Indian Painting B.A. II Dr. O. P. Parameswaran, Assistant Professor, Department of Fine Arts, Post Graduate Govt. College for Girls, Sector-11, Chandigarh.

Unit-1: History of Indian Painting (BA-3) 1.Rajasthani Painting: 1.1:- Raga Ragini from Bundi

Introduction: In the early period the paintings of Bundi and Kotak cannot be distinguished since Bundi formed a unified state with Kotak till second quarter of the 17th century. From the middle of that century Bundi became the only other state in Rajasthan to exhibit a genuine style of painting. Its glorious production reflects its picturesque landscape of hills, thick jungles, flowing rivers, lotus ponds and lakes alive with water birds.

Ragamala paintings: Ragamala means garland of melody or mode. It refers to a particular type of miniature painting in which poems dealing with musical sentiment are illustrated by representation of specific human situations. Through the verbal imagery of a poem, the content of the musical form (raga) was made more exact, and the painting in turn made this imagery visible.

A Raga, the classical Indian musical mode, literally means something that colour, which fills the mind with a definite feeling, passion, or emotion. These paintings were created in the albums containing most after 30 or 40 follies organized in a system of families. Each family is headed by Raga (male) contains 5 or 6 Raginies (wives), sometimes also Ragputras (sons) even Ragputries (daughters) and wives of son’s.

Each raga is further associated with a particular season and time of day. One speaks of a raga as being either ‘morning’ or ‘evening’ raga. To perform one at an inappropriate time is thought to be not only unaesthetic but also hazardous. Ragamala paintings are unique in the world of art. It is only in Indian that painting poetry and music come together in such a unified and interdependent grouping.

Bhairavi Ragini A dispersed Ragamala series can be assigned to the earliest and formative period of Bundi paintings (c ). The ‘Bhairavi Ragini’ (Allahabad museum) belongs to this series. It shows a lady worshipping a Shiv lingam inside a domed shrine. The lotus pond in front teems with fish and water birds.

The lady’s rounded chin, her eyes and other features, as well as the dark colors, recall the Mewar style. While the tress in the background and the lotus pond reflect the Bundi landscape. The rendering of the lotus pond however may also derive from Mandu. A Ragamala set in the Bharat Kala Bhavan, Varanasi also, belongs to this period.

Bhairavi Ragini

Mughal influence: The painters, who trained under the master artist of the Mughal ateliers, established the figural and landscape elements of the popular Mughal style to be carried over and reinterpreted again at Bundi and Kota. The vertical format of the folios and the border decoration with arabesque are indeed such Mughal features. The lush vegetation and the architectural details enlivened by the tile-work are also to be noted. Typical are also the profiles of faces with pronounced full cheeks.

Vasantha Ragini The Vasantha Ragini (c.1660, G.K.Kanoria collection, Calcutta) typifies the Bundi style at the height of its glory. It shows Krishna with usual dark blue complexion dancing beside a lotus pond with a pair of gopies to his right. Another one on his left beats a drum.

The lively rhythmic gestures contrast with the conventional treatment of the rippling waters of the pond, the grass, trees and flowers. These enhance the romantic mood of the scene. The lotus pond with birds characterizes the Bundi style.

Towards the end of the 17th century, the Bundi style underwent further changes. The faces become more refined and have a flesh-pink color. Water is stylized into wavy white lines rippling on a dark indigo background. Vivid colors in various colors shades enrich the landscape.

The Vasantha Ragini (c.1660, G.K.Kanoria collection, Calcutta