architecture, art and craft

ARCHITECTURE, ART AND CRAFT
Art is a valuable heritage in the culture of a people. When one speaks of art,
one generally means the visual arts—architecture, sculpture and painting. In the
past all three aspects intermingled. Architecture involved sculpture as well as
painting.
Indian art, at least in the olden days, scholars point out, was inspired by
religion. However, there is nothing ascetic or self-denying about it. The artists and
craftsmen may have worked according to priestly instructions, but in expressing
themselves they showed their delight in the world as they found it. Indeed there is
a holistic vision expressed through Indian art, a vision that is always aware of the
divine principle behind the material world, the eternal diversity of life and nature,
and above all, the human element.
The history of Indian art covers about five thousand years of almost
continuous evolution.
ARCHITECTURE AND SCULPTURE
Ancient and medieval Indian architecture cannot be viewed in isolation from
sculpture which was almost integral to it. Perhaps only the Indus Valley culture is
an exception in this context, for its buildings are utilitarian, without artistic
flourishes. May be, their decorative embellishments have been lost over time.
However, the art of sculpture was well developed.
Statues and Seals of Indus Valley
Though called ‗Indus Valley‘ or ‗Harappa‘ culture, this civilisation had a
much larger spread and apparently was well advanced with the general
architectural scheme that they have given the mausoleum a jewel-like enrichment.
Kashmir has some of the gardens that the Mughals were famous for Shalimar
Bagh, built by Jahangir for his wife Nur Jahan, has sweeping vistas over gardens
and lakes, and shallow terraces. A canal lined with polished stones and supplied
with water from Harwan runs through the middle of the garden. Situated on the
banks of the Dal Lake, with the Zabarwan Mountains as its backdrop, Nishat
Bagh—the ‗garden of bliss‘—commands a magnificent view of the lake and the
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snow capped Pir Panjal mountain range which stands far away to the west of the
valley. Nishat was designed in 1633 by Asaf Khan, brother of Nur jahan. Chashma
Shahi has tastefully laid garden in terraces, which commands a magnificent view
of the Dal Lake below and surrounding mountain ranges. The cool water of the
spring is highly refreshing and digestive. The original garden was laid out by Shah
Jahan in 1632.
After Shah Jahan, Mughal architecturç declined in style as well as in number
of buildings. The particular dislike of Aurangzeb for the fine arts may, no doubt,
have contributed to this situation. The most important architectural monument
representing the later Mughal style is the tomb of Rabia Daurani, wife of
Aurangzeb, at Aurangabad. It is, on the whole, a mediocre effort, in spite of some
striking features such as the profuse stucco work and well-planned garden. The
Moti Masjid built by Aurangzeb in the Red Fort is a striking piece in polished
white marble in which the earlier craftsmanship is retained. With the death of
Aurangzeb, the decadence in the Mughal architecture was complete, one might
say.
In the Tomb of Safdar Jang (circa 1753) an effort was made to arrest the
degeneration of the style. The last hi the tradition of the great square mausoleum
and garden complex, the tomb stands an a large arcaded square terrace. The tomb
proper is a double-storeyed building in finely worked fawn sandstone.
While the glorious Indo-Islamic tradition came to an end with the Mughals,
or perhaps more correctly with Shah Jahan, the tradition did thrive to some extent
under the Nawabs of Awadh. The Bara Imambara at Lucknow constructed in
1784 by Asafad-Daula has a noteworthy interior. The most expressive specimen of
the Awadh style is the massive main entrance of the Imambara, called the Runu
Darwaza, remarkable for its mixture of extravagant boldness and the frivolously
pretty, the balance of its proportions and variety of design. The later Awadh
architecture shows definite European influence.
Indo-Islamic architecture also found expression under the Mysore Sultans,
Haidar Mi and Tipu Sultan. The Darya Daulat Bagh, meant as a summer resort for
the sultan, is noteworthy for its graceful proportions and lavish decorations in rich
coloui, frescoes of battle scenes and portraits of ruling chiefs.
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The Sikh rulers borrowed from the Mughals for their building style, but
adapted it to create a new style. The most important product of Sikh expression is
supplied by the Golden Temple at Amritsar (1764), set in the centre of a large
sheet of water and connected with the mainland by a causeway. Its foundation was
laid by Guru Ram Das and it was completed by his son Arjun Dev. The typical
features of this Sikh form of architecture, according to Percy Brown, are the
multiplicity of chatris or kiosks which ornament the parapets, angles and every
prominence or projection; the invariable use of the fluted dome generally covered
with brass or copper-gilt; the frequent, introduction of oriel or embowed windows
with shallow elliptical cornices and supported on brackets; and the enrichment of
all arches by numerous foliations.
The Rajput forms which ran parallel to the Mughal are picturesque and
romantic. Most of them have hanging balconies of all shapes and sizes, and even
long loggias supported on rows of elaborately carved brackets. A common striking
feature is a carved cornice arcade in shape, producing shadows arched ‗like a bow.
The European Influence
The Europeans who came to India for trade established their settlements at
various places. In these settlements they built Based on archaeological evidence
the main period of florescence of this culture—it‘s mature or urban phase—is
believed to have taken place sometime between 2100 and 1750 BC, though Industype artefacts have been found in Mesopotamia dating around 2300 BC.
Judging from the scientific layout of magnificent cities, the excellence of the
materials used in the construction of the houses which included baths, upperstoreys and wells, the existence of citadels, assembly halls, granaries, workshops,
hostels, market-places, and an almost modern drainage system, it was a culture of
high order. It was natural that arts and crafts should flourish greatly in a society
that was so advanced. Among the surviving works of art of this civilisation, the
most beautiful perhaps is a miniature, bronze girl with thin, stick- like limbs who
holds a bowl against her thigh. There are two mutilated torsos in limestone and red
stone from Harappa. There is a vital dynamic quality and plastic subtlety expressed
in these statuettes.
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Of all the sculptural pieces the best preserved is a seven- inch high head and
shoulder of a man, the face wearing a short beard and a closely cut moustache, and
the body draped in a shawl passing round the left shoulder and under the right arm,
suggesting the image of a priest. This statue and other statues of bearded heads
found at Mohenjodaro have some similarity with the statuary at Sumeria, but the
technical details might be superficial without any real affinity,
There are a variety of objects made in terracotta which include all kinds of
small figurines and ceramic vessels of various shapes and designs. Particularly
charming are the clay animal figures which may well have been intended for toys,
for they‘ are playful in mood and small in scale. The numerous jars and bowls are
painted with designs usually derived from nature and connected with fertility
Among the objects found at the Indus sites are numerous small square
steatite seals with carved designs along with pictographic scripts. The seals may
have belonged to individuals who used them to mark property and authenticate
contracts. The prism-shaped sealings were probably records of contracts. The
scenes the seals illustrate include a large number of bulls and occasionally other
animals. According to expert opinion ―the animal seals are among the world‘s
greatest examples of an artist‘s ability to embody the essentials of a given form in
artistic shape. These are not portraits of any individual bulls, but universal
representation of a species.‖ Over 2,000 seals and seal impressions with 400
different signs have been found at the Indus Valley and to this date there has been
no confirmed decipherment. Hence our knowledge of the civilization is inadequate
in many respects.
Mauryan Artefacts
No significant architectural remains have been found corresponding to the
period between the Harappans and the Mauryas. This is probably because
buildings were not made of stone in this period.
Mauryan rule marks an important phase in our cultural history. Though
nothing remains of the cities built by the Mauryas, the splendour of power that the
Mauryas tried to create is reflected in an account of the capital city of Pataliputra
given by Megasthenes. The city, occupying a parallelogram about 10 miles long
and two miles wide, was girded by a stupendous wooden wall pierced with
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loopholes for the archers. The wall was topped by over 500 towers and provided
with as many as 64 gates. Within the enclosure was the royal palace, which, in plan
and decorative treatment, appears to have been inspired by the Achaemenid
palaces at Persepolis in Iran. The imperial palace was still standing when the
Chinese Buddhist pilgrim Fa-Hien saw it around AD 400; he was so impressed by
the walls, doorways and the sculptured designs that he felt sure that they‘ could not
have been executed by human hands.
Ashoka, grandson of Chandragupta, embraced Buddhism and the immense
Buddhist missionary activities that followed encouraged the development of
distinct sculptural and architectural styles.
Pillars The court art of Ashoka is best seen in the white- grey sandstone
columns erected by him all over his empire either to mark a sacred site associated
with Buddha‘s life or to commemorate a great .event. On many of these pillars are
inscribed the famous edicts of Ashoka propagating the Dhamma (Dharma or Laws
of the Buddha) or the imperial sermons of Ashoka to his people.
Rising to an average height of about 40 feet, the pillars in their most
developed state, are tall, tapering monoliths with sculptured capitals, incorporating
a series of fluted petals in elongated shape, (which falling together take the form of
a bell, commonly known as the Persepolitan Bell) surmounted by a circular abacus
ornamented with animal and floral motifs in relief. There is a crowning animal
sculpture on the round, which is usually the lion, bull or elephant, represented
singly on the early capitals, and grouped on the later ones.
In the bull capital from Rampurva (now in the National Museum at New
Delhi) the bull is rendered naturalistically in a manner reminiscent of seal carving
from the Indus civilisation, suggesting continuity in tradition. The lion capital once
stood at Sarnath from where Buddha preached his first sermon. The animals
around the drum of the capital—consecutively the bull, horse, lion and elephant
between which are depictions of chakras (wheels)—almost appear to be pulling an
invisible vehicle as if to perpetuate the wheel of Dhamma. The pillar in its original
form had a gigantic stone wheel crowning the top of the lions. The crisp carving,
smooth polish and high quality of craftsmanship have earned this work,
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particularly the capital, a reputation as one of ancient India‘s greatest artistic
achievements.
Rock-cut Architecture Ashoka‘s reign also saw the firm establishment of
one of the most important an4 characteristic art traditions of South Asia—the,
rock-cut architecture. The series of rock-cut sanctuaries in the Barabar and
Nagarjuni hills, near Gaya in Bihar, contain a number of inscriptions which show
that they were donated for the habitation of certain Ajivika ascetics, perhaps
followers of the Jam religion. Architecturally, their main interest lies in being the
earliest known examples in India of the rock-cut method. Also they represent a
contemporary type of structure that combined wood and thatch. Sudama and
Lomas Rishi caves are the two notable hermitages, each consisting of‘ a circular
cell with a hemispherical domed roof attached to a barrel-vaulted anteroom with
side entrances.
The Stupa The stupa was not unknown in India before the time of Ashoka.
It was originally a simple burial mound of earth and bricks erected by the Vedic
Aryans. There is no evidence of veneration paid to relic-mounds in the pre-Maurya
period. From the time Ashoka divided up the existing body relics of the Buddha
and erected monuments to enshrine them, the stupas became objects of cult
worship. Gradually, in Buddhist art and religion, the stupa came to be accepted as a
sort of architectural body representing the Buddha himself. The core of the stupa
was of unburnt brick, and the outer face of burnt brick, covered with a thick layer
of plaster. The stupa was crowned by an umbrella of wooden fence enclosing a
path for pradakshina.
Human Figures Several stone sculptures of human figures demonstrating
characteristics of the Maurya period have been found. Of these, one is an
extremely well-preserved statue of a female chowrie (fly whisk) bearer (now in the
Patna Museum) which was found by villagers at Didarganj. The technique, surface
refinement and high polish undoubtedly relate it to the Maurya period. The figure
wears a hip-hugging garment over her lower body; its diaphanous folds are
depicted by double-incised lines across her legs. Heavy ornaments, including a
jewelled or beaded girdle, anklets, armbands, necklaces and earrings adorn the
figure. This type of feminine attire will be seen throughout the development of
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Indian art with some variation, but essentially, the clinging lower garment, bare
torso and abundant jewellery became the norm.
Cave and Rock-Cut Architecture
Before the Gupta period the chief architectural remains, other than stupas
and their surrounding gateways and railings, are artificial caves, excavated for
religious purposes. Early cave specimens were excavated on wooden models—
standardized religious meeting places consisting of thatched huts. The early
caves—two at Barabar (near Gaya) and Nagarjuni Hills—are quite unadorned. The
inner walls of the caves are finely polished, no doubt by workmen of the school
responsible for the polish of the Ashokan pillars.
Later cave temples and monasteries are to be found in many parts of India,
but it was in the Western Deccan, under the Satavahana rulers and their successors,
that the largest and most famous artificial caves were excavated.
The earliest rock-cut caves in India are attributed to Ashoka (273-232 BC)
and his grandson Dasaratha. Eventually this rock- cut architecture developed into a
powerful and popular architectural style and gave the country nearly 1,200
excavations which are scattered in many parts. This architecture had three definite
phases: the earliest dating from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD, the
second from the 5th to the 7th century and the last from the 7th to the 10th‘ century
These developments took place primarily in the Western Ghats and only
secondarily in other parts of the country The rock architecture was suited to India,
for the country had plenty of rocky mountains, and structures excavated in. stone
were the most durable.
The early Buddhist architecture covers the period from the 2nd century BC
to the 2nd century AD. The first phase of excavations in Western India was related
exclusively to early Buddhism, which meant the worship of the Buddha
represented symbolically. The excavations took the shape of (i) the chaitya or
prayer hall and (ii) the vihara or monastery. Both initiated in rock the structural
forms practised in less permanent materials like wood.
The characteristic features of these early temples were two establishments,
each self-contained and consisting of a prayer hall (chaitya) and a monastery
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(vihara) which contained accommodation for monks. The square central hall was
approached through a verandah or portico, and doorways led into cells for
members of the brotherhood. Examples of the early Buddhist architecture can still
be seen at Karla, Kanheri, Nask, Bhaja and Bedsa and at Ajanta.
The second phase began in the 5th century AD. This phase was characterised
by the virtual elimination of timber and by the introduction of the image of the
Buddha as a dominant feature of the architectural design. Nevertheless, the plan of
the excavations, particularly of the chaitya, remained essentially, the same as that
of similar constructions of the earlier phase. The statue of the Buddha sometimes
assumed gigantic proportions. The vihara also underwent a slight change: the inner
cells, formerly inhabited by the monks alone, now housed the image of the Buddha
as well.
Buddhists of the Mahayana School followed the broad architectural
principles of their predecessors, the Hinayana Buddhists, and their architecture
consisted, as hitherto, of the chaitya and the vihara.
Later, the Hindus and Jams extended the Buddhist architectural tradition but
with certain modifications, designed to suit their own rituals.
The dominant features of the Dravidian rock-cut style are the mandapa and
the ratha. The mandapa is an open pavillion excavated out of a rock. It takes the
form of a simple columned hall with two or more cells (compartments for the
deity) in the back wall. The ratha (literally chariot) is a monolithic shrine carved
out of a single rock.
Kanheri Caves These caves near Mumbai (in Thane district of
Maharashtra) belong to the, Hinayana phase of Buddhist architecture, while the 5th
century image of the Buddha in the chaitya hall suggests later additions. Altogether
there are more than 100 caves here. Their main features are flights of connecting
steps and stone seats provided for the monks to rest on. Although many of the
caves are not of great artistic merit, they have some archaeological interest
inasmuch as they cover the period from the 2nd to the 9th century AD.
Jogeshwari Caves These caves are within the island of Salsette which
comprised the original ‗Bombay‘ island. Although greatly defaced, they are of
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interest as they belong to the last stages of the Mahayana Buddhist architecture.
