Born in Naya village in West Midnapur, Swarna Chitrakar learned painting from her father. Swarna received the  State Award in 1994 and District Award in 1995 followed by a participation at a grand fair in Kolkata. Overseas she has participated in major festivals in France, Germany, Australia, USA, Sweden, China and England. Through her art, Swarna has given a voice to women’s issues – and has raised a voice against female infanticide, girls trafficking and rape. She has two books to her credit :  ‘The Patua Pinocchio’ with Carlo Collodi and ‘Monkey Photo’ with Gita Wolf ; both  published by Tara Books.