Radha and Krishna

Radha and Krishna

Kishangarh School,1750 AD.

     Once developed by Nihal Chand, the stereotype image became the hallmark of the Kishangarh School.  From prince to pauper,  from princess to maids, they all had the same face, dress, ornaments.  This is called 'stylization' in art. There are no individual portraits as in Mughal paintings. There are ad infinitum depiction of ideal beauty. Like the Bundi School,  the Kishangarh miniatures are also known for their depiction of romantic scenes.
      As here, the nayak and nayika are Krishna and Radha. In this painting Krishna offers a beetle leaf (pan) to Radha. Both sit coyly,  in the warmth of each others company.  Interestingly,  Krishna wears a Mughal dress instead of his usual yellow dhoti (pitambar dhoti). He looks more like a Mughal prince than a God.
        Radha is in all the finery of a Rajput princess.  This painting clearly depicts the influence of the Mughal court on the courts of Rajputana.
     The serenity, tranquility,  the poise of the figures,  the beauty of the moment takes us to another worldly leve: the soul and the God have become equals. Where it is the God who presents an offering to the soul, to His soulmate--Radha. The equation has changed.

Radha

Radha

by Nihal Chand, Kishangar School, 1760 AD.

     Considered to be the 'Mona Lisa' of Indian art, this is a 'portrait' of Bani Thani, a courtesan of Kishangarh. The Maharaja of Kishangarh was in love with Bani Thhani. He also wrote beautiful poetry about the love between Lord Krishna and Radha. Thus, Bani Thani is depicted as 'Radha'.
     This is an extremely 'stylized' portrait of a person. In fact it is so stylized that it became the hallmark of the Kishangarh School. The sharp featured face, with acquiline nose, upturned eye, high arched eyebrows, thin lips, a sharp chin, flowing hair, large earing, translucent chunni, bejewelled,  and slender henna colored fingers. Many people fail to see the beauty in this face due to its disproportionate and angular face. But the artist has merely distilled the 'Rajput' concept of beauty. A sharp featured woman, with sharp nose, thin lips, big eyes, and with arched eyebrows.
     It is a portrait of a coquettish woman who has lowered her eyes pretending to be aloofish yet listening to every word of her lover. It is a portrait of serenity, peace, and harmony. It is not a portrait of an individual,  but of an ideal beauty.

     Many people confuse the Kishangarh miniatures with Kangra miniatures.  But the above mentioned features distinguish the two. This stereotype image became the leitmotif of the  Kishangarh School.

Ram Singh I of Kota Hunting Rhinoceros

Ram Singh I of Kota Hunting Rhinoceros

Kota School,1700 AD.

      Animals have fascinated the artists throughout history.  They are depicted on caves to palaces. The elephant has caught the imagination of the indian artists. Considered to be the wisest of the animals, Lord Ganesh, the god of wisdom, in the Hindu pantheon, is elephant headed.
        Like the Mughal School, the Kota school has excelled in depicting the elephant. But while the former School has caught the majesty of the animal, the latter has emphasised the comic part of the animal. The elephant is round bodied, corpulent,  cumbersome,  comical. But in this painting, the artist has depicted the strength,  the agility, the force of the animal. The elephant has caught the rhinoceros with its trunk. The rhinoceros is devoid of any strength. The speed, the thumping, the thrust of the spear, the fight between man and nature has been transformed into a lyrical poetry of lines and colors, of shapes and shades. This painting is a tribute to the genius of the Kota master artists.

Kamabhisarika Nayika

Kamabhisarika Nayika

 Kota School,  17th century AD

     Kota was formed by the Mughal Emperor Jahangir by bifurcating Bundi. Kota School of miniature painting owe their origin to the Bundi School.  Stylistically they are similar. But there are certain differences. The Kota figures are also squat, but the linear quality is less pronounced. The female figures neither wear the translucent chunnis, nor keep their hair open, as do the Bundi women.  The Kota School is less romantically inclined than Bundi. Instead Kota has concentrated more on hunting scenes and on elephant fights. Kota is more on masculine themes; Bundi on feminine sensibilities.
   Keshavdas, the famous poet from Orcha, wrote his Rasikpriya, in early 17th century.  Considered a classic on love poetry or in 'Shringar rasa' it became an instant hit with musicians,  dancers and painters. Keshavdas has classified Nayika into different classes. Here is one who is driven by her passion to meet her lover. Since both are passionate,  they are painted in hot colors of red and orange and yellow.  Unmindful of the dangers, the Nayika walks through the forest.
      When she reaches the Nayak, he asks her, " how did you manage to reach me through all the dangerous beasts?"
She says, "I didn't notice them, as your thoughts were my companion."
      When lost in the thoughts of divinity, we too do not notice the troubles of the world, as thoughts of Him are our companions.

Sunburst and Angels

Sunburst and Angels

a painted roof in the Bundi Palace
18th-19th century.

      The Bundi Palace has beautiful paintings practically in every room. This is one of the best well preserved paintings in a room. Painted on the roof, it depicts a sunburst with two angls. Surprisingly, the angels are painted as though taken from Persian art. The painting is extensively done in gold. The Rani's bedchamber is also done in gold. But unfortunately this part of the palace is closed. It is open only for bats, rats, lizards and cocroches.  The window of the room, where this painting is, is broken. The wind, water and air have easy access to these paintings. The national art treasures of this palace have been abandoned to time. But this time, time may not heal; it may destroy the art treasure.  We continue to be oblivious of our history and ignorant of our art.

