Osian's Auction Catalogue The Masterpieces Series | March 2010

92 51 C hittaproSad (1915 – 1978) War Series Brush and ink on paper, 1946 S/d in English ‘Chittaprosad Nov. 46’ l.r. 15.5 x 22.7 in (39.5 x 57.6 cm) Provenance THE OSIAN’S COLLECTION. Acquired from the Delhi Art Gallery who in turn acquired it from the artist’s family. INR 400,000 – 600,000 US$ 8,330 – 12,500 The Bangladesh Liberation War was an armed battle pitting West Pakistan against East Pakistan (now Bangladesh) and India. The Bangladesh Liberation War claimed the lives of three million people who were slaughtered by the Pakistani military and local collaborators. Thousands of women were raped; villages and towns were burned to ashes. Dead bodies were scattered everywhere, even floating in every river. Every family had their own stories of pathos. This war deeply shook many artists and other members of the intelligentsia. Chittaprosad’s artistic sensibility contributed significantly towards the protests and propaganda of the Mukti Bahini . Though Chittaprosad had no formal training in art, his works voiced the suffering of the working class and their struggles. As a member of the Communist Party of India till 1949, he illustrated their publications ‘People’s War’, People’s Age’ and other propaganda. He supported the cause of the Telengana armed struggle of 1946-48 against the Nizam’s tyranny, and was also associated with the Indian People’s Theatre Association. Post-independence, his art took on a different dimension – social issues of oppression gave way to more playful works, absorbing the folk tales of Bengal, illustrating children’s books. He got intimately involved with the puppet theatre. With very few exhibitions to his credit, his works demand a well-deserved attention and focus, given that the common man and his needs always remained an important aspect of his work throughout his lifetime.