Brahmanical influence is evident for the shrines are isolated and stand in the centre
of a cruciform hail with more than one entrance. The caves belong to the second
half of the 8th century.
Montpezir (Mandapeswar) These caves are of particular interest as they
are probably the only Brahmanical caves to be converted into a Christian shrine.
Even today, there is a Christian orphanage, the ruins of an old Portuguese church,
and a Franciscan monastery nearby. The three caves date from the 8th century.
Kane, Bhaja and Bedsa Caves The Kane Caves on Banaghata Hills (near
Mumbai) belong to the Hinayana period of Buddhist architecture. The main feature
of this group is the chaitya which is amongst the largest and the best-preserved in
India. Its entrance, which is extremely imposing, is a kind of massive vestibule to
the arcaded screen in its rear. The two giant pillars have a group of lions
supporting a large wheel and though partly covered by debris they must once have
been about 50 feet in height. They are somewhat peculiar, being detached from the
main structure. The decorative railings and supporting elephants (half life-size and
originally with ivory tusks) at each end indicate an advanced stage of ornamental
work in which symbols were used repeatedly and alternately. The interior or the
chaitya hail consists of a colonnade, vaulting and sun-window. The sun-window, a
wonderful arrangement for the diffusion of light, deflected the rays of the sun in
such a manner that soft light fell in the stupa and the screen, half-tones on the
pillars and gloom in the aisles.
The 18 Bhaja caves (near Pune) are supposed to have been built for Buddhist
nuns. They were excavated in the 2nd century BC. Owing to the ravages of time,
the face and entrance of the main cave (No. 12) are now open and provide us with
an unrestricted view of the hall. The pillars are sloping, but the stilted vault is a
fine piece of work. The stupa is very plain and in two parts, probably relieved,
when originally built, by frescoes of which there is now little trace. The last cave to
the south has some fine sculpture, including a prince seated on an elephant, a
prince in a chariot and three armed figures. The ‗dancing couple‘ is a justly famous
piece of sculpture.
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The caves at Bedsa (near Pune) belong to a slightly later period than those at
Bhaja. The chaitya resembles the great hall at Karle but is smaller. It has four
pillars with carvings of horses, bulls and elephants mounted by male and female
riders. Its ribbed roof is supported by 26 octagonal pillars, 10 feet high.
Ellora And Ajanta Caves The Ellora Caves and the Aj‘anta Caves are near
Aurangabad in Maharashtra.
Chalukya and Rashtrakuta kings ruled over the Deccan from the middle of
the 6th century AD to almost the end of the 12th century. The former were tolerant
of all religions and, under their liberal patronage, the technique of excavating
―rock-cut temples reached a high degree of perfection. With the rise of the
Rashtrakuta and other powers in the Deccan, there was a decline of Buddhist
influence, but artistic activity continued unabated.
Rock-hewn architecture reached its zenith in western India as the Western
Ghats provided suitable sites for excavation and carving. No existing caves as:
such were used. Thus architecture was sculpture on a mass scale. The solidity of
the rock obviated the‘ need for periodic repairs, and many of the temples are in a
state of good preservation to this day. An aesthetic vision and advanced technical
knowledge combined in the architects. It is interesting to note that the excavation
usually proceeded from the top downwards—the natural rock-surface below
providing a platform and eliminating the necessity of scaffolding.
The Ajanta Caves, accidentally discovered by a shooting party in 1829, are
excavated out of amygdaloid trap rock, and situated in the scarped side of a deep
ravine that is shaped like a crescent. They are entirely Buddhist and date from
about 200 BC to approximately 650 AD. It is of interest to note that the Chinese
Buddhist travellers, Hiuen Tsang and Fa Hien, refer to Ajanta in accounts of their
travels
Of the 29 excavations, four are chaitya halls (all differing in design) and the
rest are viharas. The decorative motifs differ with the age of the excavations. The
Hinayana and Mahayana phases are also well defined, the first being simpler, the
second being much more decorative and characterised by images of the Buddha.
The caves are unique in that they combine three forms of art—architecture,
sculpture and painting.
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The technique employed in the frescoes was to spread on the rough surface
of the rock a layer of clay mixed with cow- dung and rice-husks. Sometimes
pounded brick mixed with fibre was added. Over the plaster was spread a coating
of white lime plaster, and the surface was kept moist while the colour was applied.
The outlines were first drawn in red. The colours used were local pigments Sand
all the colours except blue could be obtained from neighbouring hills. The
paintings sought their inspiration from the Jatakas, legendary Buddhist stories.
Caves No. 13, 12, 10, 9 and 8 (according to chronological sequence) belong
to the Hinayana period; No. 11, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 18, and .20 and perhaps No. 6
and 7 belong to a later Mahayana period ending approximately AD 580 No, 1 to 5
and 21 to. 29, also Mahayana in character, came into existence between AD 500
and 650. Caves 19 and 26 (chaitya) and 1 and 16 (yiharas) are good representative
specimens. No. 16 is one of the most important caves, being the most elegant
architecturally. The shrine has a large statue of the Buddha preaching. This cave
contains the famous fresco of ‗The Dying Princess‘. The Ellora Caves are unique
because the visitor can see three styles of architecture at one place, 12 Buddhist, &
Jam and 17 Brahmanical caves being located here side by side.. Unlike the Ajanta
cave temples, they‘ are excavated in the sloping sides of a hill and not in a
perpendicular cliff. As a result, most of the temples have courtyards and sometimes
an outer wall or rock with an entrance through it. The 10th century Arab
geographer Masudi and the European Thevenot who visited the temples in 1667,
have left accounts of these cave temples in their writings.
The Buddhist temples were excavated between AD 350 to 700. Compared
with the Brahmanical temples, they are austere and solemn. Cave No. 10, the only
chaitya at Ellora, is in the form of a chapel, reminiscent of Ajanta and Elephanta. It
is called Vishvakarma, the name indicating its dedication to the patron saint of the
craftsman.
Caves No.11 and 12 are some of the few caves in India with, more than one
storey.
The next group‘ consists of Brahmanical caves, excavated between the
seventh and the early eighth century. No.14, Ravan ki Khai (Excavation of Ravan)
is different from the Buddhist temples, having a front aisle of 4 pillars, 12 columns
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enclosing a central hall and, beyond, a shrine standing by itself at the end of the
hail. The south wall has Shaiva sculptures; the north wall has Vaishnava (i.e.
pertaining to Vishnu) sculptures, representations‘ of Durga, Lakshmi, the Varaha
or boar incarnation of Vishnu, etc. Inside the shrine is a figure of Durga. Cave No.
15 is the Dasavatara cave.
The Kalidasa temple, dedicated to Shiva, is considered to be a magnificent
achievement of the ancient Hindus, and represents Shiva‘s celestial abode, Mt.
Kailasa. It was executed under the patronage of the Rashtrakuta king, Krishna I. It
is one of the grandest monolithic excavations in the world. The architects worked
from above downwards‘, until they struck one gigantic solid rock which they
shaped into a temple. The hillside was cut down to the level of the base of the hill
and it has been estimated that 3 million cubic feet of rock were chiselled out. The
remarkable imagination which conceived it, the unstinted labour which was spread
over an uninterrupted period of a hundred years and finally, the sculpture with
which it is adorned have been aptly summed by Percy Brown: ―This, plastic
decoration is....something more than a record of artistic form, it is a great spiritual
achievement, each portion being a rich statement glowing with meaning.‖
Kailasa stands in the middle of a vast court in which are carved colossal
elephants and other animals. The main temple is dedicated to Shiva. The temple
proper stands on a plinth and has an impressive frieze of boldly carved elephants
and lions. The temple is approached by flights of steps and is double -storeyed with
chapels and monastic halls hewn out of the rock.
Over the temple rises the tower in three tiers, with. a projecting gable front
surmounted by a cupola. The interior consists of a pillared hall with a cruciform
central aisle. The friezes on the wall have scenes from the Ramayana executed
with superb artistry and craftsmanship. The pavilion has Shiva‘s bull, Nandi, in
front. The two pillars on either side of the Nandi shrine are called dhvajastambhas
(flag-staffs). They have symbolic carvings pertaining to the cult of Shiva and are
fine works of art.
In the final group of five Ellora caves (the Jam group), the most—interesting
are the Indra Sabha (assembly hall of Indra, king of the gods) and Jagannath Sabha
(assembly hall of the lord of the universe. The Indra Sabha is a two-storeyed shrine
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cut into the rock to a depth of over 200 feet and is approached through a rock-hewn
doorway leading into a square courtyard. To the right is an imposing statue of an
elephant. The Jagannath Sabha is similar in plan to the Indra Sabha but smaller.
The shrine is a small antechamber with a well proportioned torana (arch), and
within it is a seated Mahavira. The walls are recessed for figured sculptures, and
the pillars are richly carved in the best Jam traditions. The upper storey is borne on
12 profusely sculptured pillars and these and the broad surface dividing the two
storeys are profusely carved, the upper one having images of the 24 Jain
tirthankaras. The ceiling over the large altar is in the form of a large lotus. At each
end of the hall is a large shrine containing a statue of Mahavira. This temple is
possibly the earliest of the Jain group.
On the top of the hill in which the Jam caves are excavated is a rock-hewn
statue of Parasnath.
Eladipattam To the south at Sittanavasal, on the top of the hill there is a
natural shelter known as Eladipattam (also Ezhadippattam). It served as a Jain
shelter since 1st century BC. Eladipattam is supposed to have got its name from
seven holes cut in the rock—they serve as steps to ascend the shelter. Inside this
cave there are seventeen polished stone berths aligned into rows, each with a raised
part—most likely these were beds for Jains with ‗stone pillows‘. The largest of
these ascetic beds contains inscription in Brahmi script, in Tamil language from 1st
century BC. Some more inscriptions in Tamil language are from much later time—
8th century AD. These inscriptions name mendicants-monks who, most likely,
spent their lives in isolation in this hill. Eladipattam served as a site for very severe
penance: kayotsarga (meditation in standing posture until salvation) and sallekhana
(fasting until death).
Udayaglri caves At Udayagiri, 20 rock-cut chambers were excavated during
the Gupta period, two of which bear inscriptions from the reign of Chandra Gupta
II. These caves are vital documents since they constitute the earliest intact body of
Hindu art in India, and demonstrate that by the early fifth century, many Hindu
iconographic formulas were already well established. One of the most important
caves at Udayagiri is Cave 5, the Varaha Cave (or niche). Its main feature is a
colossal rock-cut relief of the boar-incarnation (Varaha) of God Vishnu rescuing
the Earth Goddess from chaos in the presence of adoring gods and saints. The
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massive dynamism of the Varaha-god rises into gigantic appearance ‗and is free
from any restraint. The power of the Indian artist reaches its peak in the well
balanced composition of forceful energy combined with cosmic majesty, working
for good against chaos and destruction.
Nasik Caves To the south-west of Nasik, on the main Mumbai road, is an
important group of 23 Buddhist caves belonging to the Hinayana period of
Buddhist .architecture, and dating back to the 1st century AD. When the Buddha
was not represented anthropomorphically, his spiritual presence was denoted by a
throne, a footstool, or footprints. This group of caves, called Pandu Lena, is on the
easternmost side of the three conical peaks at the extreme and of the Trimbak
range of hills. They consist of three large halls and one fine chapel.
Junagadh Caves Uparkot (meaning ‗citadel‘) is, an ancient fortress which
was the scene of historic sieges between the middle of the 14th and end of the 16th
century AD. Its entrance, in the form of an archway, is a fine specimen of the
Hindu torana. Uparkot has many interesting Buddhist caves and was evidently the
site of a Buddhist monastery in ancient times. Some of the caves, apparently, were
two or three storeys high. Belonging to about AD 300, their outstanding features
are the halls, connected by winding staircases. In the upper chamber is a small
refractory and a tank surrounded by a corridor, all supported by six richly carved
columns indicative of fine craftsmanship.
Bagh In Bagh, Madhya Pradesh, there are nine sandstone. Buddhist caves
with beautiful frescoes and sculptured stonework. A tentative dating assigns them
to 6th century AD but they may have predated the Ajanta frescoes.
Undavalli The Undavalli caves near Vijayawada (Andhra Pradesh) are 7th
century Hindu cave temples cut into five tiers along the slope of a back granite hill.
The, main attraction is a reclining statue of Vishnu, sculpted from a single block of
granite. The Buddha is given pride of place.
Elephants Caves On the island of Elephanta off the Mumbai harbour are the
Elephanta caves of the 8th century AD. The islands derive their name from the
giant carving of an elephant which used to stand at the old landing stage.
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The Ganesh Gumpha is one of the earliest examples of the Brahmanical
temple and has been excavated in a rocky terrace, the outside consisting of a
columned verandah, and approached by steps flanked by sculptured elephants. At
each end of the facade is a pilaster (square pillar projecting from a wall) carved in
the shape of a dvarapala (door-keeper) with a huge spear. The masterpiece i a
three-faced image (Trimurti representing the Maheswara aspect of Shiva. The left
face presents the fierce male aspect of Shiva and the face on the right the gentle,
feminine qualities of his all-transcending nature. The other view is that the
Trimurti represents Brahrna (creator), Vishnu (preserver) and Shiva (destroyer).
Other interesting sculptures in the cave show the marriage of Shiva with Parvati;
Bhairava;Shiva in the tandava dance; Ravana, the demon king shaking Kailasa;
Ardhanariswara— ‗the Lord who is both male and female‘.
Famous Stupas
In the period between the Maas and the Guptas the older stupas were greatly
enlarged and behutified. Of these three are noteworthy—those at Bharhut and
Sanchi in Madhya Pradesh, and at Amaravati in the lower Krishna valley.
The Bharhut stupa, perhaps in its present form dating from the middle of
the 2nd century BC, is important for its sculpture, as the stupa itself has now
vanished. In the days of the Mauryan emperor, Ashoka, a brick stupa measuring
about 68 feet in diameter and covered with plaster was constructed at Bharhut. The
carvings depict scenes from the Jatakas; the richness and variety of the figures and
decorative features strike the observer. During the reign of the Sungas, who were
in power in the second century BC and reigned till the year 72 BC, a richly
decorated stone railing, 88 feet in diameter was added to enclose the mound. The
representation of Buddha in human as well as in symbolic form is an important
feature of Bharhut art. Another important feature of the narrative relief at Bharhut
is that it is provided with inscriptions, which helps one to Identify the scenes—a
practice, which was not followed later. Though the figures are too crowded and
generally lack expression, Bharhut art marks progress over the simple art of the
Mauryas.
Nothing is now visible of the celebrated stupa at this Buddhist site other than
a shallow depression in the ground. Bricks and sandstone fragments are strewn all
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around and the remains of the sandstone railing, pillar and gateways that
surrounded the stupa have been removed. Most of these artefacts are displayed in
the Bharhut gallery at the Indian Museum, Kolkata.
The Sanchi stupa is, of course, famous. Sanchi is unique in having the most
perfect and well-preserved stupas, and Buddhist art and architecture pertaining to a
period of about thirteen hundred years, from the third century BC to the twelfth
century AD—almost covering the whole range of Buddhism. The foundation of the
great religious establishment of Sanchi was probably laid by Ashoka (c. 273-236
BC), when he built a stupa and erected a monolithic pillar here. It was enlarged to
twice its original size, becoming a hemisphere of about 120 feet in diameter, in the
2nd century BC, under the Sungas. It was then faced with well-cut masonry laid in
regular courses, and an upper terraced path was added. The old wooden railings
were replaced by stone ones, tenoned and mortised in imitation of carpentry.
