In 2011, when renowned Mithila painting artist Mahasundari Devi was conferred the Padma Shri award, Dulari Devi had no idea what it was all about. Curious, she had asked Mahasundari Devi about it. A resident of Raanti village in Bihar’s Madhubani, 55-year-old Dulari had been working at the house of Mahasundari Devi as a domestic help.

About 10 years later, Dulari Devi has herself been conferred the same award, Padma Shri, for her contribution to Mithila painting, a traditional art form of Madhubani, Darbhanga, Samastipur and other adjoining districts. A member of the Mallah (fishing) community, which falls under the Extremely Backward Caste (EBC), her journey from domestic help to Padma Shri has been tumultuous.

Her family was economically so poor that she could not attend school. Dulari was married off at the age of 12. But she was a free-spirited girl who could not tolerate her dominating husband. She returned home within two years. To support her poor family she started working as domestic help at the home of Mahasundari Devi and Karpoori Devi—both renowned artists of Mithila painting.

She would see them paint and slowly became interested in this art form. “One day, I returned to my thatched house after completing my chores and started drawing birds, fish and trees on the mud-caked floor with a stick dipped in paint. When my mother returned and saw, she scolded me and said that writing on the floor brings misfortune,” recalls Dulari.

Then, there was a painting workshop at Mahasundari Devi’s house where she participated. “I did well there. Mahas-undari Devi and Karpoori Devi came to know that I was very much interested in Mithila painting. So, after my household work, they would teach me how to paint. I would paint till late in the night. Sometimes I would practise early in the morning,” she says. “They (Karpoori Devi and Mahasundari Devi) never discouraged me. Instead, they taught me painting as if I was their student.”

Later, she was enrolled in an institute set up by Gauri Mishra, another artist. There she got formal training in Mithila painting. Earlier, her paintings would fetch just five rupees per piece in an exhibition. But later she rose to fame as she had developed her own style. “My gurus (Karpoori Devi and Mahasundari Devi) told me that I should not imitate other artists but develop my own style.” Her paintings have been exhibited at dozens of art exhibitions around the country and abroad. She is currently teaching Mithila painting at an institute.

Asked what changes the Padma Shri has brought in life, she says, “Not much. It was great to get this prestigious award from the President. I had never expected this even in my dreams. It was an immense pleasure that I got the same award which my guru had got in 2011.”

(This appeared in the print edition as "Art of the Matter")

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