Step into the vibrant world of Banaras Lit Fest 2025, where artists and painters capture the essence of Kashi on canvas. From traditional depictions of the ghats to modern interpretations of Banaras’ timeless spirit, these artists dominated the festival with their mesmerizing artworks. Watch as they bring the city’s rich heritage, culture, and emotions to life through their paintings
#BanarasLitFest #BLF2025 #BanarasArt #IndianArtists #KashiOnCanvas #BanarasCulture #ArtFestival #PaintingBanaras #Varanasi #IndianHeritage
~HT.318~PR.282~PR.274~ED.100~GR.124~
#BanarasLitFest #BLF2025 #BanarasArt #IndianArtists #KashiOnCanvas #BanarasCulture #ArtFestival #PaintingBanaras #Varanasi #IndianHeritage
~HT.318~PR.282~PR.274~ED.100~GR.124~
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00:00🎵
00:29This is the 3rd edition of Banaras Literature Fest.
00:32And the kind of pictures, the kind of colours on the canvas that you are seeing,
00:36the pictures that you are seeing, the paintings that you are seeing,
00:38the credit goes to these two gentlemen who are standing here with us.
00:43Rajesh Singh ji and with him is our Shalini ji.
00:47You are a student of Fine Arts.
00:49What Rajesh ji and the rest of the people have managed here,
00:52that also gives the class of Management MBA.
00:54And all the people here, all the beautiful pictures,
00:57this is a good amalgamation for you.
00:59Absolutely Sir.
01:00I was from Fine Arts, when I saw that all the disciplines have been added
01:04and the Arts have been left out,
01:07so I got this discipline kept.
01:09And after that, I got a very good response for it.
01:12All my teachers cooperated with me for this.
01:15And last year, our program was on a small level,
01:19it was very appreciated.
01:21But this year, I invited about 50 artists here for the camp.
01:26So, 50 artists have done a live painting here,
01:30which has been displayed.
01:32Yes.
01:33So, we found a lot of big names,
01:37and I personally told them that Sir, you come and request them.
01:40They all welcomed me.
01:42The paintings of folk art that you must have seen earlier,
01:45the paintings on the walls,
01:47they used to be made there, on Madhubani.
01:49I come from Mithila.
01:50From Mithila.
01:52Rani Jha has made this painting with a lot of hard work in two days.
01:56Another artist, Padmini Mehta is there with us at the Banaras Lit Fest.
02:00Padmini ji, welcome to India.
02:02You have made this painting.
02:05A very accurate choice of color.
02:07Please explain, what does it depict?
02:09Actually, I have named this painting as Dharohar.
02:13So, we consider Dharohar to be a very precious thing,
02:16whether it is an object, a thought or a material.
02:20I am very serious about the environment here.
02:23There is greenery, environment,
02:25I am very devoted to nature.
02:27That is one thing,
02:28and we were camping behind the mango trees.
02:32So, that is one thing.
02:33I have connected that to our Banaras,
02:36for the Bhaats.
02:37That is a culture,
02:39and a part of history and mythology.
02:41Plus, we were sitting in the Taj Hotel.
02:43So, taking a little bit of that,
02:45and if we talk about the Taj,
02:46then Tata Group.
02:47And Tata, like everyone else,
02:49for us,
02:50Tata, Jabshet,
02:52how much respect we have for them.
02:54Tata is the name of that group, our India.
02:56So, combining all these three things,
02:58these three are Dharohar.
03:00My name is Tara Kumari,
03:02and I have been here in Banaras for four years.
03:04And the passion to come here,
03:08has settled somewhere in my veins.
03:10And through my painting,
03:11I am trying to show the same thing here.
03:14The sun here,
03:18in the month of Sujata,
03:19two sadhus are sitting here,
03:21and they are chatting and enjoying the sun.
03:24And that is what we are trying to show here.
03:26We are trying to show the feelings of those people here.
03:29It looks like two friends are sitting here.
03:31What are they talking about?
03:32What do you think about the artist?
03:34They must be thinking about something.
03:36They must be talking about their past.
03:38They must be talking about their family.
03:41It looks like,
03:42if you pay attention to this,
03:44you are the artist and he is the painter.
03:46I think they are two friends.
03:48One of them is saying that
03:49the third one will also come.
03:50And they are waiting for him.
03:52Yes.
03:52Waiting for Godo.
03:53There is a book in English,
03:55in which they are waiting for Godo.
03:57He never comes.
03:59Yes, tell us more.
04:00And the culture here,
04:01there is an umbrella,
04:02but it has been deliberately put aside.
04:05So that we can feel the sun better.
04:07The weather is less.
04:08So that we can feel the sun better,
04:10on the banks of the Ganga.
04:11It is from the river Asi Ghat.
04:13We have composed it ourselves.
04:16Yes.
04:17And we thought that
04:18it should look like an ancient Kashi.
04:23The Kashi that we see here,
04:25is the culture of this place.
04:27If you look at it from a distance,
04:29you will understand
04:31where I am looking at.
04:33If you look at this gallery from here,
04:37how people have come here
04:40to see these paintings.
