Late Smt. Rekha Chakraborty
25/04/1933 - 24/07/2006

Founder Rekha Chitram

Dear Friends,

Some ask me about my objective in life . I am neither a good speaker nor a good writer . If my paintings have expressed something at all, this is my message. Human life is full of weal and woes , sufferings and blessings , and my life is no exception . An artist is to make his or her sorrows beam in light of brightness . Success in such expression is our attainment and bliss . I have had to struggle hard to reach the present position along a long path of life. I entered the battlefield with thread and needle and indomitable courage . I had been inspired by indigenous tradition , exercises of rural art by my mother . I desired to paint the life I observed in the battlefield and those whom I met there as my saviors , in all their moments and aspects of characters , in various hues and forms . Sometimes , my work , surpassing the object-person and his surroundings , have become universal .

I did not surrender to darkness nor did I give it indulgence in my creativity , because I know that at the proper moment , the lamp less night is flooded by the pious of the dawn . My gratitude to those who lent me courage in my struggle , wished me well and endowed me with blessings know no bounds . There is constant warfare in the realm of creator , and no art becomes real art if there is no “ faith ” . I wish , I cherish that “ faith ” in my life forever.

Arun Chakraborty

Co-founder & Partner

Dear Friends,

In different parts of India artistic development took different mediums , in Bengal there are many folk art forms, including Embroidery , drawing of abstract motives , the line show a parallel of Chinese and Persian drawings

The artistic distortion in modern paintings are more expressive in our traditional paintings penetrating into forms given by Jackson Pollock , Kandinsky , Paul Klee , Salvador Dali , Fauvist , Surrealist or Chagallesque free flow of imagination.

Compared to the painting , Graphics or Photography , modern Embroidery is in its teens . But still it has the depth of discovering the inner being of the artist , its aesthetic appeal and at times making illusion of art-photography .

Since I have been experimenting with a folk art form for its development into a sophisticated one , I had to face odds , till acceptance came . Incidentally Music , Poetry , Film and even Portraits wedded in my artistic form.

My latest venture is launch of a unique online platform which will bring all artists, irrespective of seniority, together under one roof. Juniors will get both motivated and inspired by the very presence of senior artists with them. This website is especially for artists with little or no exposure. They can showcase their work to the entire world. Also, the artists can learn and earn through an innovative way which is explained in the website However, it will also have the work, blessings and good wishes of senior and celebrity artists who have inspired millions across the globe with their signature styles. Welcome all to artparadize.com

Shukla Malhotra

Co-founder & Partner

Dear Friends,

I have been associated with large corporate houses and handling their sales and marketing, and operations related to logistics, packaging and warehousing, for more than two decades. Some of the companies for whom I have worked prior to venturing into my own business, in the same field, are TNT India and AFL (currently Fedex).

Hence, with the experience that I have in sales/marketing and SCM, be rest assured I will do justice in promoting the talent of artists (especially students) in the corporate world by providing a platform for regular networking (sales) between large, medium, small enterprises and ArtParadize and also successfully catering to the logistic requirements of ArtParadize respectively.

There will be robust systems in place which will ensure smooth and transparent handling of each transaction. We will be maintaining a dashboard where the artists can login and check their sale details anytime and there would be different options for the buyers to buy the paintings in a smooth and hassle free manner.

The artists need not worry about the secure delivery of their treasured artwork and we would also ensure that the buyers get their selected paintings scratch free and as per committed timelines.

In my free time, as a hobby, I do interior designing, gardening and cooking. On a lighter note these are also art forms in their own way. Just to summarise, I invest time in things which I love and I own what I love in my professional and personal domain. I am confident that you all will see the same passion and commitment towards the journey of ArtParadize.

Sanjay Malhotra

Co-founder & Partner

Dear Friends,

Art Paradize is a small, yet a genuine effort in providing an online platform to all the Art lovers, where you can buy and sell art products, dealing primarily in oil/acrylic paintings and embroidery work.

Another highlight is the range it is providing. It is housing the art work of young aspiring students, freelance artists and the top artists of our country.

The best part of this platform is, its success is in your hands. The more people come to know about it through various medium, the larger Art Paradize will grow. I am committed to extending its reach with full sincerity and to the best of my capacity. Your patronage will always help.

I am myself an ex student of Rekha Chitram, a renowned institute in the art world for almost four decades.I passed out from the institute in 1988 and stood first class first. I was always passionate about paintings, but due to unfavourable circumstances 25 years back, I entered the corporate world to make a living for myself. Finally, there came a point where I had to choose between further pursuing my professional career in the IT and Telecommunication sector where I had the expertise for almost two decades or reigniting my passion. I choose the latter with the support of the former. I strongly feel that this handshake of my passion with communication, which can provide an infinite reach, will work in favour of this gallery.

I once again contacted Rekha Chitram after three decades, this time with the business proposal. I am thankful to Sri Arun Chakraborty, Head of this esteemed institution, to get associated with Art Paradize and for having restored faith in the concept, which will provide a colourful touch point to millions of Art lovers across the globe, going forward.