Towards the end of the first century BC, under the Satavahanas, four gateways
(torana) were added at the four cardinal points. The gateways are remarkable for
their carved ornamentation. The railings have magnificent decoration, representing
stories from the Jatakas the birth, enlightenment, first sermon and death of the
Buddha; historical events connected with Ashoka, such as events associated with
his pilgrimages; village scenes, palace scenes, forest scenes with elephants,
monkeys and other animals, birds and floral motifs, hunters, soldiers, ancient
musical instruments with people playing them. The stone is covered with beautiful
carving of a high technical excellence, some with depth of relief, some in as relief
and some in the round. The treatment is simple and naturalistic and shows no
foreign element or influence. There was a revival of sculptural activity at Sanchi
during the Gupta rule. In temple 17, we find one of the earliest Gupta temple styles
which are noted for their well-balanced proportion, restraint in ornamentation and
elegance.
The Amaravatl stupa, which is in its final form, was completed around 200
AD, had carved panels telling the story of the life of the Buddha. The sculpture,
beautiful and idealistically treated, showed for the first time, Buddha as a divinity,
receiving worship. When excavated by archaeologists in about -1797, its remains
were found to have fallen to pieces, most of the pieces having been removed
through the centuries for building purposes. The stupa must have covered about
600 sq. m. Its surfaces were carved in the Bharhut style but some features of the
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Mathura and Gandhara sculptures were also adopted; execution of flowers, foliage,
scrolls, friezes, medallions, etc. was very fine exhibiting great vitality of design,
exquisite linear rhythm and unexcelled beauty. Some marble, images were carved
in the round. The sculptural remains of Amaravati, known as the ‗marbles‘ (the
limestone giving the impression of marble), have found their way to the British
Museum. The Amaravati school of art is known for the following features.
White marble limestone is the medium
Though nature is depicted, the central characters are human beings.
Kings, princes and palaces figure prominently in sculptural representation.
The sculptures of kings are not individual statues as in Mathura but are part
of, a narrative.
In fact, the Amaravati school art under its Satavahana and lkshvaku patrons
and master craftsmen produced some of the finest art pieces in ancient India.
The stupa at Nagarjunakonda, in Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh,
belongs to the Saka-Satavahana period reflecting Mahayana Buddhism.
Excavations have unearthed the remains of a stupa, viharas, chailyas and
mandapams as well as some outstanding examples of white marble carvings and
few sculptures depicting the life of the Buddha. The carvings, display a mastery in
which detailed ornamentation and elegance of the sculpture are joined in a rare
harmony.
Full homage is also paid,to the local cults of yakshas and nagas, as at
Amaravati, Bharhut and Sanchi.
Of the later stupas, the two most, famous are those of Sarnath (Uttar
Pradesh) and Nalanda (Bihar). Of the Sarnath stupa, the final form of which dates
from the Gupta period, only the inner core remains. The Dhamekh Stupa dating
back to 500 AD is the largest in the region, and marks the spot where the Buddha
proclaimed his faith. The Chaukhandi Stupa belongs to the Gupta period. An
octagonal tower built by Emperor Akbar to commemorate his father‘s visit to the
place caps the stupa.
Mulagandha Kutivihara is a beautiful vihara built by Mahabodhi Society, in
1931 with Japanese help. The stupa at Nalanda is also in ruins, giving the
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impression of a brick pyramid with steps leading upto its terraces. It underwent
many alterations in the Gupta and Pala times.
Early Classic: Sunga and Satavahana
After the Mauryas, the Sungàs were the chief ruling power in the north‘ (late
2nd century BC). The Satavahanas held sway in south-eastern region. Art under
the patronage of these two houses entered a phase of creative activity which
together represented an indigenous artistic movement with its principal source of
sustenance in Buddhism. Known in the history .of art as ‗Early Classic‘, the
Sunga-Satavahana expression took the form -of carved railings and gateways
surrounding Buddhist shrines commonly known as stupa, at Bharhut, Sanchi and
Bodh Gaya in the north, and the rock-cut decorations of the early cave shrines of
Bhaja, Kondane and Pitalkhora in western. India The early classical phase in
Indian art represents a formative epoch in which well grounded foundations were
laid that were later to give Indian sculpture and architecture a look that is highly‘
intellectual and urban. However, the progression of the aesthetic movement from
the ‗early classic to the next great art period of the Kushans was a gradual process.
Kushan Period
The, Kushan period of imperialism, at its grandest moment, reigned over the
region covering present-day Afghanistan, north-west Pakistan .and north-western
India. The rise and growth of the Kushans as a political power (1st century to 3rd
century AD) coincided with a great cultural ferment in the region. The age of
maturity in Indian classical art began now.
Kanishka I, the third member in the Kushan royal line who developed the
empire to its fullest extent, was a great ‗patron of the ‗Buddhist religion and under
him Buddhist art production ‗received a significant stimulus. Artistic activities
were fairly widespread and two main spheres of Kushan art are generally
recognised—the broader Bactria-Gandhara region in the north-west lower Kabul
Valley and upper Indus around Peshawar where strongly Hellenised and works of
Persian influence were produced, and northern India, particularly the Mathura
region, the winter capital of the Kushans, where works in the Indian style were
produced.
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An important aspect of Kushan art is the emphasis on the emperor himself
as a divine persona. This is visible in a number of contexts, including the coinage
of the Kushan rulers and in important surviving shrines from which a àult of the
divine emperor may be inferred. While the early Buddhist artists used symbols to
represent the presence of the Buddha, beginning with the Kushan rule, the Buddha
was represented in human form. It is not yet quite clear where the first images of
the Buddha were produced. Most Indian scholars believe that the Buddha image
originated in Mathura and not in Gandhara.
Gandhara School The most notable of the Gandharan icons was that of the
Buddha seated in the position of a yogi. Dressed in a monk‘s garment, his head
displays the signs of his supernatural powers—the large s, the third eye on his
forehead, and the protuberance on his head, indicating that he hears all, sees all and
knows all. Although the forms are clearly influenced by foreign art, the
iconography is strictly Indian, showing that this art represents a fusion of native
and foreign elements. The great strength of the classical elements in the art of the
Gandhara province is best seen in portrait heads and the representations of classical
deities which found their way into the Buddhist art of north-western India. The
same influence is also seen in the relief carvings which, both in their artistic style
and in much of their iconographical detail, are closely related to Roman relief
sculptures of imperial times. The position of the figures, the treatment of the body
and the architectural forms used are all clearly derived from Roman models.
Most of the Gandharan reliefs portray episodes from the life of the Buddha
or scenes from Buddhist legends. In contrast to the Buddha who is always
represented as wearing a monk‘s garment and having short hair, the bodhisattvas or
Buddhist saints are shown with a bare upper body, skirt, scarves, jewels and long
hair. This contrast between the Buddha as the sacred being who has achieved
Enlightenment, and the bodhisattva who is on the road to this goal, is found in the
Buddhist art of entire Asia.
In the Indian context, the style of Gandhara has a ‗rather insipid flavour‘.
The Buddha images lack the spirituality of the images of the Gupta period.
However, it would be only fair to note that the images have a gentle, graceful and
compassionate look about them.
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There are two phases in the development of this school: the first in stone and
the second, from about the fourth century onwards, in stucco.
Mathura School The first three centuries of the Christian era saw the
golden period of the Mathura school of sculpture. The new ideals of Mahayana
Buddhism inspired the sculptors. According to Indian authorities, the creation of
the Buddha image was the greatest contribution of the artists of this school. Its
material was for centuries the white-spotted red sandstone. This school drew
inspiration from Jainism as well as Iranian and Greco-Roman styles. Striking
remains show a female figure from the railings of a stupa, probably Jaina. Richly
jewelled, figures exaggeratedly broad of hip and slender of waist, with their
graceful, almost provocative, attitude, these sculptures exemplify the remarkable
ancient Indian outlook on life which did not see anything incongruous in the
juxtaposition of frank sensuality with the piety and renunciation of the monastery,
The Kushan art of Mathura is important in the history of Indian art as it
embodies the symbolism and iconographic forms that were adopted later. The
forms of the Brahmanical deities, for example, became crystallised at Mathura for
the first time. The influence of the Buddha image spread far and wide, reaching the
art centres of China. Some of the striking pieces of this school are the statues of
Vema Kadphises and Kanishka, torana tympanum with the worship of Buddhist
symbols, a seated Kubera, and several railing pillars with figures of women.
Gupta Period: Classic Age
The Gupta period may be described as ‗classic‘ in the sense of the degree of
perfection it achieved—something that was never achieved before and has seldom
been achieved since— and in the perfect balance and harmony of all elements in
style and iconography.
The Guptas were Brahmanical by religion with special devotion to Vishnu,
but they showed exemplary tolerance for both Buddhism and Jainism. Puranic
Hinduism with its three deities—Vishnu, Shiva and Shakti, as the consort of
Shiva— came to the forefront. While Shaivism developed in the south and southeast and Shaktism in eastern India and. in some parts of south-west Malabar,
Vaishnavism, with its emphasis on Krishna as its main, exponent, flourished
mostly in the northern and central parts of India. Popular worship was given formal
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sanction and temples and images dedicated to each of these cults came up
everywhere.
The art of the Gupta period is marked by a, deep spiritual quality and a
vision which tries to record the higher and deeper truths of life. While the early
Gupta period shows an emphasis on Hindu art, the climax of Buddhist art, with all
the previous, tendencies combined into a classical statement, comes during the
later period.
Hindu art seems to have flourished in the Vidisha region during the reign of
Chandra Gupta II. While there were some striking cave architectural pieces (e.g.
Udayagiri), the Gupta period is specially marked for the development of new
temple styles.
Gupta Temple Styles The setting up of sanctuaries for the images of gods
goes back perhaps to‘ the second century BC. The devagrahas of the pre-Christian
centuries which have been excavated are in an extremely fragmentary state But
built of perishable materials they apparently afforded little scope for architectural
principles. It was in the Gupta period that building with lasting materials began,
such as dressed stone and brick. The Gupta period marks the beginning of Indian
temple architecture. Out of the initial experimentation, two major styles evolved.
The Gupta temples were of five main types:
(i) Square building with flat roof and shallow pillared porch; as the Kankali Devi
temple at Tigawa and the Vishnu and Varaha temples at Eran. The nucleus of a
temple—the sanctum or celia (garbagriha)—with a single entrance and a porch
(mandapa) appears‘ for the first time here.
(ii) An elaboration, of the first type ‗with the addition of an ambulatory
(pradakshina) around the sanctuni and sometimes a second storey; examples being
the Shiva temple at Bhumara (Madhya Pradesh) and the Ladh-Khan at Aihole.
(iii) Square temple with a low and squat tower (shikhara) above; notable examples
are the Dasavatara temple (built in stone at Deogarh, Jhansi district) and the brick
temple at Bhitaraon (Kanpur district). A high platform at the base and the tower
add to the elevation of the composition. [The second and third types—storeyed and
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shikara—underwent further developments to crystallise into two distinctive styles
in the south and the north respectively.]
(iv) Rectangular temple with an apsidal back and barrel- vaulted roof above, such
as the Kapoteswara temple at Cezarla (Krishna district).
(v) Circular temple with shallow rectangular projections at the four cardinal faces;
the only monument exemplifying the style is the Maniyar Matha shrine at Rajgir,
Bihar. [The fourth and fifth types appear to be survivals/adaptations of the earlier
forms and do not appear to have much influenced subsequent development].
At Eran (mentioned as ‗Airakina‘ in Gupta and Huna inscriptions), a
Vaishnavite site near Vidisha, a great complex of temples and accompanying
sculptures were produced during the Gupta period. Inscriptions found at Eran
document artistic activity there from the reign of Samudra Gupta to the period of
the Hun invasion around the beginning of the sixth century. A large sculpture of
Varaha from Eran suggests sculptural ties with artistic developments at nearby
Udayagiri during the early fifth century. The power of the deity is expressed in the
full, heavy form of the body and the solidity of his pose.
The mythological and epic reliefs from the Dasavatara temple at Deogarh,
Jhansi district (5th century. AD) also reflect,
Temple Styles: Nagara, Dravida and Vesara
The Shilpa Shastras recognise three styles—Nagara, Dravida and Vesara—
along with a geographical distribution of each: Nagara in the northern region;
Dravida in the Dravida country, i.e., south; and Vesara in the territory between the
Vindhyas and the Krishna. These are really not strictly based on geographical
divisions, but merely indicate the dominating styles in a region. Actually the three
styles ultimately resolve into two, the Nagara and the Dravida.
The Nagara style temple is a square with a number of graduated
projections—rathakas—in the middle of each face which gives it a cruciform shape
on the exterior. A tower (shikhara) gradually curving inwards and capped by a
spheroid slab with ribs round the edge (amalaka) give elevation. Thus the two
major characteristics of this style are the cruciform ground plan and the curvilinear
tower.
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In the Dravida style the sanctum is situated within an ambulatory hall and
there is a pyramidal tower formed by an accumulation of several storeys in
receding dimensions.
Temple architecture in India reached its final stage of perfection in the late
medieval period. It emerged with a distinct characteristic: indivisibility of
architecture and sculpture, executed with superb technical Skill. While the
Dravidian form flourished dynastically, the Nagara style, on account of a much
wider area of distribution, developed regionally, each region manifesting its own
particular qualities. Temples of the Deccan are known to have evolved a hybrid
style, borrowing elements and features from the Nagara and the Dravida styles.
Bhitargaon (near Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh) is a village that boasts of one of
the finest specimens of temple architecture in India. Dating back to AD 600, the
brick temple at Bhitargaon is the first to have a shrine with a shikhara (prominent
spire surmounting the temple). The temple is built of large bricks set in mud
mortar. While the interior of the temple comprises only the garbhagriha or sanctum
sanctorum and the porch, the exterior ‗walls have brick carvings and decorated
terracotta panels. There was also an upper chamber above the sanctum, which was
destroyed by lightning in the 18th century. The temple represents one of the
earliest examples of shikhara or Nagara style of temple architecture in northern
India, and marks a significant deviation from the early Gupta type of flat-rooted
square shrines. An important feature of the temple is a number of terracotta panels
and figurines on the walls for architectural beautification. The terracotta sculptures,
in fact, form an integral part of the temple of Bhitargaon. The relief panels have
disintegrated though the makaras (water monsters) and gargoyle-type faces remain.
According to A.L. Basham, the style is a forerunner of that developed by Buddhist
artists which subsequently reached many parts of Southeast Asia.
Eran furnishes examples of the early temple architecture, i.e.; flat-raofed
square buildings with shallow verandahs. It is also famous for a colossal boar, the
zoomorphic incarnation of Vishnu.
Deogarh Deogarh is situated near Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh and is famous for the
Dashavatara temple of Lord Vishnu, built in stone, belonging to the Gupta period.
It is regarded as the earliest example of the shikhara/nagara style of temple. It has a
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tower gradually receding upwards over the square sanctum in contrast to the low
and flat-roofed temples of the earlier type. There are very fine sculptures on the
three walls, and a superbly decorated shrine doorway on the southern wall of the
temple. The sculpture of Lord Vishnu and Lakshmi is of artistic importance.
