MP’s Padma awardee came to Bhopal in ’80s hoping to earn ₹6 daily as labourer

Bhuri Bai’s paintings are mostly inspired by real-life incidents of Bhil tribe and displayed in the galleries of six countries

Published on: Jan 26, 2021, 15:50:22 IST

By Shruti Tomar

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Bhuri Bai, 52, was working as a labourer at a construction site in Bhopal in the 1980s when renowned painter Jagdish Swaminathan came to know she was from the Bhil tribe and asked her to paint the community’s ritualistic painting –Pithora--on a canvas. She refused to do so as she had never seen a canvas and colours before. “But I painted on stones and Swaminathan gave me ₹10,” she said. Bai said this is how her journey as an artist began when she was around 14. Over the years, she has promoted the ritualistic paintings and has now been conferred with Padma Shri, the country’s fourth-highest civilian award, for it.

Also read | Tamil Nadu’s Padma awardees include Balasubrahmanyam

“Colours and traditional art of my community always enthralled me. I learnt traditional painting in my village in Jhabua when I was just 7 or 8-year-old. The villagers used to make colours from plants and clays to paint the walls and roof of mud houses. It was a very tough task, but they used to do it with ease because more than a tradition, paintings are an important aspect of our lives,” said Bai. She added she was lucky to get canvas, colours and brush to paint.

Bai’s paintings are mostly inspired by real-life incidents of Bhil tribe and displayed in the galleries of six countries. She teaches the art form to keep it alive. Bhai said she came to Bhopal hoping to earn ₹6 per day just to survive with her husband. “I never thought of becoming an artist. Even, I did not know the meaning of an artist.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Shruti Tomar
I have spent over a decade chronicling Madhya Pradesh’s political and social landscape, covering politics, investigative journalism, crime, human interest, and government policy, blending sharp insight with ground‑level depth. I have closely tracked three assembly elections, three Lok Sabha elections, leadership transitions in MP while exposing governance lapses, tender irregularities, and flawed policy rollouts. My reports have revealed gaps in the Cheetah project, irregularities in medical education, rigging in recruitment exams, and loopholes in policy implementation. In crime reporting, I have moved beyond FIRs to map systemic patterns — from organised crime networks and gender‑based violence to custodial accountability — balancing urgency with sensitivity. My journalism is defined by a commitment to human interest. I have profiled the marginalised Bancchda community, documented atrocities against tribal groups, and highlighted efforts to preserve their culture through heritage liquor and revival of spiritual practices. I have reported on farmers struggling with failed MSP promises, giving voice to those often reduced to statistics in policy files. Passionate about field reporting, I have reported on rampant sand mining in Chambal and Narmada, pharmaceutical companies supplying medicines under altered names, the dire condition of schools and colleges, the plight of commercial sex workers, and skewed sex ratios in specific districts. Beyond deadlines, and as HT’s state correspondent and assistant editor in Madhya Pradesh, I engage with ministers, farmers, students, and activists, believing the best policy stories begin with a single human voice. A postgraduate in Journalism and Mass Communication, I also hold a diploma in sports journalism.Read More

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