The people of Terai, an ethnic minority in southern Nepal, are discriminated against by Pahadi, or the hill people, the majority ethnic group in Nepal, because of their socio-cultural, linguistic and physical affinity with the communities living immediately on the other side of the border in India. The Mithila women of Terai face the additional challenge of gender discrimination. Cultural taboos and norms, a lack of knowledge of their rights, unequal access to resources and feelings of incompetence create reluctance in Mithila women to engage in political and economic activities. In this patriarchal society, decision making power, be it economic, political or familial, resides with men. The lower status of women within the society becomes apparent by the preference of male progeny over female, the dowry system, extremely low literacy rate and life expectancy among women, high maternal mortality rate, and a high percentage of anemic women. Moreover, the ongoing semi-armed conflict, which began as an offshoot of the Maoist revolution, and the ethnic tension between people of the hill region and Terai region, have made the lives of Mithila women more difficult.
Despite lagging behind economically and politically, the Mithila region is full of cultural treasures. One such treasure is Mithila Art, which is practiced by Mithila women of all castes and communities of the region. They typically make temporary paintings depicting the relationship between nature, culture and the human psyche on walls of their mud houses. The traditional method uses temporary paints made of rice, mud and plant extracts that are applied with their fingers. To produce paintings that can be sold to tourists, the Mithila women need training in the use of permanent paints, paintbrushes, paper and fabric. Selling these Mithila paintings will not only improve the economic condition of the women but also promote awareness of Mithila culture throughout Nepal and help to defuse the ethnic tension in the Terai region.
Project goals:
In an Economic Development class, I researched the impact of sweatshops on Bangladeshi women and learned that economic gain from these jobs enabled women to participate more actively in the decision making process in their families and decide for themselves about their age of marriage, marriage partners and education. Based on this research, the main goal of my “Painting a Peaceful Present” project is to provide economic empowerment to the local Mithila women by establishing a Mithila Art Institute in my home village of Halkhori, where they can create and sell their own art. This will make the women part of the productive economy and decrease gender disparity, which will eventually give them decision making power in other aspects of social and family life. Moreover, the economic revenue from the institute will enable the women to support their poverty stricken families. They will be able to afford better health care, clean drinking water, nutritious food, and education for their children. Furthermore, the art institute will serve as a platform for team building, planning, skill learning, gender awareness and productive engagement for these women. The economic gain will help run the institute in the long run and give a solid basis for the institute to be self-sustainable. Also, the institute could engage more women in the future, spreading the benefits to an even larger population.
Mithila Art has just started to gain popularity within Nepal and abroad. This opportunity can be used to promote Mithila culture, which still remains unknown in other parts of Nepal and is often discriminated against. Awareness about Mithila culture will promote cultural understanding and tolerance among the hill people which can help reduce the ethnic tension and initiate the peace process. Therefore, this project aims to promote peace by advancing cultural awareness and tolerance through art and, at the same time, provide economic and social gains for Mithila women.
Methodology:
I will buy the required land for the “Painting a Peaceful Present” project with a working space of three rooms from a local landlord, Mr Jeevnath Pandey, in the Halkhori area that is accessible for all trainees. I will then hire five professional artists from the Mithila Women’s Art and Craft Center in Janakpur, which is two hours away by bus. The artists, who will train the local women in the use of materials to produce paintings for tourists, will be provided with lodging and food at the institute throughout the training period. The professional artists will help me conduct a two day selection camp for all the interested candidates from the Halkhori Village Development Committee (VDC) area. In the camp, my team will test the women on their basic Mithila art skills and will require them to fill out questionnaires regarding their economic and family background. My team will then select twenty women on the basis of need and skill. Next, in order to establish the institution on a solid ground, I will collaborate with the local non government organization (NGO), Public Development Organization (PDO), and register the art institute as an NGO. The PDO will help with drafting the constitution, advising and other legal procedures involved. I will engage the selected women in formulating and planning the institute’s constitution so that they have a sense of ownership. Halkhori VDC, the local governing body, has expressed its support for this project (please see attached letters of support).
The training process will last for a period of two months and will enable the women to develop their art skills to a professional level. I will buy the training materials such as fabric, paper, paints and paint brushes from local market in Janakpur. A typical training day will be of five and half hours beginning at noon, since the women often cook for their family and finish up their morning chores by then. The professional artists will conduct intensive training on art skills for four hours followed by a half an hour tea and snack break. This provision of snack will definitely encourage the trainees to join and continue with the training. After the break, I will conduct an hour long group meeting for the women to build leadership skills. Biodiversity Sector Programme for Siwalik and Terai (BISEP-ST), a support program of the Ministry of Forest and Soil Conservation which operates locally, has agreed to provide two professional management trainers, who will conduct managerial training sessions focusing on communication, accounting and administrative skills for the women during the group meeting. I will also conduct field trips to Mithila art centers such as Janakpur Handicraft Center, Janakpur Women’s Development Center and Mithila Women’s Art and Craft Center for all the trainees so that they can observe and learn from established institutes.
Based on my consultation with the professional artists, the paintings of the first two months will not be saleable, but by the end of the second month and every month after that, each artist will be producing one saleable painting per day for a total of about six hundred paintings. Depending on the size, quality and complexity, the cost price of paintings will range from three to five dollars each while their selling price will range from six to twenty dollars each. By the end of the third month, I expect to sell about two hundred and fifty paintings which will bring in approximately fifteen hundred dollars even if each painting sells at the lowest price. This amount will be enough to buy materials for the fourth month, leaving three hundred dollars extra. By the end of the fourth month, if the institute sells two hundred and fifty more paintings, the institute will still be making a net profit of three hundred dollar. Monthly profits will be divided among the artists, giving each artist fifteen dollars a month, which is a substantial amount for a Mithila woman. This way by the end of the third month, the institute will be able to run on its own while also making money for the involved women artists.
Because the target village is not on the tourist track, I have been in contact with craft merchants in the high tourist traffic cities of Janakpur, Pokhara and Kathmandu, who have offered to buy the paintings. I have already arranged to exhibit the paintings at Sakalbhawan Kanya Higher Secondary School in Janakpur, the Institute of Forestry in Pokhara, and Little Angels’ School, one of the largest private schools in Kathmandu. Each exhibition will feature the paintings and on-site display of painting methods by five of the trained women to create both awareness of and a market for Mithila art. I will also mobilize the local press and radio stations in Janakpur, Pokhara and Kathmandu for marketing and advertising purposes. I have friends working for radio stations who have agreed to advertize my project for free. The institute itself will function as an outlet for selling the artwork. Additionally, I will be travelling around other cities to expand the market.
My Experience:
As a member of Halkhori village, I organized an adult literacy program with the PDO. I made contacts with the professionals in and around the target community through this work experience. I also worked as an assistant accountant in the UK and gained valuable money management skills, which will equip me to build a strong foundation for the art institute. In addition, as one of the few in the area with a strong educational background, I have been fortunate to gain the respect and goodwill of the local community, which will support the successful execution of the “Painting a Peaceful Present” project.
The southern plain belt of Nepal that borders India.