A temple of the post-Gupta period, Kuraiya Bir temple of the seventh
century BC is another artistic masterpiece on the banks of River Betwa. The
temple shows features of the earlier wooden tradition.
In the fort on the hilltop nearby, there are over 30 Jam temples belonging to
the ninth and 10th centuries.
Temples of Alhole, Pattadakal and Badami The architecture of these three
places prefigures the typical Hindu temple and dates between AD 600 and 750.
The earliest is the group at Aihole consisting of about 70 temples, almost 30
of which are inside a walled and bastioned enclosure. The oldest is the one called
Ladh-khan (named after a Muslim prince), where on the portico we find the
beginnings of the asana (seat), an ornamental feature of later, especially medieval,
Hindu temples. The Durga temple is an apsidal temple, and over the apse is a short
pyramidal tower, or shikhara, a feature of subsequent Hindu temples. The Durga
temple has some remarkable sculpture.
One of the last temples to be built at Aihole is the Jam temple of Meguti
constructed about AD 634. Smaller blocks of stone are used, indicating an advance
in building technique. Temple no. 53 (Brahmanical) and 39 (Jain), together with
the Meguti temple, show influences of the Dravidian style which is characterised
by square pyramids in several storeys, and the ornamentation is less than that
which is characteristic of typical Chalukyan architecture.
The temples at Pattadakal, too, are both Hindu and Jam and belong to the
Chalukyan as well as the Dravidian styles. Most of them were built between the
7th and the 8th century AD. The general characteristic of the Chalukyan temples is
the spacing out of the surface by means of pilasters, an idea which was elaborated
by later architects. The temple of Papanath is in the Chalukyan style. The
Dravidian style temples, of which the Virupaksha is the best, are different, being
recognised by their square pyramidical shikharas that cuinate in domes. Though
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not as graceful as their Chalukyan counterparts, they have certain power all their
own.
An ancient stronghold of the Chalukyas in the early 6th century, Vatapi
(Baclami) was the capital of their great ruler Pulakesin II. Conquered by the
Pallavas in 640, it again rose AD 653 but the Rashtrakutas occupied it in AD 753.
Three of the temples are Brahmanical (AD 550 to 580), and there is a Jam temple
which dates back to AD 659; and they all indicate considerable architectural
progress since the days of Aihole. Certain features are shared by all—a pillared
verandah, columned hail and a small square cell (shrine for an image) cut deep into
the rock. The exterior is comparatively plain, except for a running border of
grotesque ganas (dwarfs). The interior, in contrast, is carved with a wealth of
beutiful sculpture. The decoration is excellent but the general plan is somewhat
uncertain, as Hindu temples were still at an early stage of development.
The temple dedicated to Vishnu has an inscription that gives the date of its
construction as AD 573, and it is the largest of all. Two temples penetrate
unusually deep into the rock and the facade of each consists of a colonnade of four
pillars forming the verandah, with two pillars forming an entrance to the central
hall.
The Jam temple, (probably excavated in the middle of the next century),
imitates the Brahmanical temples, but is smaller in size and has distinguishing
elements designed to suit Jam ritual. This phase of rock-cut architecture was of a
temporary nature arid the art was soon to die out completely.
plastically as well as spiritually, the impact of the best Gupta classical traditions.
The temple displays a full-fledged shikara in three tiers rising on the top of a
square celia, and embellished with an elegantly carved doorway on one side and
three big panels placed outside the three walls.
Sculpture The success of Gupta sculpture lies in its attaining a balance
between the sensuousness of the Kushan figures and the symbolic abstraction of
the early medieval ones.
An enormous amount of Hindu, Buddhist and Jam sculptures have been
found in several places, mainly in Central India, which in quality can take their
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place along with the best from more famous centres. From Besnagar a relief of the
goddess Ganges, from Gwalior reliefs of flying apsaras, from Sondani the slab
representing a gandharva couple soaring in the air, from Khoh the Eka-Mukha
Linga, and from Bhumara a variety of sculptures reveal the same conception, poise
and grace as are seen at Sarnath.
An approximately human-size representation of the god Hari-Hara (half
Shiva-half Vishnu) from Madhya Pradesh may be dated to the first part of the fifth
century. Krishna, best known later as the eighth incarnation of Vishnu, also
appears in sculptures from the early fifth century. A representation of him from
Varanasi depicts him as Krishna Govardhanadhara, or bearer of Govardhana, in
which the deity is shown holding Mount Govarcihana with his left hand, like a
canopy; to protect the inhabitants of Vrindavana from a deluge sent by Indra, who
had been angered by the community‘s inattention to him in their devotion.
In the Gupta images, the Buddhist ideal of serenity finds a noble expression
in the Buddha‘s face, the smile suggesting the ultimate harmony achieved by the
Enlightened one. In these images every aspect is fashioned according to prescribed
canons of beauty and meaning. The position of the body, the hand gestures, and the
attributes are all symbolic in nature. In fact, the shapes of the different parts of the
body are prescribed in the sculptor‘s manual, with the head in the form of an egg,
the eyebrows like an Indian bow, the, eyelids resembling the lotus petals, the lips.
.with the fullness of the mango fruit, the shoulders rounded like, the trunk of an
elephant, the waist like that of a lion and the fingers like flowers.
The four Buddha images which were placed at the entrances of the Great
Stupa at Sanchi during the fifth century demonstrate the delicacy, grace and
tranquillity of the sculptural style that characterises the art of the mature Gupta
period. The smooth contours of the Buddha‘s body with graceful modulations also
mark the development away from the more angular forms of earlier Gupta for
Mulations. Buddha statues have also been discovered at Mathura which continued
to be a flourishing centre of Buddhism. One of the earliest statues is a fifth-century
figure which, although retaining the heavy solidity and volume of the previous
works, differs from Kushan prototypes in several respects. The carved standing
image of Sakyamuni is now entirely clothed in a monastic robe, the folds of which
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persist as a net of parallel loops. There is a carved halo around the Buddha‘s head,
the ornament consisting of a central lotus bordered by rings of leaf forms.
Another active centre of Buddhist sculpture in this period was Sarnath where
both standing and seated Buddha types were evolved. Sarnath records a greater
advance of the new aesthetic ideal.
One of the noblest and finest creations of Gupta sculpture is the high-relief
statue of the Buddha found in the ruins of Sarnath. Carved from a light sandstone,
it represents the Buddha enthroned and giving his First Sermon, while below the
pedestal two groups of kneeling monks are seen worshipping the Wheel of the Law
(Dharmachakra), the symbol of wisdom. Exquisitely carved halos are a feature of
the Sarnath Buddha as well.
Although the frescoes are the most important works at Ajanta, the
architecture of the cave temples and the carvings decorating the entrance portals
are also outstanding. In these temples, forms which were originally developed in
masonry or wood are carved out of living rock. The sculptures, both numerous and
varied, cover the entrance facades without any unified plan.
Pala School
Under the Pala and Sena rulers of Bihar and Bengal (8th-12th centuries AD)
both Buddhists and Hindus made fine icons, many in the local black basalt. The
special characteristic of Pala art is its fine finish; figures are much decorated and
well polished—often appearing to be made of metal rather than stone. Stone
sculptures of the Pala school are found at Nalanda, Rajagriha and Bodh Gaya.
Iconographically three stages of Nalanda art are recognised—Mahayana phase of
Buddha and Bodhisattva images, Sahajayana images, and finally the Kalachakra of
the Kapalika system.
Chalukyan Style
The Vesara style of Indian temple architecture has been equated with what is
known as the Chalukyan style. The style is also known as Karnataka after the name
of the territory in which it developed. However, this style cannot be said to have an
independent origin; it represents an outgrowth of the earlier Dravidian style, so
modified in its development as to have attained a separate style. The beginnings of
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this development are to be found in the reign of the early Chalukyan kings of the
7th and 8th centuries AD. At Aihole (ancient Aryapura), Badami and Pattadakal,
Dravida and Nagara-temples were erected side by side. Thus an admixture of the
two ideas took place, leading to the evolution of a hybrid style.
The Chalukyan temple, like the Dravida, consists of two principal
components—the vimana and the mandapa joined by an antarala. In course of
time, the storeyed stages of the vimana got compressed, and the ornamental niche
motifs one above the other up the tower simulate the vertical bands of the Nagara
shikhara. Departing from the Dravida style, the Chalukyan temple does not have a
covered ambulatory round the sanctum. In the treatment of the exterior walls there
seems to have been a blending of Nagara and Dravida ideas. Ratha offsets break up
the walls in characteristic Nagara fashion, further spaced at regular intervals by
pilasters in accordance with the usual Dravida mode. The Chalukyan temple is
characterised by an exuberant plastic ornament covering all its external surfaces. In
the interior the pillars, door frames and ceilings are again intricately carved.
The Virupaksha temple at Pattadakal, near Badami, was built about AD 70
in imitation of the Kailashanatha temple and displays architectural excellence of a
high order. The Rameshwara cave temple at Ellora belongs to the Chalukyan
period (7th century). Inside the cave is a four-armed dancing Shiva. In the
Dashavatara cave temple of the same century at Ellora is a very fine sculpture
showing the death of Hiranyakashyap.
Rashtrakuta Art
In AD 753 the Rashtrakutas established themselves in the Deccan as
successors of the Chalukyas. The Kailas temple at Ellora, built in the time of
Krishna II and representing the boldest attempt in the field of rock-cut architecture,
reproduces all the details of a structural temple in the intricacies of rock
excavation.
Probably in the second half of the eighth century, on an island near the west
coast was built the cave shrine of Elephanta. It was dedicated to Shiva, whose
image as Mahesha (popularly known as Trimurti) counts amongst the most
magnificent art creations of India.
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Pallava Art
In the south the Pallavas created beautiful monuments in the seventh century
AD. Mahendravarman (600-625) and his son Narasimhavarman (625-670),
popularly known as Mahamalla, were great builders. These Pallavas created three
rock-cut types of monuments. At Mahabalipuram (Mamallapuram), are rock-cut
caves known as mandapas displaying splendid sculptures. In one of these, the
Adivaraha cave (first half of the 7th century) we have effigies of Mahendravarman
and his two queens, the latter typified by their, slender forms. In the Durga cave is
the figure of Mahishasuramardini. In the Panchapandava cave there are two
impressive reliefs—Krishna lifting Govardhana and the other depicting him in a
scene showing cows being milked.
The five monolithic temples known as rathams belong to the reign of
Mahamalla. They are among the earliest specimens of rock-cut temple art,
illustrating different types of superstructure. The Dharmaraja ratham is the highest
and has a portrait of Mahamalla himself. The Draupadi ratham is an elegant piece,
its roof plainly a copy of a thatched structure.
A third type of Pallava monument is the tirtham or magnificient open-air
carving in relief on a rock surface. Seventh-century Pallava sculpture differs
‗chiefly from that of the Gupta period in the great‘ slenderness and the freer
movements of the forms, a more oval face and higher cheek bones. In the
representation of animals, this school excels all others, says Dr Coomaraswamy. A
well-known tirtham is the one called Arjuna‘s penance, in fact representing
Gangavatarana (the descent of Ganga).
In the reign of Rajasimha (Narasimhavarman III) in the eighth century the
rock-cut technique was abandoned and replaced by the structural temple of
masonry and stone. The shore temple of Jalashayana Swami at Mamallapuram is
built of dressed stone of excellent workmanship. Another remarkable monument of
his reign is the Kailashanatha temple at Kanchipuram built about AD 700 and
consisting of three separate parts, a sanctum with‘ a pyramidal tower, a mandapa
and a rectangular courtyard showing a series of subsidiary shrines or cells. It may
be considered as, one of the key monuments of the early Dravida style. In the early
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Pallava monuments the Dravida temple may be said to have attained its definite
form and character.
Chola Period
The Pallava heritage was passed on to the Cholas (l0th-11th centuries) who
revived it with a fresh approach. Two great creations of the Dravida style are the
Brihadiswara temple at Thanjavur aid the temple at Gangaikonda-Cholapuram.
The vimana or tall pyramidal tower dominates the whole structure of the shrine
with its mandapa and imparts a sense of power and dignity to it. The
Brihadeeswara temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva and contains a huge lingam. A
massive monolithic bull, chiselled out of a single rock and which is the second
biggest bull in the country (the first being at Lepakshi temple in Andhra Pradesh),
guards the inner shrine. The spire of the temple rises upto 66 metres. On the square
forming the topmost tier is poised a huge rounded cupola of a single stone, the
shadow of which never falls on the ground—which is a unique achievement of
architecture.
An immense gopuram marks the entrance to the temple complex. Chola
temple style is characterised by a stringcourse with a row of griffin heads in the
stylobate.
Hoysala Art
The Hoysala style (AD 1050-1300) developed in the southern region of
Karnataka. Hoysala art may be said to have its starting point in the temples of the
early Chalukyas at Aihole, Badami and Pattadakal, but when it finally developed in
the Mysore region, it manifested a distinctly individual approach which has been
called the Hoysala Style. One of the principal features of the style at its maturity
related to the plan and general arrangement of architecture. An important
monument is the Kesava temple at Belur (in Hassan district). Erected on the orders
of Vishnuvardhana to commemorate his victory over the Cholas at Talakad, the
deity of the temple—in fact Vishnu in his Kesava form—was named Vijaya
Narayana. The central building of the temple consists of the usual compartments,
the inner chamber, attached to a vestibule which connects with a central hall
preceded by an open pillared pavilion. But it is in the actual architectural planning
that the Hoysala temples—the Kesava temple and the temples at Halebid,
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Somnathpur and elsewhere—are different from others. Instead of consisting of a
simple inner chamber with its pillared hall, there are multiple shrines grouped
around a central pillared hall and laid out in the shape of an intricately-designed
star.
In a large number of cases, the structure is formed of double temples, having
most of their essential parts in duplicate and quite often they are triple, quadruple
and even quintuple in plan. The upward progress of the shikhara over each inner
chamber is radically modified by an arrangement of horizontal lines and mouldings
which resolve the tower into an orderly successian of tiers, diminishing them as
they rise to terminate at the apex. In fact, a characteristic feature of the Hoysala
temple is the comparative dwarfishness of the whole, structure. Yet the Kesava
temple at Belur erected in AD 1117, even without its super-structure (as it stands
today), reveals a conception of exquisite beauty. Some of the most acclaimed
sculptures of the temple are the bracket figures, called madanakais in the Kannada
language of the region, which are placed beneath the overhanging roof of the
mandapa. The interior of the temple is as rich and ornate as the exterior. Each pillar
of the mandapa is finely carved, some with figures and other elements, others
simply in round patterns. The entrance to the temple area is flanked by a pair of
large Vaishnavite dwarapalas and is decorated with an elaborate lintel.
At Halebid (ancient Dwarasamudra), the Hoysala capital, the ‗most
prominent structure is the Hoysaleswara temple dedicated,to Shiva, another
monument of ornate style. Believed to have been begun around AD 1121, it was
completed only around AD 1160, by the architect of Vishnuvardhana‘s son and
successor Narashiniha I. It consists of two virtually, identical but separate temples
on a large single platform, connected at the inner arms of their transepts.
Temples built by Narasimha III include the famed Kesava temple (called
also Somnatha) at Somnathpur, a Vaishnavite monument of the ornate style.
