime and colors bought from the market which we mixed with milk. Now I paint just like I did on the walls of my house when I was first asked to join the center. I make elephants, horses, people, and wedding palanquins.

When I was married I went in a palanquin to my husband's house. I cried and couldn't eat. In my village I'd never had to cover my head but I always had to keep covered in front of my in-laws. Then for two years I wasn't given enough food because my father-in-law said my husband didn't work. So I'd meet my mother in the bazaar and she'd hand me salt, a kilo of rice which lasted two nights, and some kerosene. Then I grew angry with my husband and told him if my mother died we could never survive. So he began to work a little in the fields. Then I started work at the center and now he stays home and watches our three children.

In my designs I often make small triangles and two short double lines which make the image look nicer. My paintings often show rural people, vegetables and animals. Lately I like making up designs of peacocks and other birds--these designs come out of my head.

Elephant design: The women in my pictures dress as women used to, in saris with coins attached. They also smoke hookahs like my mother-in-law does. The elephant wears a bell. Years ago there were elephants that passed on the road. You can't hear an elephant when it walks so they wore bells so you could hear them coming.