Keeping the flickering flame of Gond art alive

A childhood steeped in stories and bearing witness to the rhythms of forest and community beliefs, Dwarka Prasate has been carrying forward the tradition of Gond art with the same dedication he started with. He is aware that the younger generation in his village including his own two kids are not willing to learn it, leave aside take forward the legacy. But that doesn't deter him from making his own efforts to extend the art form and take it to the world. One example of that was when Dwarka's works, his paintings of snake motifs done in typical Gond style, with rhythmic line patterns and details, featured at the global fashion giant Bvlgari's Serpenti Infinito exhibit, a travelling exhibition (after Shanghai, Seoul) and opened in India at the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC), Mumbai, earlier in October this year.

"I had no clue about Bvlgari and what they do. I was told that they make very expensive things and their snake watch sells for lakhs," shared Dwarka Paraste, with surprising humility that comes from self-awareness and nothing else. "I am an artist and when I was told to create art with snake as the central theme, I did that. But when my painting featured in that exhibit and received global appreciation, of course, I was happy. It took me almost two months to create that painting," he says.

In the city, invited by Timeless Amritsar for an art workshop, Dwarka Paraste seemed more focused on guiding his apprentices in colour compositions and lines than an interview. "I try to teach the Gond style of art to new artists I meet, as unfortunately, not many from our community now want to pursue it. They want to just do something else, even work as labourers rather than pursue Gond art. I tell them now that as a Gond artist, one can earn a living with dignity," he said. And it is important, especially for his community.

Hailing from Garakamatta village in Dindori district of Madhya Pradesh, Dwarka Paraste says that he learnt Gond art from his mama (maternal uncle). "No one in my family was an artist, though many families in the nearby Pattangarh village do Gond art. My mama taught me but I did not take it up seriously. I worked as a labourer for many years but I kept drawing and improving. In 2008, an Italian filmmaker, who was making a documentary on tribal Indian arts, visited our village and I showed him my works. He told me that I was good and should display my works. But I did not have money to do that," said Dwarka Paraste. While he was aware of the internationally known household names in Indian Gond art like Bhajju Shyam or Jangarh Singh Shyam, he wanted to start somewhere. "I started going for the state sponsored art fairs, participated in government festivals and exhibitions. Some of my works made it to the Government of Madhya Pradesh's museums," he said. But it was Nita Ambani's visit to Bhopal seven years back, that changed his life.

"She saw my work at the Mahasangrahalaya in Bhopal. Later, I received a call from her team. Two years back, my paintings were part of an exhibition at NMAAC, Mumbai, where Anant Ambani and Gauri Khan bought my works," he said brimming with pride and hope.

While he now mostly travels to conduct Gond art workshop domestically, he shared his concern over the diminishing interest of the new generation in learning Gond art. "Everyone now wants to build a pucca home, do a job in city and live life differently. But there are elder artists, whose works are famous globally and are respected for what they do," he said. Because Gond art is traditionally communal and rooted in local contexts, "significance" is not just about fame, but also about fidelity to tradition, innovation and community impact — in all of these, he appears to be making meaningful contributions, despite the odds.

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