Apart from the architectural plan, the Hoysala style attained a few more
distinguishing characteristics. Sandstone was given up in favour of the more
tractable chloritic schist.
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The pillars take a special shape owing to the practice of the masons of
fashioning the monolithic blocks by turning them on a large lathe. Above all, the
temples are decorated with an increasing wealth of sculptured ornamentation.
Temples of Odisha
The temples of Odisha, dating from the 8th to about mid-13th century
provide a study in one of the earliest movements in the Indo-Aryan style of
architecture. In Bhubaneswar, several sanctuaries were erected so that taken
together they form a city of temples. Outstanding is the great Lingaraja temple
dedicated to Shiva as the Lord of the Lingam. The parabolic curve of the shikhara
over the sanctum is a striking specimen o the style. The temple is built as a series
of four halls—for offerings, dance, assembly and sanctuary
A smaller but particularly lovely shrine also located at Bhubaneswar is the
Mukteswara temple, frequently called the ‗gem‘ of Odishan architecture. The
importance of the temple lies not only in its beauty and architectural perfection, but
in its position as a watershed in the development of Odishan architecture, marking
the transition between the ‗early‘ and ‗late‘ developments of the style.
The Sun Temple at Konark, not far from Puri, also known as ‗Black
Pagoda‘, is the last and perhaps the most remarkable of all the great Hindu temples
of northern India. It represents the climax of the efforts of the Odishan sculptors to
harmonise decorative sculpture with the architectural ensemble in all its glory and
magnificence. Erected by King Narasimha Deva (AD 1238-64) the temple was
designed to resemble the Sun- god‘s celestial chariot borne on immense wheels
and drawn by richly caparisoned horses. The basement platform as well as the
facades of the hall proper are covered, with sculptured friezes reflecting the joy of
life on, earth and the energizing power of the sun—Arka-—the giver-of-all-life.
Among, the scenes portrayed at Konarak are the loving couples or mithunas.
Although pro4uced in great numbers by anonymous craftsmen, these carvings are
among the masterpieces of Indian art, indicating the high level of both technical
performance and artistic inspiration which must have existed at that time. The
temple was left unfinished and now lies in ruins
The temple of Jagannatha at Pun and the Raja Rani temple are other
masterpieces of the architecture style.
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Temples of Odisha generally have no pillars,‘ and the roof was partly
supported by iron griders—a striking technical innovation. There is lavish exterior
decoration, though the interiors are left unadorned (except at the Mukteshwar
shrine).
Chandela School: Khajuraho
Under the Chandela kings of Bundelkhand, a great school of architecture
flourished in the 10th and 11th centuries. An example of this style is a group of
temples at Khajuraho, in Madhya Pradesh. The finest is the Shaivite temple known
as Kandariya Mahadev, built around AD 1000. Other temples are dedicated to
Vishnu and Jaina pontiffs. These temples stand on high terraces. The standard type
of Khajuraho temple has a shrine room (or sanctuary), an assembly hail, and an
entrance portico. These entities were treated as a whole, whereas in the Odishan
style they were conceived as separate elements joined by vestibules. The shikhara
is curved for its whole length and miniature shikaras emerge from the central
tower. The crowning discs of these projections that break the upward movement
are a unique feature of this art. The effect of the whole, despite its symmetry, is
one of organic and natural growth. The halls and porticoes of the temples are also
crowned with smaller towers which rise progressively to lead the eye up to the
main tower, and give, the impression of a mountain range. The‘ monotony of the
ornately carved stone buildings is broken by pillared window openings. In contrast
to the temples of Odisha, those of Khajuraho have sculpture both outside and
inside and there are beautifully carved domed ceilings.
In the Shiva temple of Vishwanatha and the Vishnu temple of Chaturbhiya
the panchayatana system—with four additional corner shrines—is exemplified.
Vijaynagar Legacy
Hampi was the capital of the kingdom of Vijayanagar and its most important
ruler was Krishnadevaraya— credited with having got built important temples,
pillared mandapas and gopurams (specifically called rayagopuram).
The Vitthalaswami temple (probably begun in AD 1513 and never
completed) is considered to be the finest specimen of Vijayanagar architecture,
containing the typical features of the main temple‘s pillared halls, subsidiary
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shrines, and elaborately decorated pillars, figural carving and animal motifs. The
temple scheme consists of a large rectangular walled enclosure containing at least
five separate structures within the courtyard. Three gopurams provide, access to
the courtyard, although the main entrance is through the gateway on the east. This
is built of granite on the lower level and has a brick superstructure that rises in
receding storeys in typical southern fashion.
Typically Vijayanagar-period structures in the temple are the Amman shrine
and the kalyana mandapam. Resembling the main temple, although on a smaller
scale, the Amman shrine is dedicated to the consort of the male deity of the temple.
On some occasions, the bronze deities of the temple and the Amman shrine would
be transported from their abodes to the kalyana mandapam for exhibition and
worship. Square in shape and containing a central raised platform surrounded by
rows of intricately carved pillars, this open but rich pavilion is one of the highlights
of Vijayanagar art.
Another notable structure is the Hall of Dance at Lepakshi, with Shiva
surrounded by huge musical figures on pillars. Also remarkable is the Festival Hall
at Vellore with its exquisite carvings of equestrian and other figures on the pillars.
While the grandeur of architecture dominates sculptural decoration in these
Vijayanagar monuments, the sculpture had an important part in the scheme of
things. Pillars in mandapas were invariably carved with a rich variety of forms,
many of which were eye-catching, some even amusing. For example, typical
sculptor‘s device was incorporated into the design of another. A pillar decoration
from the Virabhadra temple at Lepakshi shows three figures who share four legs,
yet each figure may be viewed as complete. The figures are carved in very low
relief and give the appearance of being little more than line drawings rather than
fully three-dimensional carvings.
Sculptures of this period are exemplified by large monolithic carvings. The
reclining Nandi near the Lepakshi temple is believed to be the largest monolithic
Nandi in the country. Even more impressive is a gigantic representation of seated
‗Ugra Narasimha‘ at Vijayanagar.
Nayaka Heritage: Madurai
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The Nayakas rose on the fall of the Vijayanagar Empire. They continued,
indeed furthered, the artistic traditions of the Vijayanagar rulers
The most famous architectural landmark of the age is the MeenakshiSundareswara temple at Madurai, built largely in the time of Thirumalai Nayak in
mid-17th century. The Great Temple complex has actually two shrines: the first
one dedicated to Shiva as Sundareswara and the second one to his wife in the form
of Goddess Meenakshi. Often the entire complex is called the Meenakshi temple
after the consort of the -god. Virtually every space in the structure is filled with
surface carvings of niches, pilasters and other forms.
The large tank set slightly off axis to the main temple is another impressive
feature of the temple. Surrounded by steps and a pillared portico, the tank was used
for ritual bathing.
The temple was, indeed, a focus of South Indian life and a major factor in
the economic and, social life of the people. It was a city unto itself, sometimes
containing market places in its outer courtyards and always active with crowds of
people.
A major contribution of the Nayaka artists was the building of prakarams at
many temples. These roofed ambulatory passageways served to connect various
parts of the temples while enclosing certain areas. Typically, a Nayaka prakaram
has massive columns with elaborate corbelled brackets and extensively carved (and
sometimes painted) surfaces. One of the most famous of these passageways from
the Nayaka period is at the Rameswaram temple.
Rajasthan and Gujarat
The Chaulakya (Solanki) kings of Gujarat patronised a school of architecture
that flourished from the 11th to the 13th century. Several Jaina and Hindu temples
were built during .their reign in Gujarat and Rajasthan.
The Vimala, Tejpala and Vastupala temples at Mount Abu (Rajasthan
13th century) exhibit a style not fundamentally different from that of Khajuraho.
Built on high platforms with the shikara adorned with a large number miniature
towers, the ceilings in the form of corbelled domes, the most outstanding feature of
this style is its minute and lovely decorativeness. The ceilings are carved to give
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the impression of a true dome, the flat cross beams, supported on pillars, adorned
with large brackets meeting at the centre giving an arch-like effect, though the true
arch was not employed.
At Modhera are the ruins of a Sun Temple. Three principal components are
revealed: a rectangular reservoir with flagged fights of steps interspaced by small
shrines, the lofty kirtitorana, and the open pillared half of cruciform shape.
Among other great monuments, there are the gateway at Dhabui and the
Jayastambha at Chittor (12th century). These are civic type of monuments and
reveal the craftsmen‘s skill.
Indo-Islamic Architecture
The last decade of the twelfth century AD marked the beginning of the
permanent association of the Muslims with India. The establishment of Muslim
rule in the north brought together two great architectural traditions. Certainly a
synthesis and fusion of the best in both traditions evolved, all the more remarkable
because of the basic differences between the two. The mode of prayer and the
rituals of the Muslims differed essentially from Hindu traditions; the mosque and
the mausoleum were centres of Islamic architecture in India— concepts which
again differed from the Hindu tradition. The methods of construction of the‘ two
peoples differed: in view of the fact that buildings in Islamic cOuntries were made
of brick, lime and mortar, the style of architecture was arcuaté, i.e., based on
arches, vaults and domes; here the material being stone, ‗the style was trabeate,
employing pillars, lintels and pyramidal towers àr slender spires. The concepts of
decoration and ornament differed, as it depended upon different religious beliefs.
The Muslims, under religious injunction, avoided representation of living beings,
their decoration taking the form; cif flat surface ornament depicting ‗arabesque or
gethnetrical and floral patterns, inscriptions in various styles of writing, gilding and
painting, inlay on marble through opus sectileor pietra dura. The Hindus revelled
in rich ornamentation, expressive of natural, particularly human, forms.
The architecture of India on the advent of Islam showed these two seemingly
opposite styles mingling in a spirit of give and take in vaying degrees in different
parts Of the country, depending, of course, on local, condjtons and availability of
raw material. If the qualities of strength and grace, typical-of Hindu monuments,
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were borrowed by the Muslims, who also used the trabeate system, they, in turn,
contributed the conceptions‘ of breadth and spaciousness and the methods of
spanning big spaces with arches and covering large areas with domes. Other
features introduced by the Muslims were the minar and minaret, stalactite, and
half-domed double portal of the structural side. The monuments, more than
anything else, of this period speak of the fusion of diverse elements that embody
the ―composite culture‘
The Indo-Islamic architecture falls into two phases: the Pathan (AD 1206 to
c. 1550), which ends with Sher Shah of the Sun dynasty, and the Mughal (AD
1556-1707), beginning with Akbar and ending with Aurangazeb. While the first
period has been called one of uncertainty and improvisation, it was during the
Mughal period that what may be called a ‗universal Indian style of Islamic
architecture‘ came into being.
The Early Phase
The building of the Quwwatul-Islam Mosque by Qutbud-Din Aibak in Delhi
during AD 1191-98 marks the beginning of the new style of architecture in India.
Though in plan it is what a mosque should be, the materials used came from the
spoils of Hindu buildings. It was, therefore, felt necessary to construct an arched
screen of Islamic pattern covering the front of the, prayer hail.
The Qutb Minar (1206-36) founded by Qutbud-Din, completed by iltumish
and subsequently repaired by Firuz Tughlaq and Sikandar Lodi, is a remarkable
piece of architecture, near the Quwwatul Mosque. It has five preys diminishing in
size as they go up. The lower three, built of buff and red sandstone, are entirely
original, with angular and round flutings. The upper two storeys are later
replacements; round in section and faced with marble. The Qutb Minar is striking
for its symmetry and ornament.
The Arhai-Din-Ka-Jhonpra at Ajmer, originally started by Qutbud-Din
Aibak and provided with the arched screen by Iltumish, has a beautiful prayer hall
and an exquisitely carved mihrab of white marble in the west wall. The arch screen
is admirable in decoration though the arches are not true arches.
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In the buildings of the early period, the method of construction of the arch
and dome remained the same. The tomb purportedly that of Ghiyassud-Din Balban,
in Mehrauli, is usually cited as the first example of true or voussoired arch, but its
date is not yet established.
In the Khalji period (1290-1320), the usage of voussoired arch and dome
was established once and for all.
The Alai Darwaza forms part of the ambitious scheme of Alaud-Din Khalji
to enlarge the Quwwatul-Islam mosque in Delhi. Considered a gem of IndoIslamic architecture, it shows exquisite symmetry of form, perfect shape, fine
decorative carving, and a pleasing colour effect through the use of red sandstone
and white marble on its exterior walls.
The tomb of Hazrat Nizamuddin Aulia at Delhi provides the earliest
example of a mosque constructed wholly in accordance with Islamic principles.
The entrance arch of the central chamber has under it a beam-on-brackets, which
came to be almost regularly employed in subsequent pre—Mughal buildings.
The Tughlaq period saw Indo-Islamic architecture assume new dimensions.
In general character, the architecture of this period is heavy and massive, rugged
and simple. Typical of it are thick and sloping walls, squinch arches for supporting
domes, multi-domed roofs and tapering minaret like buttresses or supports at the
external angles of buildings. The trabeate and arcuate are combined. The austre
and simple phase of its architecture is seen in almost abandoning red sandstone and
marble in favour of walls built of rubble coated with thick plaster, use of simple
and conventional patterns in place of the rich surface decoration and elaborate
ornamentation of the Khalji monuments. Some of the notable buildings of the era
are the fort of Tughlaquabad, the first of, the city-palace-fort series, now in ruins;
the tomb of Ghiyasud-Din Tughlaq, which marked a new phase in Indo-Islamic
architecture in serving as a model for later tombs; the fort of Adilabad; Firuz
Shah‘s capital at Delhi, now known as Kotla Firuz Shahi; a group of buildings at,
Hauz Khas in Delhi consisting of Firuz Shah‘s, tomb; and the ruins of a partially
double-storeyed college. Despite the austere aspect, the architecture of this period
is remarkable for perfect proportions of the buildings and the vigour and
straightforwardness of a serviceable style. Also, the buildings of this period are
38
found to have made a great impact on the regional architecture of the Deccan,
Jaunpur and Maiwa.
The Sayyid period was too short to evolve elaborate buildings, but the
octagonal tombs of the time possess a distinct architectural character. The
decorative features of these‘ tombs consist of the use of blue enamelled tiles
enhancing the colour effect and elaborate and refined surface ornament incised on
plaster and painted in colours. The lotus motif crowning the dome and free use of
guldastas and some decoration-motifs considerably influenced the style of the
subsequent period.
In the Lodi period there is an indication of a certain amount of imagination
and a bold diversity of design. Enamel tile decoration tended to be richer and more
lavish. The tomb architecture of this period is of two types, though both have grey
granite walls. One is octagonal in design, having verandah with projecting eaves
supported on brackets and one-storey high, e.g., the tomb of Sikandar Lodi. The
other is square in plan, having no verandah, but the exterior having the look of two
or sometimes three storeys. A spacious somewhat ornamental walled garden
encloses the tombs, which gives the whole ensemble an elegance.