04:42From that you can understand
04:44that this confluence of art,
04:48confluence of literature,
04:50and the beauty,
04:51the hues of the colors,
04:52is something that defines.
04:54Look at this one.
04:55All shades of the colors here,
04:57depicting a rainbow culture.
05:00Lots of them,
05:01what we call in poetry,
05:03free verse.
05:04We have seen here,
05:06the same being depicted here.
05:08Babas, Sadhus and Sons,
05:09the land.
05:10There you see once again,
05:11a Madmast Baba,
05:15responding,
05:17underwater.
05:19If we talk about modernity,
05:21in your paintings,
05:22we have seen the pictures
05:23for which Banaras
05:24has been known for centuries.
05:25If we talk about a touch of modernity,
05:27of the Banaras canvas,
05:29what has started to creep in
05:31over the ages?
05:33A lot of techniques have changed.
05:35It is not like that,
05:36Sadhu Ghat is still going on.
05:38It is a realistic part of Banaras.
05:40We cannot finish it.
05:43The artists here,
05:45or the characteristics of a place,
05:47are still there.
05:49Along with that,
05:50the children have different ideas,
05:52different techniques,
05:54photography,
05:56graphic art,
05:58along with that,
06:00there are some changes,
06:02changes in color.
06:04According to you,
06:05what is changing in Banaras,
06:06when it comes to drawing on canvas?
06:08There are some changes,
06:10which used to be
06:12in the past.
06:14Now, there are some changes.
06:16There is modernity.
06:18The Sadhu Ghats have also
06:20become more advanced.
06:22According to me,
06:24what we used to do before,
06:26on-spot painting,
06:28the old buildings are no more.
06:30Instead, there is color.
06:32Red, yellow,
06:34even the boat,
06:36that has also been given color.
06:38Now, all that is on canvas.
06:40Just like how
06:42our Ghats have changed,
06:44the canvas has also changed.
06:46Absolutely.
06:47Dr. Shalini,
06:48in your pictures,
06:49we saw a man
06:51painting on Sadhu Ghats.
06:52Block painting,
06:54less crowd.
06:56Do you think,
06:57as Banaras is getting older,
06:59the crowd is becoming a concern?
07:02Absolutely, sir.
07:03When I saw Banaras,
07:05when I was a kid,
07:07I used to see the same atmosphere
07:09that I have shown in my paintings.
07:11Yes.
07:12In the morning,
07:13there used to be a couple of people
07:15who used to take a dip in the Ganga.
07:17And there used to be a couple of people
07:19who used to take a bath.
07:21This was not Banaras.
07:23Now, I think,
07:25if you see Banaras,
07:27you will see less of the architect,
07:29less of the beauty,
07:31but more of the public.
07:33Mr. Rajesh,
07:34I will take the last question from you.
07:35The changing Banaras
07:36and the changing art style,
07:38what do you think,
07:39are they keeping pace with each other?
07:41Is art lagging behind
07:42and the city moving ahead?
07:43Or vice versa?
07:44Is art moving ahead
07:45and the city lagging behind?
07:48There have definitely been some changes.
07:51Changes,
07:52like AI,
07:53which you are seeing.
07:54AI,
07:55okay,
07:56this is a very strange name.
07:57Art.
07:58Even in art,
07:59in modern art,
08:01there is a work,
08:03where an artist
08:05is making a painting
08:07sitting on the bank of the river.
08:09It goes on the media,
08:11on Google.
08:12Okay.
08:13Some AI searches for it,
08:15on the bank of the river.
08:17So, that painting
08:18comes on the bank of the river.
08:20So, somewhere,
08:21our artists,
08:22who have worked so hard
08:24to make that painting,
08:26and after AI came,
08:28their importance,
08:30or their creativity,
08:32their hard work,
08:34we should say it in a straight language,
08:36their hard work,
08:37has made a difference.
08:39Okay.
08:40So, the beauty
08:41of their own creation,
08:42and after AI came,
08:43in the market,
08:44whoever searches for it,
08:45now,
08:46the hotels,
08:48or the paintings lovers,
08:50who want to put a painting
08:51in their dining room,
08:53so, somewhere,
08:54the completion,
08:55if a realistic artist
08:57has made that painting,
08:59we will see its value,
09:00we will comprehend it,
09:01if it is AI's,
09:02we will search for it.
09:04So, somewhere,
09:05you will see,
09:06our artists,
09:07with them,
09:08injustice.
09:09Injustice.
09:10Okay,
09:11thank you very much
09:12for this freewheel talk.
09:13I feel that,
09:14in Banaras,
09:15for many eras,
09:16for many histories,
09:17art is a thing,
09:19which I feel,
09:20defines this place too.
09:22And,
09:23like,
09:24a famous lyricist,
09:26and poet,
09:27Nilesh Mishra,
09:28has said that,
09:29Banaras is also a person,
09:30a human being,
09:31and,
09:32the hands,
09:33the smiling faces,
09:34which put it on the canvas,
09:36and Rajesh ji's guidance,
09:38I feel,
09:39somewhere,
09:40it takes it,
09:41to its right end.
09:42Thanks for watching,
09:43this special broadcast,
09:44on One India,
09:45from,
09:46the,
09:47holy city of,
09:48Varanasi.