चित्रसूत्र
Chitrasutra
A hand-painted piece of India, carried into your home. There's a flute playing softly in the background, if you'd like it.
You can change this any time from the corner of the screen.
State 01 · Odisha · Puri district
Pattachitra is cloth painting from the villages around Puri, made on a patta the artist builds himself: old cotton saree layers pasted together with tamarind seed glue, coated, dried in the sun and rubbed smooth with a stone. Then the drawing, the colour, the fine white line, and last of all the black outline that holds it together. The stories are almost always Jagannath, and almost always Krishna.
Filmed on the way to Konark · June 2025
One clip off my phone, walking. Nobody set this up for the camera — the paintings outside the door are just stock, and the wall behind them was painted by the family who live there.
How Odisha happened
In June 2025 I drove out towards Konark with my father, to see the Sun Temple the way you are supposed to see it — early, before the heat sets in. On the way we stopped at a village because the walls looked strange from the road.
They weren't strange. They were painted. Radha and Krishna on the outside wall of a house, lotus borders climbing the verandah steps, wooden birds and dolls hanging in the doorway to dry. Inside, a man sat cross-legged finishing a border no wider than my thumb. He had been on that border for eleven days.
The whole village does this — fathers, sons, wives, all of them — on cloth they make themselves from old sarees and tamarind glue. And some of them were selling a month of that work for the price of a taxi to the airport.
Chitrasutra is the promise I made on the drive back: give these families a shopfront the size of the internet. They paint. We photograph, write, pack and ship. The artist sets the price and the artist signs the work.
— Founder, Chitrasutra
Bhubaneswar & Puri, June 2025
What the colour is made of
A traditional Pattachitra palette is small on purpose. Everything you see on these paintings is mixed from a handful of mineral, shell and soot colours — which is exactly why a hundred-year-old patta and a new one look like relatives.
The vermilion that runs through every border and every chariot. If a patta has one loud colour, this is it.
Ornament, jewellery, crowns, and the warm glow that sits behind a deity's face.
Ground from conch shell. Every fine white line — the dots, the jaali, the folds of a sari — comes out of this pot.
Lamp soot. Used for the ground of a night scene and for the final outline that pulls the whole painting together.
Indigo blue for Krishna's skin and the sky; leaf green for the trees that frame nearly every scene.
Some workshops now mix traditional pigments with modern poster and acrylic colours, which last differently. Ask us before you order and we will tell you exactly what your artist uses — we would rather lose the sale than fudge that answer.
Chitrasutra is currently in its pre-launch phase. Every artwork and price shown here is real. Before we officially launch and begin taking orders, we are gauging interest in the collection — submitting an expression of interest does not constitute a purchase, reservation, or binding order.
Prices shown include courier, delivery and customs duty, and are close estimates rather than a final bill. Actual billing may vary slightly — once you register interest, we confirm the exact charges and the difference, if any, is added to your final invoice.
The triad repeated in small arched niches
A gold-and-black patta with rows of Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra repeated in small temple-arch niches, opening onto a larger central panel of the same three enthroned under a canopy.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A deity rides an elephant built from a procession of women
A monochrome ink-style patta built around the classic Nari Kunjara device -- a deity riding an elephant whose entire body is formed from a procession of female figures -- ringed by small circular narrative scenes. The rightmost narrative circle is cropped by the camera's framing rather than by the artwork itself; worth a wider reshoot if the full border matters to a buyer.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
The triad in a red medallion, ringed by a wheel of dancers
A vertical patta centred on a red-and-white circular medallion of the Jagannath triad, ringed by a wheel of dancing figures and framed above and below by narrative story panels and a floral border.