Of all the provincial styles that developed in the mid- fourteenth century,
that of Gujarat is the largest, the most important and the most elegant. The Gujarat
style of Indo-Islamic architecture is marked by an extensive use of pillar- and-lintel
system an exquisite device of admitting light by raising a clerestory (wall with
series of windows) in the central part of the closed hail type mosque, semi-circular
engrailed arch standing torana-like on two pillars, systematic use of graceful
minarets and richly sculpted heavy buttresses, rich and delicate stone-screens or
jali round tomb chambers or in arches, and windows supported on richly carved
brackets of elegant designs. The Gujarat style reached its peak during the reign of
Mahmud Begarha. Of the mosques in Ahmedabad, that of Rani Rupmati (c. 1460)
shows a successful combination of the Muslim arch with the indigenous lintel and
is particularly noteworthy for the richness and variety of the decoration of its
minar-buttresses. The fondness for ornament in stone, so characteristic of the
Gujarat style, is perhaps at its best in the tomb and mosque of Rani Sabrai or Rani
Sarai (1514) with its delicate traceries and jewel-like carvings, and exquisite
design and sculpture of its ornamental minarets.
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The Maiwa style is essentially arcuate. Some of its original features were
the skilful and elegant use of arch with pillar and beam, lofty terraces approached
by well-proportioned stairways, impressive and dignified size of the buildings and
their fine masonry, frequent use of domed cupolas round a central dome and
restrained ornament comprising pleasing colour decoration produced partly by the
use of various coloured stones and marble and partly by bright coloured glazed
tiles. The minaret is absent in this style. Some of the famous monuments of this
style are Ashrafi Mahal, the Hindola Mahal and Jahaz Mahal—the last one
standing between two small lakes and marked for its fine arched halls, open-roof
pavilions, boldly designed reservoirs, and bright-coloured glazed tiles. Other
monuments of note are Baz Bahadur‘s Palace, Rani Rupmati pavilion, the Nikanth
Palace and Kaliadeh Mahal. These buildings reflect the luxurious and pleasure
loving taste of the age and make imaginative use of water in pools, fountains and
cascades.
The Jaunpur (Sharqi) style was influenced by the buildings of the Tughlaq
period but its typical feature was its bold and forceful character expressed in the
huge imposing pro-pylon screens filling the central and side bays of the prayerhall.
The Deccan developed a distinct architectural style in the 14th to 17th
century. The first phase of the Deccan style shows Tughlaq influence. Later it was
influenced by the building art of Persia. However, it developed an individuality of
its own marked by grandeur of conception and soundness of structural principles.
The Hindu influence is seen in the later mature phase in architectural form as well
as in decoration—such as door jambs made of polished, carved black stone, and
beautiful brackets supporting the cornice.
Of the five successors to the Bahmanis in the Deccan, the most noteworthy
in architectural terms were the Adil Shahi and Qutb Shahi rulers.
During the time of the Adil Shahi rulers, the Deccan style developed into a
mature style in conception, methods of construction, ornament and decoration.
Features special to it are the three-arched facade, the central one wider than others,
the bulbous dome almost spherical in shape, the graceful, tall and slender minaret,
frequent use of a masonry, pier of considerable size instead of a pillar, substantial
40
bold projecting chhajjas or cornices constructed on richly carved brackets and
vertical projections above the skyline, frequently carrying miniature domes. The
Bijapur buildings are remarkable for another striking feature, namely, the treatment
of the ceilings: they seem to be built without any apparent support, as the slabs of
stones are bound together by iron clamps and strong mortar. Also typical is the
richly artistic stucco or stone carving.
The most outstanding monument of the Bijapur style is the Gol Gumbad,
the mausoleum of Muhammad Adil Shah constructed during his own lifetime. It is
famous for its gigantic hemispherical dome and its whispering gallery. It is a great
cube with four turrets at four corners, lifting the dome pillar- wise. The Gol
Gumbad is said to possess the largest domical roof in existence anywhere.
The Qutb Shahi or Golconda style was another powerful style in vogue in
the Deccan after the Bahmanis. Its most distinctive features are the design and
luxuriant ornament in stucco on the facade of buildings including the parapet and
minars. The Hinduinfluence in the buildings of the Qutb Shahi style is illustrated in
its motifs of decoration, while the architectural forms and artistic devices are
Persian in character. The royal tombs of Golconda are prominent among the
buildings of this style. Most outstanding of these is that of Muhammad Quli Qutb
Shah which is constructed on a double terrace and adorned with a majestic dome
and minarets, with overhanging galleries in the interior. The most imposing of the
Qutb Shahi monuments is the Char Minar at Hyderabad which probably served as
a stately gateway. Grand in conception and perfect in workmanship it consists of a
central square structure with lofty arched openings on four sides, while at the
corners are four graceful minars. The different parts are perfectly balanced and the
decorative details elegant.
The Kashmir style of Indo-Islamic architecture is remarkably different from
any other provincial style for the use of timber as the main building material and
the influence of Buddhism in that region.
The Sur Period architectural style has been described as the latest and most
imposing form of the Lodi style. It has two phases. The first, represented by the
group of tombs at Sasaram in Bihar, indicates soberness with elegance, while the
other, as manifested in Sher Shah‘s mosque at the Purana Qila in Delhi, illustrates
41
lavishness of decoration. Sher Shah‘s tomb at Sasaram lies in the midst of a lake.
The foundation is a stepped basement rising directly out of the water. Above it is a
square terrace serving as a courtyard for the tomb proper, which is octagonal and
designed in three diminishing stages, the last one surmounted by a broad, low
dome.
Mughal Period
The Mughals had appeared on the Indian scene early in the 16th century
with Babur, the Timurid ruler of Farghana and Kabul, defeating the Lodi Sultans of
Delhi and the Rajput Ranas of Mewar in 1526-27. His son Humayun made
unsuccessful attempts to subjugate Bengal, Maiwa and Gujarat, but after a
temporary period of instability, finally managed to get a strong foothold in the
country, With this, Indo-Islamic art and architecture in India entered a significant
phase.
Neither Babur nor Humayun lived long enough to enjoy the benefits of the
new empire, and it was the reign of Jalalad-Din Muhammed Akbar (1556-1605)
that witnessed the most extraordinary transformation of the arts of the land. It was
in his time that the characteristic Mughal architecture took a concrete form.
Mughal buildings throughout India have a distinctly common style
characterised by imposing facades with four- centred arches and semi-domed,
roofs, vaults of intersecting arches, bulbous domes with constricted necks and
inverted lotus top, pinnacles, ornament in stone or marble carving, inlay, pietra
dura, gilding, etc. An important structural contribution of this style to Indo-Islamic
architecture is the double-dome.
The first monument in real Mughal style is the tomb of Humayun in Delhi
constructed by his widow in 1569. The first building on Indian soil in the typical
Timurid design, it also represents the first of the Mughal scheme of tomb-gardens.
Standing on a high and wide square platform which has on its sides small rooms
with arched fronts, the plan and design of the tomb are indicative of strong foreign,
mostly Central Asian-Persian, influence: it is square in plan but its corners are
flattened. The mausoleum is a great architectural achievement on account of the
perfect proportions of its different parts, the pleasing contrast of red sandstone and
white marble, the graceful curves of its bold arches and grand volume of its dome.
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Akbar was an enlightened patron of architecture. His building projects are
many and varied, mostly constructed of red sandstone with limited use of white
marble. Liberal of outlook and catholic of taste he patronised indigenous building
traditions. As a result, the forceful architectural style of his reign is marked by a
judicious mix of purely indigenous and foreign forms. The central theme of
Akbar‘s buildings is the use of the trabeate system, arcuate forms being adopted
mainly for decorative purposes. The ornament consists chiefly of carvings or bold
inlay, perforated screen work, and artistically painted design on the walls and
ceilings in gold or colours.
The first major building project of Akbar‘s was the Red Fort in Agra, on the
banks of the Yamuna. An irregular semicircle in plan, its massive walls is of
concrete and rubble faced entirely with huge blocks of finely dressed red
sandstone. Within the fort, most of the extant buildings are those that were
constructed in the reign of Shah Jahan. Of Akbar‘s buildings in the fort, only the
Jahangiri Mahal is preserved— a large square palace of red sandstone. The Hindu
influence is strong in the carving and style of the building.
Akbar‘s most remarkable architectural project was the creation of the city of
Fatehpur Sikri, about 36 km west of Agra, to mark the birth of his first son,
Jahangir. Buildings are almost wholly of red stone. Among the residential
buildings, the most important are the Panch Mahal, a five storeyed structure of
open pavilions of traditional inspiration: the palace of Jodha Bai offering a sharp
contrast between its almost plain exterior and its richly carved interior with
balconies and perforated stone windows and ornamental niches, showing clear
indigenous influences; palace of Turkish Sultana, a one-storeyed building with
picturesque paved courts and water courses, rich carved decoration on the interior
and exterior. Of the official buildings, the Diwan-i-Khas is remarkable for its
interior with over-hanging galleries projecting from the sides, and a central pillar,
supporting on its elaborately bracketed capital a circular seat, joined by radiating
bridges to the galleries. The Jami Masjid is a magnificent structure, Islamic in
general design but the Hindu style employed in construction, especially in the side
wings of the prayer hail and the cloister-arcade. The decoration is rich in carving,
painting and inlay work. Another impressive monument is the Buland Darwaza,
built to commemorate Akbar‘s triumphal return from his Deccan campaign, which
forms the southern gateway to the mosque. In form it is dominantly Persian, and
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with its semi-dome, into which the actual portal is fixed, typifies a convention of
the architecture of this period. The small tomb of Shaikh Salim Chisti, is made of
white marble with intricate jali work; the delicate geometrical patterns recall the
Gujarat style while its deep cornice‘ is supported on curving convoluted brackets
of rare design and excellent carving reminiscent of the Shahzadi‘s Tomb at
Chanderi.
The architecture of Jahangir‘s period is more or less a continuation of
Akbar‘s period. The most important of the monuments of this period is Akbar’s
tomb at Sikandra near Agra which was conceived by Akbar himself in his lifetime.
With its marble trellis work and cloisters, surrounded by colonnades on the raised
platforms with walls full of lovely arabesque traceries, the tile decoration and
paintings in gold and colours, it gives a superb effect. Some scholars feel it is
designed on the principles of the Buddhist viharas. The tomb is situated in the
midst of a spacious and elaborately laid out garden of Charbag design. Its southern
gateway is impressive for its pleasing proportions, profuse inlay ornamentation,
and four graceful minarets of new but perfectly developed type heralding the first
appearance of this feature in north India. The tomb of Itimadud-Daula (1626)
built by Nur Jahan is made wholly of, marble and has exquisite inlay work. It
forms a connecting link between the style of Akbar and that of Shah Jahan; the
style assumes a delicate and refined character. The beautiful pietra dura or inlay in
precious stones over, its whole surface is, striking; the motifs—rose-water vessels,
grapes, wine cups and flasks, etc. are purely Persian in character. The tomb of
Abdul Rahim Khan-i-Khanan constitutes a significant link between Humayun‘s
tomb an4 the Taj Mahal. Jahangir’s tomb at Shahdara near Lahore (in Pakistan) is
in the centre of a garden. Its main ornamental features are the rich surface
decorations of marble inlay, glazed tiles and painting.
From the forceful and robust early Mughal style of Akbar, there is a
transition to the pretty and elegant late. Mughal style under Shah Jahan—his is an
age of marble buildings. Naturally, the technique of surface decoration took the
form of artistic inlay of semi-precious stones in marble, representing flowers and
curving tendrils. Structurally, too, the style changed; the curve, of the arch
assumed a m1tifoil shape, while the pillars now got foliated bases. The domes of
Shah Jahan‘s buildmgs, with their bulbous shape, have a pleasing effect. Shah
Jahan started his building activities with replacements in the Agra Fort. The
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Diwan-i-Khas with its graceful double columns carrying multifoil arches, the
Khas Mahal in which the curvilinear cornice (of Bengal) appears for the first time
in north India, the Shish Mahal, etc., are noteworthy additions in marble. The
most impressive structure in the fort is the Moti Masjid (1655), situated on an
elevation on a red sandstone basement, and covered by three graceful domes of
great beauty. The Red Fort at Delhi (Shahjahanabad) is an imposing structure of
encircling massive walls, broken at intervals by boldly projecting bastions topped
by domed kiosks and entered through two main gateways—the Delhi and the
Lahori Gates. The palace buildings are distinguished for their symmetrical
planning along an Ornamental marble water canal, with chutes and cascades. The
Diwan-i-Khas is most lavishly ornamented in rich and different styles—pietra
dura, low-relief marble carving in arabesques and flowers, and painting in gold and
brilliant colours. A magnificent Throne Seat, a white marble canopied pavilion-like
structure, was in the Diwán-i-Am. The panels of pietra dura work on the wall of
the Throne Seat include one representing Orpheus with his lute, generally
attributed to a European artist, Austin de Bordeaux. The Jama Masjid (1656) at
Delhi is one of the most impressive mosques in the world. The facade of the prayer
hall in red sandstone and white marble arid the three shapely domes of white
marble ornamented, with strips of black marble impart beauty and dignity, to the
whole building.
The piece-de-resistance of Shah Jahan‘s period and, indeed, Indo-Islamic
architecture is considered to be the Taj Mahal at Agra. Built as a mausoleum for
his wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth to her 14th child in 163, it was
designed by a Persian, Ustad Isa. It took 14 years to be completed and is now, one
of the most renowned buildings in the world. The mausoleum rises on a terrace
whose corners are adorned with minarets of the most exquisite proportions. The
tomb building itself is a simple composition, both in proportion and shape.
Architecturally, the mausoleum is similar in general design to Humayun‘s tomb.
But it is the melodic disposition of the various parts and the perfect manner in
which each part is inter-related to the total unity that make it a great work of art.
Much of the dream-like beauty of the Taj lies in the choice of the materials and the
process of decoration. The quality of marble is such that it is extremely susceptible
to the slightest changes in the light, thus all the time ‗picturising the passing colour
of the moment‘. The principal enrichment is obtained by expert treatment of the
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screens, pietra dura ornamentation, arabesques, scroll work and sprays of floral
forms, all beautiful in design and satisfying in colour. It has been said that, unique
in its loveliness as it is, the Taj would lose half its charm if taken out of its
beautiful setting. Its ornamental gardens, with their long rows of cypresses,
watercourses with fountains, and an elevated‘ lotus pool, have been harmonised so
perfectly with the general architectural scheme that they have given the mausoleum
a jewel-like enrichment.
Kashmir has some of the gardens that the Mughals were famous for.
Shalimar Bagh, built by Jahangir for his wife Nur Jahan, has sweeping vistas over
gardens and lakes, and shallow terraces. A canal lined with polished stones and
supplied with water from Harwan runs through the middle of the garden. Situated
on the banks of the Dal Lake, with the Zabarwan Mountains as its backdrop,
Nishat Bagh—the ‗garden of bliss‘—commands a magnificent view of the lake and
the snow capped Pir Panjal mountain range which stands far away to the west of
the valley. Nishat was designed in 1633 by Asaf Khan, brother of Nur ahan.
Chashma Shahi has tastefully laid garden in terraces, which commands a
magnificent view of the Dal Lake below and surrounding mountain ranges. The
cool water of the spring is highly refreshing and digestive. The original garden was
laid out by Shah Jahan in 1632.
After Shah Jahan, Mughal architecturç declined in style as well as in number
of buildings. The particular dislike of Aurangzeb for the fine arts may, no doubt,
have contributed to this situation. The most important architectural monument
representing the later Mughal style is the tomb of Rabia Daurani, wife of
Aurangzeb, at Aurangabad. It is, on the whole, a mediocre effort, in spite of some
striking features such as the profuse stucco work and well-planned garden. The
Moti Masjid built by Aurangzeb in the Red Fort is a striking piece in polished
white marble in which the earlier craftsmanship is retained. With the death of
Aurangzeb, the decadence in the Mughal architecture was complete, one might
say.
