Budget: What's the story behind Sitharaman's Madhubani art saree?
Each year on Budget day, Sitharaman's eye-catching sarees representing different regions of India are discussed as much as income tax cuts. This year is no different
For the past eight years, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s saree on Budget Day has grabbed eyeballs and is discussed as much as the income tax cuts. Every year, the saree she wears to Parliament on this special day gets discussed and analysed.
What’s more, each year, on her part, Sitharaman doesn’t fail to disappoint as she appears clutching her desi 'bahi- khata' pouch containing her digital tablet, wearing distinctive, eye-catching sarees from different regions of India. She has worn tussar silk with kantha work from eastern part of India, Pochampally silk saree and simple Mangalgiri sarees from Andhra.
This year, it is a saree celebrating Madhubani art from Bihar. Her stunning, elegant cream-coloured saree with a gold border stood out with its intricate Madhubani art on the borders. Besides celebrating Bihar’s rich cultural heritage, the saree also has a story attached to it.
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A special gift with a message
This saree is a gift to Sitharaman by an artist, who she had met two months ago at a credit outreach programme at the Mithili Art Institution in Madhubani, Bihar. The artist Dulari Devi, who is well-known for her Madhubani paintings, had gifted the finance minister the saree requesting her to wear the saree on budget day. The finance minister agreed and kept her word.
Reports said that Dulari Devi worked on the saree for over a month. On Bengaluru silk, she has painstakingly hand-painted motifs typical to Madhubani art, fish, water, lotus, betel leaves, and fox nuts. These are symbols deeply rooted in the region's culture.
Is this gesture in any way related to Bihar gearing up for state elections later this year, asked skeptics.
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Who is Dulari Devi?
So, who is Dulari Devi? This 57-year-old artist from Ranti village in Madhubani district was awarded the Padma Shri in 2021 for her contribution to the preservation and promotion of Madhubani painting. Hailing from a fishermen's community, she developed a passion for the art form while working for Karpoori Devi, an accomplished Madhubani painter.
Though she had a tough life since she was abandoned by her husband at 16, and even lost her child, Dulari Devi overcame her personal challenges and poured all her energies into her art.
Her paintings also spread awareness of important social issues like child marriage, AIDS, and female foeticide. She has displayed her art in exhibitions across India.
She has also trained more than 1,000 students to ensure that the traditional art form thrives in the future.