18 x 12 inTBD to paint
The triad on black, beneath a pink-and-gold canopy
Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra on a black ground beneath an elaborate pink-and-gold canopy with a painted blue sky strip above, flanked by side columns holding single deity medallions.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A four-armed dancing Ganesha framed by a grid of smaller Ganeshas
A black-and-white patta with pink accents, built around a four-armed dancing Ganesha at the centre, framed by a grid of smaller seated and dancing Ganesha figures above, below and on both sides.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
The triad on black, under a pink-and-gold canopy
Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra on a black ground under a pink-and-gold canopy, flanked by side columns of small deity medallions.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
Concentric rings of story panels around two enthroned figures
A large, densely worked patta scroll with a central circular medallion showing two enthroned figures -- reading as a coronation scene -- surrounded by concentric rings of tiny narrative panels. The detail is fine enough to reward a close, unhurried look.
5 x 3 ftTBD to paint
The triad on black, topped by a row of avatar figures
Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra on black ground with orange drapery, topped by a row of small white-medallion avatar figures and flanked by columns of deity medallions.
4 x 2.5 ftTBD to paint
The triad beneath a canopy, bordered by Krishna's childhood scenes
Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra on black ground beneath an ornate canopy, bordered by rows of circular scenes from Krishna's childhood -- a cow, animals, playful vignettes running the full length of the frame.
4 x 2.5 ftTBD to paint
Three deity busts stacked inside a red temple-arch niche
The Puri temple triad rendered as three stacked busts inside a flaming red temple-arch niche, flanked by two flying celestial figures at the upper corners -- the classic Jagannath icon in a compact vertical format.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
Krishna at the centre of eight gopis in a forest scene
A blue-skinned, haloed Krishna stands at centre surrounded by eight gopis carrying lotus platters, in a forest setting with deer, swans, a peacock and a lotus pond at the base.
4 x 2.5 ftTBD to paint
A central raas scene ringed by roughly eighteen story medallions
Krishna plays flute among gopis under a canopy by a lotus pond in the central panel, framed by a wide border of roughly eighteen circular medallions, each carrying its own Krishna-related scene, plus a narrow strip of stacked figure panels along one side.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
Krishna rides an elephant built from gopi figures
Krishna, seated under a flowering tree and playing his flute, rides an elephant whose body is composed entirely of interlocking gopi figures -- the traditional Odisha Nari Kunjar device -- with two celestial attendants above.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
Krishna encircled by gopis, with swans along a lotus pond
Krishna stands centrally playing the flute, encircled by a large group of gopis in flowing garments under flowering trees, with a row of swans and lotuses along a blue pond at the base.
4 x 2.5 ftTBD to paint
Three deity busts on a solid orange ground, under a floral canopy
The Puri temple triad rendered as three busts side by side against a solid orange ground beneath a scalloped floral canopy -- a simpler, bust-only take on the trinity image.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
The pair embrace beneath a garland of teal flowers
A blue-skinned Krishna and a companion figure stand embracing beneath an arched garland of teal flowers, flanked by groups of attendant women, with grazing deer and trees in the background.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A courtly exchange beneath scalloped canopies, on a checkerboard floor
A wide horizontal panel showing a procession or court scene under scalloped canopies and pillars -- a central pair of figures in an embrace or exchange, flanked by musicians and attendants, with a checkerboard floor underfoot.
10 x 40 inTBD to paint
Circular dances, huts and a row of elephants, in Warli line style
A change of craft from the Pattachitra pieces around it: white/line stick figures on a plain ground, in circular tarpa dances, with huts, animals and a row of painted elephants along the bottom -- this is Warli tribal art rather than Odisha Pattachitra, and should be tagged and described as such rather than folded in with the pigment-on-cloth pieces.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
Attendants, a horseman and a flower-canopied palanquin, on red
A vibrant Pattachitra celebrating Mathura Vijaya, depicting a triumphant ceremonial procession following the victory at Mathura. Surrounded by musicians, attendants and jubilant figures, the returning heroes are welcomed in an atmosphere of celebration and devotion.