In the Tomb of Safdar Jang (circa 1753) an effort was made to arrest the
degeneration of the style. The last hi the tradition of the great square mausoleum
and garden complex, the tomb stands on a large arcaded square terrace. The tomb
proper is a double-storeyed building in finely worked fawn sandstone.
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While the glorious Indo-Islamic tradition came to an end with the Mughals,
or perhaps more correctly with Shah Jahan, the tradition did thrive to some extent
under the Nawabs of Awadh. The Bara Imambara at Lucknow constructed in 1784
by Asafad-Daula has a noteworthy interior. The most expressive specimen of the
Awadh style is the massive main entrance of the Imambara, called the Rumi
Darwaza, remarkable for its mixture of extravagant boldness and the frivolously
pretty, the balance of its proportions and variety of design. The later Awadh
architecture shows definite European influence.
Indo-Islamic architecture also found expression under the Mysore Sultans,
Haidar Ali and Tipu Sultan. The Darya Daulat Bagh, meant as a summer resort for
the sultan, is noteworthy for its graceful proportions and lavish decorations in rich
colour, frescoes of battle scenes and portraits of ruling chiefs.
The Sikh rulers borrowed from the Mughals for their building style, but
adapted it to create a new style. The most important product of Sikh expression is
supplied by the Golden Temple at Amritsar (1764), set in the centre of a large
sheet of water and connected with the mainland by a causeway. Its foundation was
laid by Guru Ram Das and it was completed by his son Arjun Dev. The typical
features of this Sikh form of architecture, according to Percy Brown, are the
multiplicity of chatris or kiosks which ornament the parapets, angles and every
prominence or projection; the invariable use of the fluted dome generally covered
with brass or copper-gilt; the frequent, introduction of oriel or embowed windows
with shallow elliptical cornices and supported on brackets; and the enrichment of
all arches by numerous foliations.
The Rajput forms which ran parallel to the Mughal are picturesque and
romantic. Most of them have hanging balconies of all shapes and sizes, and even
long loggias supported on rows of elaborately carved brackets. A common striking
feature is a carved cornice arcade in shape, producing shadows arched like a bow.
The European Influence
The Europeans who came to India for trade established their settlements at
various places. In these settlements they built European style houses, besides the
factories. When their foothold became strong, they began to construct more
durable structures such as strong fortresses and imposing churches. The forts had
47
no architectural significance. The Portuguese at Goa established impressive
churches in the style of Iberian architecture, and the English, though in a less
ambitious manner, built churches resembling the English village churches.
A distinct type of building thus began to emerge in India. However, the
Victorian style itself being imitative rather than original, did not have a vitality of
its own to inaugurate in India what could have been an Indo-British (like the IndoIslamic) style of architecture. The Victorian architects in India made a mistake by
attempting to copy oriental styles while trying to construct public buildings. Big
brickwork buildings with iron supports and domed roofs represented Victorian
architecture at its worst. On the whole, therefore, the nineteenth century English
style did not manifest itself -in any way comparable with past architecture.
The Palladian Style of architecture was sought to be introduced in India by
some other British officers in the 18th century Constantia, a building erected by
General Martin at Lucknow, is the best specimen of this style in India. A great
central tower rising from a succession of terraced roofs -is —a characteristic of this
style.
In the second-half of the 19th century, some of the European builders in
India tried their best to combine elements and features from Indian and Western
architecture. The pioneer of this movement was a civil servant, F. S. Growse. The
Museum at Jaipur and the Moor Market in Madras (now, Chennai) are examples of
this type of architecture. Sardar Ram Singh, a master builder of Punjab, designed
the Central Museum and the Senate House at Lahore (in Pakistan). G. Wittet
designed the Gateway of India in Mumbai, borrowing several elements of Mughal
style. The Victoria Terminus Station (now known as the Chhatrapati Shivaji
station), in Mumbai, is an outstanding example of Victorian Gothic Revival
architecture in India, blended with themes deriving from Indian traditional
architecture. The building, designed by the British architect F. W. Stevens, became
the symbol of Bombay (now, Mumbai) as the ‗Gothic City‘ and the major
international mercantile port of India. The terminal was built over 10 years,
starting in 1878, according- to a High Victorian Gothic design based on late
medieval Italian models. Its stone dome, turrets, pointed arches and-eccentric
.ground plan are close to traditional Indian palace architecture. British architects
worked with Indian craftsmen to include Indian architectural tradition and idioms
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thus forging a new style unique to Bombay (now, Mumbai). Among the edifices of
the -Victorian era, the churches of Kolkata and Chennai, the cathedrals at Simla
and Lahore, the Lahore High Court and the Calcutta High Court are noteworthy.
But none of these edifices can be regarded as great pieces of architecture. At the
end of the Victorian era India entered the era of national awakening -and
movement. The architecture represented the character of the time, a combination of
the imperial needs and the national urges. The British wanted to perpetuate the
memory of Queen Victoria in India by erecting a Memorial Hall -in her name. Butthe style of that massive structure (at Kolkata) was sought to be oriental enough to
satisfy the Indian mind. it was a first foray into indo-Saracenic Movement. The
Indo-Saracenic Revival (also known as Indo-Gothic, Mughal-Gothic, NeoMughal, or Hindu- Gothic) was an architectural style movement by British
architects in the late 19th century in -British India. It drew elements from the
indigenous and Indo-Islamic architecture and combined it with the Gothic revival
and Neo-Classical styles favoured in Victorian England. The style gained
momentum in the West with the publication of the various views of India by
William Hodges and the Daniell duo (William Daniell and his uncle Thomas
Daniell) from about 1795. Structures of this design, particularly those built in India
and England, were built in conformance to - advanced British structural engineering standards of the 1800s, which came to include infrastructures
composed of iron, steel and poured concrete (the innovation of the of reinforced
cement and pre-cast cement elements, set with iron and/or steel rods, developed
much later). Some of the characteristics of this style are: onion (bulbous) domes,
overhanging eaves, pointed arches, cusped arches, or scalloped arches, vaulted
roofs, domed kiosks, many miniature domes, domed chhatris, pinnacles, towers
and minarets, open pavilions, and pierced arcades. Unfortunately the architects of
the Victoria Memorial Hall, designed by William Emerson, who had earlier
designed the Crawford Market in Bombay (now, Mumbai), could not make it a
striking piece of Indo-British style. Indian characteristics superimposed on the
edifice, with the inevitable dome, did not make it look like the Taj Mahal nor even
a poor replica. Similar attempts to imitate oriental features while constructing the
Prince of Wales Museum at Mumbai did not prove successful.
A great opportunity came to the British rulers for the construction of grand
buildings in India when it was decided in 1911 to transfer the capital from Calcutta
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(now Kolkata) to Delhi. The chief architect, Sir Edwin Lutyens, and his colleague,
Sir Edward Baker, at first prepared designs in the neo-Roman style. But these
designs appeared inappropriate to the Indian background. The British architects set
themselves to study the Buddhist, Hindu and Islamic features while redrawing their
plan for Delhi. When finally the capital emerged with its majestic buildings, the
Viceregal palace appeared with a huge dome on the lines of a Buddhist stupa, and
most of the buildings represented some elements of Hindu ornamentation or
Islamic symmetry. A great demerit of that unique experiment to synthesise the
different styles of Indian architecture within a broader European fabric was that
simplicity modernity and utility were considerably compromised for the purpose of
so- called beauty and structural majesty. The experiment neither revived in India
the lost values of her architectural glory nor did it introduce radically new edifices
for the purposes of newer times. Most of the structures appeared massive, heavy
and strong, but also congested, close and even medieval. A redeeming feature was
due to Sir John Marshall—for designing beautiful gardens in order to revive the
spirit of the Mughal days.
The Jamia Milia Islamia at Delhi represents an age (around 1935) of
revolutionary ideas, when the aegis of colonial imperialism was being questioned
and the national movement was getting stronger by the day. It was also around this
time that many Indian educational institutes were established after heeding
Mahatma Gandhi‘s call to boycott all British institutions. Karl Heinz, a German
architect, was commissioned for this project with instructions that he should stay
clear of elements of British or Mughal architecture, in keeping with the antiimperialistic stand that the founders of Jamia stood for. As a result, there was a
building that cannot be categorised into any particular school of architecture; it can
be called ‗modern style of architecture‘ as it resembles today‘s buildings, that is,
usually something that stems from the architect‘s imagination. The red sandstone
building has white domes that have no particular pattern and big courtyards and
windows that serve no particular purpose than to look good. Heinz used local
materials like red sandstone and lime which were easy to source.
Post Independence
By the time of the independence of India, the world had inaugurated the age
of universal architecture, far beyond the range of any particular style but in
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consonance with science and modern building materials which became universally
accepted and employed. A unique urban architectural experiment was made in the
development of Chandigarh by the French architect, Le Corbusier. The most
significant role played by Le Corbusier in Chandigarh was in conceiving the city‘s
present urban form. It is the well-ordered matrix of his generic neighbourhood
unit‘ and the hierarchical circulation pattern of his ‗7Vs‘ that has given Chandigarh
its distinctive character. The matrix comprises a regular grid of the fast traffic V3
roads which define each neighbourhood unit, the ‗sector‘.
The sector itself was conceived as a se1f-sufficient and—in a radical
departure from other precedents and contemporarous concepts—a completely
introverted unit, but was connected with the adjoining ones through its V4, the
shopping street, as well as the bands of open space that cut across in the opposite
direction. Day-to-day facilities for shopping, healthcare, recreation and the like
were arrayed along the V4, all on the shady side. The vertical green belts, with the
pedestrian V7, contained sites for schools and sports activities. A city such as
described above could be placed almost anywhere. But what distinguishes
Corbusier design far Chandigarh are the attributes of its response to the setting.
The natural edges formed by the hills and the two rivers, the gently sloping plain
with groves of mango trees, a stream bed meandering across its length and the
existing roads and rail lines, all were given due consideration in the distribution of
functions, establishing the hierarchy of the roads and giving the city its ultimate
civic form. The coming of ferro-concrete not merely revolutionised existing
architectural concepts all over the world, but forced upon the different countries a
uniform pattern of super construction. It was only the climate of the different
regions which called for some necessary local variations. In recent times successful
efforts have been made to use traditional materials such as mud for building.
Architectural design seeks to use easily available material in such a way as is
suitable for the climate of a place, and adapted to provide natural ventilation. In
this context it would be worth mentioning the efforts of Laurie Baker who has
revolutionised mass housing in Kerala. Called the architect of the poor, Baker‘s
basic tenet of construction is to merge the buildings with the environment, by
keeping to the land profile to all extents possible and making use of locally
available materials. In order to reduce consumption of steel and cement, he
introduced the filler slab construction. By effectively using arches and corbels, the
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need for reinforced lintels was almost completely avoided. Fresh approaches to
ventilation, and thermal comfort inside the houses were tried out successfully.
Baker‘s designs invariably have traditional Indian sloping roofs and terracotta
Mangalore tile shingling with gables and vents allowing rising hot air to escape.
Curved walls are very much a part of Baker‘s architectural style as a means to
enclose more volume at lower material cost than straight walls. Organisations like
the Nirmithi Kendra and COSTFORD (set up by Baker) are spear-heading
architectural revolution for sheltering the countless of poor in this country which is
what is required in the present day.
Modern Indian architecture cannot be discussed without considering the
Goan architect Charles Correa who has become a major figure in contemporary
architecture around the world. He has played a pivotal role in the creation of
architecture for post-Independence India. All of his work, from the carefully
detailed Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Museum at the Sabarmati Ashram in
Ahmedabad to Kanchanjunga Apartment tower in Mumbai, the Jawahar Kala
Kéndra in Jaipur, the planning of Navi Mumbai, places special emphasis on
prevailing resources, energy and climate as major determinants in the ordering of
space. Correa has done pioneering work in urban issues and low cost shelter in the
Third World. From 1970-75, he was chief a for New Bombay, an urban growth
centre across the harbour from the existing city In 1984, he founded the Urban
Design Research Institute in Mumbai which to this day is dedicated to the
protection of the built environment and improvement of urban communities. He
also designed the distinctive buildings of the National Crafts Museum, New Delhi,
the Bharat Bhavan at Bhopal, and the British Council, at New Delhi.
METAL SCULPTURE
Indian sculpture has not been confined to stone; bronze has been an
important medium for it. While a few small bronze figures have been found of the
Saka-Kushana era, it is the Gupta period that saw high workmanship in bronze and
copper work. The most impressive of the figures of this period in the Sultanganj
Buddha, a graceful figure dressed in a diaphanous cloak. Pala bronzes are
numerous and were, indeed, exported to Nepal and Tibet where they provided
prototypes for indigenous schools.
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The southern school of Indian bronzes, which flourished between the tenth and
thirteenth centuries, was of such aesthetic quality and creative abundance that it is
regarded as representing that art at its best. It would seem that the art had its
beginnings in the time of the Pallavas (7th-8th century AD) but attained its climax
during the time of the Cholas. One of the great creations of Indian art is Shiva
Nataraja, symbolising the processes of creation and dissolution in terms of the
dynamic dance of the divinity. The great metaphysical problem of motion and rest
as expressed in the cosmos and its source is illustrated at its best in the dancing
figure of Shiva Nataraja. There were numerous Nataraja images, but one of the
best is from Tiruvelangadu (Chittoor District, c. 1100 AD) now deposited in the
Madras Museum. Nearly all Indian bronzes were made by the cire perdue process.
The figure was first designed over a core in wax, which was covered with a clay
coating. The whole was then heated so that the wax melted away, leaving a mould
to be filled with molten metal.
PAINTING
There is a legend of India that Brahma taught a king how to bring back to life the
dead son of a brahmin by executing a portrait of the deceased, which he endowed
with life. Brahma, as the ‗creator‘, is also associated with Vishvakarma, the divine
architect and the presiding genius of art and crafts.
Numerous references to paintings are found in Brahmanical and Buddhist literature
dating back to the pre-Christian period. We hear of lepya chitra, representations of
legendary lore in line and colour on textiles, and akin to the pata chitra of a later
tradition, lekhya chitra, line drawings or sketches, dhuli chitra, etc. Vatsyayana,
who lived in the third century AD, listed painting as one of the sixty-four kala or
fine arts in his Kamasutra. He enumerates six canons or principles of the art
(Shadanga or limbs) having extracted them from still more ancient works. The
principles are as follows:
(i) Rupabheda—knowledge of appearances
(ii) Pramanam—correct perception, measure and structure
(iii) Bhava—action of feelings on forms
(iv) Lavanya yoganam—infusion of grace, artistic representation
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(v) Sadrisyam—similitude
(vi) Varnikabhanga—artistic manner of using the brush and colours.
The subsequent development of painting indicates that these canons were
put into practice by Indian artists.
