Wall Painting of Uttarakhand

There are two traditions of wall painting-one for the kitchen and the other for the ritual ceremonial places. Twice in a year the wall are re plastered with a mix of cow-dung and mud. They are then painted red with geru (ochre) and motifs are drawn with fingers, using rice paste. The kitchen walls have motifs of Nata, Chatu and Lakshmi Narayan. The Nata patterns consists of cereal saplings in a row enclosed by a rectangular frameworks done in dots. The motif symbolizes prosperity for the family and unity among kith and kin. The design just structure on raised platform. At the centre is a triangle with a dot. This pattern bears stylistic similarity with the Buddhist architectural structure Chaitya - the hall of meditation. Six months alter the Chatu pattern is replaced by the Lakshmi Narayan Pattern. It consists of two tactiform human figures inside a square framework of dots. On the occasion of domestic ceremonies such as marriage, the outer door-walls are decorated with alternating motifs of bells with conch shells known as Mohhal. The motif symbolizes primal sound during cosmic evolution and carries implication that all elemental sounds and forms are interdependent.