10 x 40 inTBD to paint
Krishna on a lotus, surrounded by gopis under a tree canopy
A flute-playing, blue-skinned Krishna stands on a large pink lotus at the centre, surrounded by rows of gopis beneath a green tree canopy on black ground.
10 x 40 inTBD to paint
A central tree flanked by bands of dancers, animals and palms
A cream-ground panel in a tribal-influenced style: a large central green tree flanked by two oval bands and grid registers packed with small stick-figure dancers, animals and palm trees, inside a black triangular border. The style leans closer to Warli/tribal tree-of-life work than classic red-and-black Pattachitra -- worth confirming region and craft before it's listed.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A rust-brown leaf tree with small pink flower buds
A stylised fern-shaped tree of life in rust-brown tones with small pink flower buds, centred on cream ground within an arched niche and a floral-tile border.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
Dancers and musicians in file around a central blue figure
A red-ground horizontal panel of women dancing and playing instruments -- drum, cymbals, mirror -- around a central blue-skinned figure, under a stylised flowering tree, framed by a painted floral border.
10 x 40 inTBD to paint
The same chariot procession theme, in fine grey-and-maroon linework
The same royal procession theme as the colour versions in this set -- attendants, a horseman, a canopied chariot bearing two figures -- rendered instead in restrained grey-and-white ink linework with maroon accents.
10 x 40 inTBD to paint
Krishna among gopis in procession, beneath flowering trees
A black-ground horizontal panel showing Krishna at centre among rows of gopis in a procession or dance pose, beneath a canopy of flowering trees.
10 x 40 inTBD to paint
Ganesha dancing on a lotus, holding an axe, with his mouse below
A vertical panel of a yellow-skinned, elephant-headed Ganesha in a dancing pose holding an axe, wearing a red drape and a blue patterned dhoti, standing on a red lotus with his mouse at his feet, framed by an arched niche.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
A leaf-shaped tree with yellow flower buds, in an arched niche
A stylised fern-shaped tree of life in brown and gold tones with small yellow flower buds on cream ground, set in an arched niche with a floral-tile border -- the same composition family as the other leaf-tree pieces in this set, in its own colourway.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
Krishna plays flute at centre, ringed by adoring gopis
Krishna, shown in blue, plays the flute at the centre of this patta, surrounded by adoring gopis under a leafy canopy, standing above a large lotus -- a raas-leela devotional scene within an ornate multi-band border.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A multi-armed Ganesha seated above a checkerboard base panel
A multi-armed Ganesha seated on a platform, holding an axe and other attributes, with a checkerboard-patterned base panel below showing a lamp, his mouse vahana and a bowl of fruit.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
A blue-and-red tree with a Ganesha medallion at its centre
A blue-and-red flowering tree of life topped by a gold scrollwork arch with peacock motifs and hanging bell pendants, with a circular medallion of a four-armed seated Ganesha set into the middle of the tree.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
Small Ramayana vignettes ringing a central court scene
A large multi-panel narrative patta with small vignette scenes from the Ramayana running around the border, centred on a main panel of Rama and Sita enthroned in court with attendants.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A dense black-ink leaf tree with small pink blossoms
A dense black-ink flowering tree of life with small pink blossoms, in a leaf-shaped silhouette on plain cream ground, topped by a gold scrollwork arch with hanging bell pendants.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
A green tree with red buds, set against a deep crimson ground
A green flowering tree of life with red buds, painted within a white leaf-shaped field set against a deep crimson-red ground rather than the more usual cream, framed by a decorative vine border.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
Fine brown-and-gold linework with berry clusters and a small bird
An intricate tree of life worked in fine brown-and-gold linework, with berry-like clusters and leaves on plain beige ground, a simple border and a small bird motif at the crown.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
Dancers, an elephant, a bullock cart and a hut scene, in Warli line style
As with the other Warli-style piece in this set, a change of craft: black stick-figure work on cream ground -- dancing figures, an elephant, a bullock, a circular dance formation, an ox-cart and a hut scene, framed by a red triangular border. This is Warli tribal art, not Odisha Pattachitra, and worth tagging accordingly.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
Deep blue leaves with amber berry clusters and pink flower nodes
A dense tree of life with deep blue leaves, small orange-amber berry clusters and pink flower nodes along the trunk, topped by a gold scrollwork arch with hanging bell pendants -- matching the family of tree-of-life scrolls elsewhere in this set, each in its own colourway.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
A flowering tree beneath a golden torana arch
A tall vertical patta of a stylised flowering tree, green and red foliage on a golden-brown trunk, rising beneath an ornamental golden torana arch with hanging bell pendants, framed by a floral lattice border.
