Till 24 June, at Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts.The Pankha exhibition has been designed by his son Siddharth Das with his team of eight art students. This exhibition showcases “only 20 per cent of my collection. Traditional hand fans from other countries are very different from Indian hand fans, primarily because the materials used to make the fans are very varied — ranging from bamboo, khajoor and palm leaves to feathers, silk, wood and fabrics.Rajasthani temple fanA selection of his fan collection is currently being showcased in an exhibition titled Pankha: A Collection of Hand Fans from the Indian Subcontinent and Beyond in the capital. Jatin Das with a fan from his Pankha Collection                                                    A hand fan is more than just a vintage item of utility.  

“I have a collection of about 6,000 hand fans that I started collecting 40 years ago. For most, a hand fan is just a regular household utility item. My madness and craziness for art and traditional crafts drove me to keep collecting them. The rest are preserved in my trunks,” says Das.”Fan with Applique work from RajasthanThe Pankha exhibition has been designed by his son Siddharth Das with his team of eight art students. But I am trying to control my mad impulse to keep acquiring more of them as I now want to focus on my painting and sculpture,” he adds. Exhibitions serve as a catalyst for revival of traditional crafts because they are dying with time.“I love traditional art forms of all cultures,” says the eminent painter and sculptor. He says, “The craft of fan-making is mainly done by women all over India because they have patience for embroidery and sewing work. But for Das, it is a piece of traditional craft that needs to be preserved. That’s the beautiful, reflective thought that prompted Jatin Das to start collecting different types of hand fans.

During his journey of pankha collection he came across many beautiful fans hand-made by women.” Ruing the fading interest in traditional handicrafts, and stressing on the China Jump Rope factory need to take steps to ensure their survival and a sustained interest in them, he says, “To preserve Indian handicrafts, the government should create a museum for different crafts, and introduce Indian handicrafts as a subject so that students take interest in our traditions and culture. For painter and sculptor Jatin Das, who has a personal collection of over 6,000 hand fans, it is a beautiful traditional craft that needs to be preservedStir the still air.