I am also thankful to all the other esteemed artists of our country who have patronised Art Paradise. With the blessings of my seniors and love and affection of my friends and peer group, let us start this beautiful journey.

Welcome all to the world of Art Paradize. Let there be a real buzz in this paradise!!!

Rekha Chitram

Glorious 50 Years and continuing...

Artist Rekha Chakraborty : 25th April 1933 - 24th July 2006

The first decade of Smt. Rekha Chakraborty’s life had been a familiar pattern of childhood spent in an ordinary Bengali household, followed by marriage and the expected role as a home-maker. As a young mother burdened with all the routine domestic chores, Rekha Devi had to work outside the home to supplement the family income. But despite many social pulls and pressures which slowly but surely transformed a “ settled woman into a stereo type docility, Rekha Devi did not let her mind relapse into passive mediocrity. The small flame of creativity that could so easily have died after she left her parental home, miraculously survived.

Rekha Devi had grown to love Art and beauty literally at her mother’s lap , by learning to replicate some of the beautiful needlework crafted by her mother I the old Bengali tradition or “ parampara”. As her creations emerged into public gaze over the years with ever increasing excellence in developing her unique art form, the growing visibility of her distinctive persona as an artist with a very remarkable talent, led to the predictable conflict with the established pattern observed in society: male authority typically conjoined with woman’s expected submission . The very fact that Rekha Devi did not submit to this archaic societal norm and to fate is itself a tribute to the triumph of the artist’s soul over a mundane but normal longing for security and comfort.

Over the years she has own numerous awards and held somany exhibitions in India and abroad. Her exquisitely embroidered portraits adorn art galleries spread far and wide all over the world : from Tagore Centre in London , Lenin Museum in Moscow , to art collections in Hanoi and Havana . Whether her theme concerns renowned personalities like Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore, Mother Teresa, or an unknown protagonist such as the tortured soul in “Fear” , a glimpse of nature as in “ Avenue” or a man-made feature as “Fort”, her vivid creations impress our senses as perfect likeness to paintings in colour.

It is indeed difficult to realize that each superb portrayal of the essence of a subject, the beautiful blending of light and shade and the rich weave of colours, are all wrought with thread and needle and not been instrumental in reviving a long lost art to its full glory.

Embroidered Paintings

At first glance their works resemble Paintings. It is only once you take a closer look you realize what you are looking at is actually Embroidery work. Using cloth as canvas , needles as brush and threads as colours , Artist Rekha Chakraborty and her son Arun Chakraborty brings to live portrait , landscapes and cameos of life with amazing dexterity. The single-minded devotion of these path-breakers has helped to create a novel , visual Art form that blends Photography, Painting and Sculptural forms.

Rekha Chitram , an institution of Embroidery, fine Arts and performing Arts in Salt Lake , Kolkata , showcases 50 years of luminaries , picturesque , landscapes , Surrealistic works and Abstract Expressionism , you can’t help but to wonder at the painstakingly dimensional effect to each work.

Be it Poet Kazi Nazrul Islam’s pensive expression ,Vincent Van Gogh’s intensity , or Einstein’s frozen relativity- the personalities look startlingly alive, ready to take the world at any moment .

While symbolism comes to the fore in a frame where a woman reaches out to find light , abstract expression , a form devoid of the figure , surfaces on yet another ‘canvas’ inspired by a ballet based on Ibsen’s play “Peer Gynt” .

It isn’t as though the concept of embroidery was non-existent in Bengal. Popularly known as ‘Phultola’, it was an art practiced by women of rural Bengal to make embroidered quilts called ‘Nakshi Kanthas’. But this self taught lady’s contribution lies in that she has imparted a new dimension to it , one that places it in the same league of Photography, Painting and Sculpture.

“When I was a child , I’d watch my mother do Embroidery. I found it so fascinatng that I would replicate it clandestinely on a piece of cloth. Over the years, this became an addiction”, recalls Artist Rekha. Subsequently , she surpassed her mother and went to paint landscapes and portraits , frame to frame .

Rekha’s portraits of eminent personalities have found a place in prestigious museums of the world over.

A seven foot full size Embroidered Lenin, housed in Lenin Museum, Moscow.

Unlike Painting , in Embroidery, the colours of the threads have to be decided at the onset. If the colour is found unsuitable once applied , there is no scope for patching up, she explains , adding, “ I had to make use of different threads and every alternate second , change the thread to get the exact shade and impart a realistic feel”, she reminisces.

Arun, her son intends to take this art form a step further. Having started off by dabbling in works inspired by Surrealism, today has branched off into Abstract Expressionism , on the one hand, and figurative, on the other , making use of unique colour compositions. Works of Jackson Pollock, Kandinsky and Paul Klee serve as his inspiration.

Applying the water colour effect , sculptural gradation or exploding Surrealism and abstraction in Embroidery is difficult and time consuming. Accordingly, some of his works use allegorical or emblematic human or animal figures to represent an abstract idea , others are non-objective in nature. Devoid of subject matter , they show a complex interplay of signifiers offering the viewer multiple viewing possibilities .