10 x 20 in, with white borderTBD to paint
Ganesha's form built from dozens of miniature narrative scenes
A large seated, multi-armed Ganesha rendered against a black starry ground, with his body, ears and limbs densely packed with dozens of miniature narrative vignettes of gods and figures, enclosed by a floral red-and-olive border.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
Ganesha dancing with a serpent, flanked by two attendants
A multi-armed Ganesha shown dancing, holding a serpent and ritual objects, flanked by two female attendants and his mouse vahana, beneath an ornate arched temple canopy on a deep blue ground.
2.5FT x 3 ftTBD to paint
The pair beneath a tree, ringed by a lotus-petal mandala
A circular lotus-petal mandala centred on Radha and Krishna beneath a tree, ringed by dancing figures within the petals, with rows of individually framed deity figures above and below the medallion.
18 x 12 inTBD to paint
Two seated figures beneath a green canopy, on a chariot
A horizontal narrative scene of two seated figures, one blue-skinned, beneath an ornate green temple canopy on a chariot, attended by a charioteer and a rider on a white horse, with women offering garlands beneath flowering trees on a pink ground.
18 x 12 inTBD to paint
A five-headed dancing Ganesha, in fine unpainted linework
A meticulously detailed monochrome Pattachitra centred upon Panchamukhi Ganesha, the five-faced manifestation of the beloved deity. Surrounding the principal image, a sequence of finely illustrated narrative panels unfolds like pages from a sacred chronicle, evoking stories and manifestations associated with Ganesha.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
The triad on a checkered platform, under a scalloped canopy
The three deities of the Puri Jagannath temple, with their large round eyes and block-like painted forms, shown side by side on a checkered platform beneath a scalloped canopy, flanked by two vertical rows of small circular deity medallions.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
The pair beneath a carved arch, with swans along a lotus pond
A blue-skinned Krishna, playing the flute, embraces golden-hued Radha beneath a carved temple archway on a red ground, with two small flying celestial figures above and a row of swans among lotus flowers along the bottom.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A radiating dance wheel, framed by Krishna's early-life scenes
A dense, monochrome ink-and-blue patta: a large radiating wheel of dancing figures turns around a small central medallion of a Radha-Krishna dance group, flanked by side panels of Krishna's early life -- a cradle scene, a figure on a coiled serpent, and a tree with worshippers -- all wrapped in an outer border of roughly twenty circular courtly vignettes.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A seated Ganesha ringed by sixteen dancing elephant-headed figures
A four-armed, seated Ganesha on a red ground sits at the centre of a black-and-red wheel, ringed by sixteen smaller dancing elephant-headed figures in its spokes, and flanked by three individually framed Ganesha panels on each side.
18 x 12 inTBD to paint
A twelve-petal lotus of avatar figures, cornered by four Jagannath masks
A vividly coloured lotus-petal mandala centred on a tree and a group of figures with a white horse, ringed by twelve petals each holding a small painted figure, with a large round-eyed Jagannath-style mask in each corner. A row of five small arched panels along the top appears to depict Vishnu's avatars -- fish, tortoise and others -- and is worth confirming with the artist before the theme is stated as fact.
