The World on a Turtle's Back

Santoshi Shyam

From the very beginning, art was not just around her, it was in her blood. Her mother Rambai was a Gond artist and her father, Narmada prasad Tekam, also a respected Gond painter, carried forward the legacy of Jangarh Singh Shyam, the pioneer who placed Gond art on the global map. Growing up, her childhood was spent largely in Bhopal in an environment where Santoshi absorbed the artistic language of her people almost unconsciously. The dotting, the lines, the rhythmic filling of forms that turned simple animals and trees into mythic presences. Santoshi Shyam’s true journey began in Patangarh, the birthplace of Gond painting. She began painting in quieter moments, her work flowing naturally toward depictions of birds, wild animals, and village life. Over time, her canvases matured into textured stories, not just motifs, but living echoes of Gond cosmology. Recognition followed. Santoshi’s works were featured in the Tribal Museum’s prestigious Likhandra Gallery under the “Shalaka” solo exhibition series, a rare honour that affirmed her individual voice. She has also received the Kalidasa Award, marking her as one of Gond art’s powerful female voices. Today, she continues to create alongside her husband, Gond artist Rajendra Shyam Tekam, both as an artist and a partner in preserving Gond’s timeless stories. Her art balances heritage with individuality to carry forward Gond’s memory while painting her own story into its future.