Ragani Todi

Ragani Todi

from Chitrashala of the Bundi Palace
 18th century AD.

       In the Mahabharat and Ramayan it is mentioned that the palaces had a gallery for paintings called "chitrashala". Bundi Palace has the only living example in India. A portion of the palace is devoted only to paintings. This portion has paintings on different themes painted on the walls: Ragmala, religious paintings, Barahmasa ( depicting the twelve months). These are not frescoes,  which are painted while the plaster is still wet. These are murals which are painted after the plaster has dried.
       Since these paintings are done predominantly in bluish-green colors, the general impression is that the pallet of the Bundi artist was a limited one. But this is untrue.
         Here we see Ragani Todi. Ragani Todi depicts the pathos of separation between the lovers. The nayak ( the hero) is away. The nayaka (the heroine) plays the sitar or the vina (a string instrument) while lost in the thoughts about her lover. The beautiful melody attracts the deers, fauns or black bucks from the forest who have come to listen to the soulful music. The deer also symbolise the missing nayak. This iconography for Ragani Todi is prevalent in all the Schools of miniature paintings. Thus, the Ragani is easily identifiable. 
        Here using the bluish-green color, the artist has heightened the pathos of separation.  He has caught the essence of the Ragani, the musical mode.

A Painted Room in the Bundi Palace

A Painted Room in the Bundi Palace

 17th century.

       Bundi School had an extremely colorful phase. This room in the Bundi Palace is a glaring example of it. It is said that this room was painted by Chinese artists as there are images of dragons and of phenoix. But what one sees in the upper part of this picture is a scene of the Raslila performed by Lord Krishna and the Gopis.
         Interestingly instead of depicting the Raslila at night, as it is usually depicted,  here the artist paints it with a background of red color.  The artist has used the color symbolically to portray the deep love that existed between Lord Krishna and the gopis. The love between the god and the soul is selfless, boundless and pure. It follows  no rules or regulations; it does not adhere to any creed. It is pure 'bhakti' (devotion).
           While Bundi miniatures are famous for its deep romanticism,  it is also capable of depicting pure metaphysical thoughts.

A Glimpse of the Lover

A Glimpse of the Lover

Bundi School
Mid-18th century AD

         The Bundi artists were the first one to refine the art of miniature.  They transformed the archaic figures of Malwa and Mewar into the delicate and lyrical figures. The palette became more sophisticated with contrasting color scheme and subtle shading of the figures. The hues of the same color are awe inspiring. The theme of love between the nayak (the hero) and the nayaka ( the heroine) dominates the Bundi School. In fact Bundi is known for its "lush romanticism".
        Here we see the nayaka has just finished her bath. She is busy getting ready. While her maid shows her the mirror,  the nayaka suddenly sees the face of her lover in the mirror.  Startled by his sudden presence,  she tries to hide her semi-nakedness. The nayak peeps from the window, delighted to have caught his beloved off-guard. Theirs is an innocent yet mischievous game. But the artists leaves it to us to guess whether the presence of the nayak is real or a figment of the nayaka's imagination.

Ragani Khambhavati

Ragani Khambhavati

Bundi School.
Painting by Shaikhs Hasain, Ali and Hatim. 1591.

       Bundi school School has its roots in the Mewar School of miniatures. But soon it devrloped its own vocabulary,  its own color scheme and its own sophistication.  It went through different phases which are yet to be fully analysed and understood. It is a fascinating School of miniature paintings, but hardly explored by art hiatorians.
       In this painting we can see the affinity with the Mewar miniatures.  The setting, the figure of the woman remains the same. But now there is more detailing of the building,  more designs in the setting.  Rather than the simple primary colors of Mewar, the Bundi palette is more subtle,  more sophisticated: there are pinks, mauves, oranges and blues and greens. The artists have beautifully contrasted areas of complex designs with the plain areas of the white wall. The central characters are in the plain areas.
        The painting belongs to a Ragamala series. The woman is shown performing a yagna (worshiping through fire) for Lord Brahma. Being a God, Lord Brahma is shown as larger than the woman. The woman personifies the Ragani. Although Lord Brahma wears a 'dhoti', his crown is borrowed from the helmet worn by the Muslim soldiers.  One can discern the influence of Akbar's court on the Bundi court. The foundation of Ganga Yammuna 'tehzeeb' is being laid in the 16th century; a foundation we have inherited and must build upon for our future generations

Rasikapriya

 

Rasikapriya

by Sahibdin
Mewar School
17th century AD.

Keshavdas' Rasikapriya was a popular book in the medieval period. It was a source of inspiration for many artisits both in the Rajput and the Pahari Schools.

Shibdin is one of the few known artists of the Mewar School. His paintings show the influence of both Malwa School and of early Mughal School. The architectural setting, the bright colors, the flatness of the space are borrowed from the former School;  the faces of the women, their transparent chunnis, are from the latter School. But the ethos is typically Hindu.
          The Nayak, painted in blue color, is Krishna. He has arrived at Radha's house where he will find her playing 'chausar' with her friends. Sahibdin has caught the relaxed mood of the moment.  Notice the two birds in the cages, perhaps pointing to the two love birds, Krishna and Radha, who are yet to be united. Radha playing chausar, a game of dice and luck, as much of a gamble as is love.