18 x 12 inTBD to paint
Jagannath's face set into a crescent within an ornate vase form
An elaborate vase-shaped (kalasha) composition on black ground: Jagannath's wide-eyed face sits inside a crescent wheel of small deity roundels, flanked by two peacocks, with a serpent-hooded canopy holding three seated deities above and a lotus base with a pair of fish below. One of the most intricate and colourful pieces in the collection.
18 x 12 inTBD to paint
Rama and Sita enthroned, Hanuman kneeling before the monkey army
Rama and Sita sit enthroned beneath a red canopy, with Hanuman kneeling before them and the vanara (monkey) army raised in salute alongside, all set within a dense outer border of small Ramayana narrative panels -- a forest fire, a lion, battle and forest scenes among them.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
A red octagonal dance scene, framed by garden and court narrative panels
A red octagonal medallion at the centre shows a courtly dance scene beneath twin trees, framed by a dense set of narrative side panels -- a palanquin, a garden, animals under a tree -- and bordered top and bottom by eighteen small courtly vignettes in black ink.
2 x 3 ftTBD to paint
Sizes above are what the artist normally paints. Almost everything here can be made larger or smaller, and the price moves with the size and the amount of border work. Want a scene that isn't on this page? Describe it — these families have been painting the same stories since they were children.
How will this work?
Every painting on this page is made after you ask for it. What you see in the gallery is the piece the artist has painted before and will paint for you again — same hand, same story, never quite the same painting twice.
Send the enquiry form with the painting, the size and the wall it is going on. If you want a scene that isn't in the gallery, describe it — most of these artists have been painting the same stories since they were nine.
We confirm who is free, what they will charge and how long they need. You get their name, a photograph of their work and a firm quote before any money moves.
Old cotton saree layers are glued with tamarind seed paste, coated, dried and polished smooth into a patta. Then the drawing, the colour, the fine white line work, and finally the black outline.
The finished painting is given its protective finish, photographed for you, rolled into a hard tube with the artist's note, and shipped. Framing is yours to choose — we will tell you what suits the piece.
Before you commission
Not yet — we're currently in our pre-launch phase, gauging interest in the collection before we officially launch and start taking orders. Every painting and price shown on this site is real, but submitting an expression of interest does not constitute a purchase, reservation, or binding order. We'll reach out directly once we're ready to move forward.
Yes — every piece on this page is an original, hand-painted work. Nothing here is a print, a reproduction, or made from a template. Each one takes an artist several weeks to draw, colour, and outline by hand.
Painters from the Pattachitra villages near Puri, in Odisha — the same families and workshops visited in June 2025. Every piece is painted and signed by the person who made it, and when you commission one, we tell you their name.
Yes. Every commission comes with a signed certificate of authenticity from the artist, along with his credentials and a photograph of him with the finished piece. You'll also get a clear photograph of the painting itself before it ships, plus updates while it's being made, so you can see it take shape.
Rolled, never folded, inside a rigid tube — the only way a patta travels safely over a long distance. It arrives ready to be laid flat for a day or two and framed however you'd like.
Very rare, but it can happen in transit. If a painting arrives damaged, let us know within 1 day of receiving it, with a few photographs — as long as the damage happened in transport and not afterward, we'll take it back and make it right.
No — the deposit is non-refundable once paid. It goes straight to the artist so they can start work, which is the reason we ask for it upfront in the first place.
Yes — the price shown against each painting already includes an estimated courier and delivery charge. It's a close estimate, not a final bill: once you register interest, we confirm the exact courier cost with our shipper, and only the difference, if any, is added to your final invoice.
Yes — at the time of confirmation, we share a final quotation (proforma) detailing the price of the painting and the estimated shipping and delivery charges. This is an estimated price and the actual amount may vary slightly; the final quotation follows shortly after.
Diwali, a wedding, a housewarming — tell us the date you need it by and we will tell you honestly whether it can be done.
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Every certificate carries this same code, linked straight back to this page — scan it any time to confirm the piece against our live catalogue.