Pankh Bengali Full Movie Free Download
Tanesha Prately
A merchant from the East India Company rushes into his quarters, unable to bear the sweltering heat of India. It had been a few years since he had been stationed here, and there was still so much he was unfamiliar with. While he had slowly adapted to spicy food and alien language, the hot summers of India continued to bother him. Electricity was a novelty and the usual method of cooling down was either to sit under the shade of a tree or to use the Indian hand held fans, pankha. The merchant marveled at the small yet ingenious device that had kept him company on long summer days. With the emergence of electric fans, handheld pankhas have become showpieces in museums with few communities in India handcrafting these beautiful pieces and even fewer using them regularly.
In India, literary mentions of pankhas date back to the Mahabharat and Ramayan. The great poet Valmiki wrote about a fan he once crafted for Lord Ram. The fan shone like a crescent moon in a dim night and it was decked with jewels of vibrant colours. Its handle was sturdy and magnificent looking too.
The East India Company helped establish trade routes from India to the rest of Europe, and pankhas became one of the most significant distributed cultural items. They were an exotic and stylish symbol of wealth and class. Although there was substantial commonality in its use across India, different villages and towns developed varieties of traditional pankhas. Each place developed pankhas with a distinct material or diversity of intricate designs that set them apart from each other. Bamboo, cane, palm leaf, silk, brass, leather, and silver pankhas with decorative beads and stones were used depending on geographies, cultures, religious rituals, social protocols, and class structures.
In modern times, the demand for hand-operated fans has decreased. They have been replaced by electrical fans and air conditioners and their use has been restricted to decorative purposes. Pankhas have become traditional craft items in some parts of rural India. The structure of each fan resembles the core of the culture of the region that crafts the pankha. For instance, the applique hand fan of Rajasthan is an antique pankha made of pieces of fabric in different shapes and patterns sewn to another cloth with the use of ornamental needlework. Quite similar to this type of pankha is the Satin Ceiling fan from the same region. Usually used in royal households, especially in medieval India with the help of a pankhawala pulling the device, this pankha is a hand-pulled ceiling fan adorned with silk and satin frills. Furthermore, the Zardozi hand fan of Rajasthan differs in its use of glittering ornate and encrusted gold thread work. In Rajasthan, temple hand fans are popular too. These are made by engraving brass and have a long handle. The painted hand fan, a cardboard pankha with various images, is usually offered to gods, particularly Krishna.
West Bengal is recognized for its Sola Pith and Palm Leaf hand fans. Artisans in Bengal make delicate pankhas from the beautiful milky-white sponge wood of the Sola tree popularly used for Devi worship. The Palm Leaf hand fans are locally referred to as Tal Patar Pankha. They are easy to carry and are perpetually kept as an article of possession in Bengali households.
Many tribes in India have adopted this handicraft to make their own versions of the handheld fan. Materials such as grass and metal are embedded into the fans using bamboo sticks and grass. Even cane and palm leaves are used, with silk and brass being reserved for antique pieces of these hand fans and peacock feathers for more aesthetically pleasing adorned hand fans. The use of geometrical patterns and the white ink and red background combinations help the tribes create multiple beautifully designed Pankhas.
Indian handicrafts have always been renowned for their exquisite beauty and rich cultural heritage. The visionary perspective on the future of this industry offers a refreshing outlook. With advancements in technology and a growing focus on sustainability, the possibilities are endless. This commentary opens our eyes to the potential of blending traditional craftsmanship with innovation, creating a thriving ecosystem where artisans can showcase their skills on a global platform. It ignites hope for a future where Indian handicrafts continue to captivate the world and contribute to the preservation of our cultural legacy.
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