There are, however, evidences of prehistoric paintings the rules of which we
are not aware of. Indian rock paintings are dated 10,000 years back on the basis of
archaeological findings from excavations of the painted caves and India is also the
first country to recognise the antiquity of the rock paintings. In Bimbetka, near
Bhopal, in Madhya Pradesh, is the largest and oldest collection of rock paintings,
belonging to the Neolithic Age and depicting the everyday lives of the people—
hunting, dancing, decoration of bodies. The earliest paintings are pictures of
animals such as bison, bears and tigers. The paintings are mainly in red and white,
with occasional use of green and yellow. The superimposition of paintings shows
that the same canvas was used by different p people at different times. Bhimbetka
has been placed on UNESCO‘s world heritage site list. The paintings presumably
were of magical significance. The paintings in what has come to be called ‗the Zoo
Rock Shelter‘ include those of a Mesolithic boar painted in dark red, and animals
like the elephant, rhinoceros, barasingha, spotted deer, cattle, snake, etc. Later
paintings include battle scenes painted in red and an elephant painted in white. The
Boar Rock, which is the last among the rock shelters accessible to tourists, has a
depiction of a mythical boar with horns that is many times larger than the human
being chased by it. What may be considered the most ancient concrete example of
dateable painting is to be found, according to Percy Brown, on the walls of the
Jogimara cave of Ramgarh Hill in Sarguja (Chhattisgarh) These ‗frescoes‘ are
persumed to have been executed about the first century before; the Christian era. In
the district of Kanker (also in Chhattisgarh ) some of the rock paintings are
located in the shelters human Udkuda, Garagodi, Khairkheda, Kulgaon, Gotitola
etc. In these shelters human figures, animal figures, palm prints, bullock carts, etc.
are generally depicted. Rock art sites of Ghodsar and Kohabaur in the district of
Koria have paintings of human figures, animal figures, scenes of day-to-day life,
generally painted in white. At Chitwa Dongri (Durg District) interesting depiction
of a Chinese human figure riding a donkey, pictures of dragons and those of
54
agricultural scenes are depicted. Limdariha in Bastar district and Sitalekhni, Oogdi
etc. in Sarguja district have also yielded several interesting rock paintings.
Of the ancient paintings done on perishable materials, no specimens exist.
The earliest extant painting of the historical period consists of a few irregular rows
of human figures in yellow and ochre.
Cave and Mural Painting
Murals are large works executed on the walls of solid structure. In India,
evidence of mural work exists from ancient times—from 2nd century BC—to 8th10th century AD. Several locations around India are known to contain murals from
this period, mainly in natural caves and rock-out chambers. The highest
achievements of this time are the caves of Ajanta, Bagh, Sittanavasal, Armamali
Cave, Ravan Chhaya rock shelter, and Kailasanatha temple in Ellora Caves. The
themes of the murals of this period are mainly drawn from Buddhist, Jain and
Hindu religions. However, there are also locations where paintings were made to
adorn mundane premises, like the ancient theatre room in Jogimara Cave and
possible royal hunting lodge circa 7th century AD—Ravan Chhaya rock shelter.
Ajanta, Bagh, Sittanavasal There are 29 caves, at Ajanta, all excavated in the
face of a semicircular rocky scarp. The paintings in Caves No 9 and No 10 (which
are chaityas) are of the Sunga period (c. first century BC). The other paintings are
of Gupta inspiration. The subject of the paintings relate to decoration, figure
portraiture and topical narration. The murals chiefly depict scenes from the life-of,
the Buddha and jatakas. No frame divides one scene from the next, but each blend
into the other, the minor figures and the pattern skilfully leading the eye to the
central figures of each scene. There is no perspective, but an illusion of depth is
given by placing the background figures somewhat above those in the foreground.
The effect is to make the figures stand out from the wall. The decorative design
includes patterns and scrolls and figures of animals, flowers and trees. Graceful
figures or fantastic forms and mythical beings such as suparnas, garudas, yakshas
gandharvas and apsaras have been freely used to fill space. The paintings in caves
No 1 and 2 are the latest of the series arid may be dated about the seventh century.
The scene known as the ‗Dying Princess‘ has received unstinted praise for
―pathos and sentiment and the unmistaken way of telling this story in picture‖. The
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Mother and Child group is considered to be one of the most attractive specimens of
Ajanta art. The hunting scenes of lions and elephants are composed in a light and
shade scheme which can scarcely be paralleled in the world of art, and the entire
grouping is curiously natural and modern. In the sculptures as well as paintings of
Ajanta, there is the same combination of, the physically beautiful with the spiritual
which is so characteristic of the Indian—concept of reality.
The paintings at Bagh caves in Madhya Pradesh represent only an extension
of the Ajanta School and in variety of design, vigorous execution and decorative
quality seem to have ranked as high as those at Ajanta. Cave IV, locally known as
Rang Mahal, contains beautiful paintings on the walls which, like those of Ajanta,
are related to Buddhist and Jataka stories. These paintings, though decayed and
scanty, are regarded mono secular in nature, as religious themes are depicted in the
light of contemporary lifestyle of the people.
The classical tradition is seen in the South at Armamalai and Sittanavasal.
The natural caves at Armamalai in Vellore district, Tamil Nadu were made into
Jaiii temples in around the 8th century AD. Mud and unbaked brick structures,
located within the cave, were the resting place of Jam saints. Beautiful colour
paintings are seen on the cave roof and walls of the structure. These paintings
depict the stories of Jainism and Astathik Palakas (deities of eight corners) with
their mounts. These resemble Sittanavasal paintings. Sittannavasal is located 16
km north-west of Pudukkottai town in Tamil Nadu. It is famous for the rock-cut
caves and paintings in the Jam temples. These paintings, according to some
scholars, belong to the period of the Pallava king, Mahendravarman I, who
excavated the temple; others ascribe them to the ninth century when the shrine was
renovated by a Pandya ruler. The extant paintings can be seen on the walls,
ceilings, and pillars of the mandapa (hall). The murals have been painted with
vegetable and mineral dyes. The colours used are black, green, yellow, orange,
blue, and white. Painting has been done by applying colours to a thin, wet surface
of lime plaster.
In Odisha, in the Kheonjhar district, there are ancient fresco paintings on a
rock shelter called Ravan Chhaya which is like a half-opened umbrella. A painting
of a royal procession has been dated to the 7th century; it is possible that this
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shelter served as a royal hunting lodge. Remnants of wall paintings of the Chola
period (eleventh century AD) also are of striking value.
Early Miniature
Almost as a reaction to large scale wall painting, the miniature art developed
in eastern and western India in the 9th to 11th centuries. Miniature paintings are
executed on a very small scale for books or albums on perishable material such as
palm leaves, paper and cloth.
The Pala School of Bengal (9th-l2th century) in the east developed
illustrations on palm leaf and paper manuscripts and on their wooden covers. These
illuminations are almost all inspired by Vajrayana Buddhism. The art is
characterised by sinuous lines, subdued tones and simple compositions. Colours
were used with symbolic meanings. However, the miniatures do not represent a
separate style of book illustration; they are, in fact, mural paintings in reduced
dimensions. Nor have they anything to do with folk painting, for they reveal an
already developed form and technique intimately linked to an art practice
continuing the tradition of Bagh and Ajanta. Formally and psychologically the
miniatures are conventional; stylistically they are painted equivalents of the
contemporary plastic arts of the Palas and Senas.
A counterpart of the Pala School was the Apabhramsa School of miniature
painting in western India with a continuous history of five centuries (llth-15th
century). It has two phases, an earlier phase of illustrated manuscripts on palm leaf
and a later phase on paper, with the best paintings belonging to the period ‗of
transition (1350-1450 AD) when paper was supplanting palm-leaf. The most
notable features‘ of these figure paintings are angular faces in three-fourths profile,
pointed noses, eyes protruding beyond the facial line, an abundance of accessory
details and careful ornamentation. The subject matter of the paintings is three-fold:
in the early stages Jaina sacred texts and later Vaishnava subjects such as the Gita
Govinda, and secular love.
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Transition
After the advent of Islam, a cultural renaissance came about in the 14th
century. It was an age of synthesis. The traditional style of painting survived in
Western India.
The painting style of the Vijayanagar period is rooted in the Deccan, for
example at Ellora, and in the south as in the Chola paintings. The best preserved
and well-known paintings are those at the Virabhadra temple. The ceilings panels
are as long as 11 metres (one is in fact 18 metres), and painted borders with
abstract motifs set the compositions off from their architectural settings.
The Lepakshi paintings are characterized by the earth tones and the nearly
complete absence of blue—in fact, primary colours in general. The forms of the
figures and the details of their costumes are outlined in black and the colours
applied in a flat manner. The faces are essentially profiles to which a ‗detached‘
farther eye is appended, giving this elements of the landscape are arranged almost
like textile designs, filling in the space and setting the scene without attempting to
capture the likeness of the physical world. As in earlier Indian traditions, realism
does not seem to be the main concern.
The Sultanate painting shows an attempt to arrive at a fusion of the newly
introduced Persian and Indian traditional styles. Manuscript illustration gained a
fresh look in the Nimatnama painted at Mandu, during the reign of Nasir Shah
(1500-1510). This represents a synthesis of the indigenous and the Persian style,
thought the latter dominated the Mandu manuscripts. There was another style of
painting known as North India extending from Delhi to Jaunpur. Out of the
Sultnate efforts emerged the major styles—Mughal, Rajasthani and Deccani—
almost concurrently in circa AD 1550, all sharing some common formulae but also
preserving their individuality.
Mughal Style
In the courts of Babur and Humanyun, the Tirmurid style of Persian painting
continued. Mughal painting immediately took a much greater interest in realistic
portraiture than was typical pf Persian miniatures. Animals and plants were also
more realistically shown. In Akbar‘s reign began a new style—amazingly Indian in
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character though superintended by two Persian masters, Mir Syed Ali and Khwaja
Abdus Samad (who had been brought to India by Humayun when he returned from
his exile in Tabriz in the Safayid courts). Hindu painters like Basaean, Daswanth
and Kesudara were famous at Akbar‘s court.
Between, 1560 and 1566, the Tutinama (Tales of a parrot) was illustrated,
showing, the stylistic components of the imperial Mughal style at a formative,
stage. Among other manuscripts, between 1562 and 1577, the atelier worked on an
illustrated manuscript of the Hamzanama. As Mughal derived painting spread to
Hindu courts the texts illustrated included the Hindu epics including the Ramayana
and, the Mahabaharata; themes with animal fables; individual portraits; and
paintings on scores of different themes. Mughal style during this period continued
to refine itself with elements of realism, and naturalism coming to the fore .
Abul Fazl wrote a detailed history of the Mughal dynasty— the
Akbarnama—including in it an encyclopaedic account of the administration of the
court and empire (the Ain-i-Akbari, or Institues of Akbar). Akbar selected passages
of the texts which he wished illustrated and examined the work of the artists
regularly. Abul Fazl who presented this great work to Akbar in 1590 noted that
over a hundred of the illustrations in Akbarnama were considered to be ―famous
masterpieces of art‖. The paintings of Akbarnama are an extraordinary document
of life at the Mughal court, depicting the battles to overthrow the great Rajput
fortresses, of Chittor and Ranthambor, the hunt, the arrival of embassies to the
court, rejoicing at the birth of a prince, and the building of Fate hpur-Sikri. Some
of the paintings open out on to a faraway horizon, tinged with blue to give the
illusion of distance, a device copied from European artists. Akbar‘s artists had
made direct contact, with Western art when the emperor sent some of them to the
Portuguese settlement at Goa in 1575 in order to bring back rarities and to learn
foreign craft skills.
Realism, is the keynote, of the, Mughal school of painting. The subjects are
largely, drawn from incidents connected with the....magnificent court life of the
time. In, Scale the Mughal picture is small, and under the popular name of
‗miniature painting‘, its connection with Persian book illustration may be
observed.
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Akbar had already provided the model for portrait- painting, and Jahangir
followed this tradition. In addition to the emperor and members of the royal family,
Mughal artists also portrayed holy men, saints, dancing girls, soldiers, lovers;
calligraphists and painters. Although group portraits were favoured under Jahangir,
the artists generally confined themselves to representation of single figures.
Jahangir had inherited in full measure Babur‘s love of nature, and he
commissioned artists to depict for him portraits of rare animals and birds. Some of
the finished sketches of animals and birds such as ‗Himalayan Cheer Pheasant‘ and
‗Turkey-Cock‘ (Victoria and Albert Museum, London) and ‗Falcon‘ (Prince of
Wales Museum, Mumbai) believed to have been executed by artist Mansur superb
creations not only for the accuracy of detail but also a delicate sense of colour and
fine brush-work. Artists also represented incidents of field sports in their most
thrilling moments. The picture entitled ‗Red Blossoms‘ is the best known example
of Mansur‘s floral paintings. In Jahangir‘s time, the technique of painting was
refined, with brushwork becoming finer and the colours lighter. Jahangir was also
deeply influenced by European painting. During his reign he came into direct
contact with the English rulers and was sent gifts of oil paintings, which included
portraits of the English king and queen. He encouraged his royal atelier to take up
the single point perspective favoured by European artists, unlike the flattened
multilayered style used in traditional miniatures. The famed portrait painters in
Jahangir‘s court were Ustad Mansur, Abul Hasan and Bishandas.
Under Shah Jahan, painting was not given so much importance as
architecture, though the art gained in technical perfection. But it became
stereotyped, static and less lively. Themes of Mughal paintings of this period
include musical parties, lovers, sometimes in intimate positions, on terraces and
gardens, and ascetics gathered around a fire. Aurangzeb‘s reign practically saw the
decline of the art in the Mughal court. Though a brief revival was noticed during
the reign of Muhammad Shah ‗Rangeela‘ (1719—48), the glory of Mughal
painting had been lost by the time of Shah Alam 11(1759-1806).
Deccan School
The Deccan Sultanates had an independent cultural tradition of their own,
even before Akbar‘s time, quite deserving a separate school in their name—the
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Deccan School. The Deccani School was contemporary to Mughal painting,
though actually deriving its conventional forms from the Vijayanagar and probably
from the Bahmani court paintings. Bijapur court paintings rose to great heights
under Ebrahim Adil Shah. Gokonda portraits show the royal taste in fruits, scented
flowers and pets. They were replaced by the Hyderabadi style, delicate in
execution and more in the Mughal tradition. Among the earliest surviving
paintings are the illustrations of a manuscript Tarif-i-Hussain Shahi (c.1565),
which is now in Bharata Itihasa Samshodhaka Mandala, Pune. About 400
miniature paintings are found in the manuscript of Nujum-ul-Ulum (Stars of
Science) (1570), kept in Chester Beatty Library, Dublin.
Rajasthani Painting
The origin of Rajasthani painting dates back to the Sultanate period in the
early 16th century. The rise of regional sub- schools in the Rajasthani group seems
to have taken place in the same period. However, the earliest documents from
centres like Mewar and Malwa appear only from the beginning of the 17th century.
The subjects of these miniature paintings relate to Sanskrit and folk literature;
many are on the subject of love stories. Some paintings are from Vaishnava sect of
Hindu religion and some are from the lain cult. The paintings of the Vaishnava sect
are regarding various occasions in the life of Lord Krishna and his gopis. Jaideva‘s
Gita Govinda has been illustrated in this style as well. These paintings were earlier
created on taadpatra, i.e., palm leaves, and in a later period on paper. In these
paintings, most of the human characters are seen in profile, with big eyes, a pointed
nose and a slim waist characterising them. The skin colours of human beings are
brown or fair, though the skin colour of Krishna is blue. The colour of the hair and
eyes is black. Women characters have long hair. Mostly natural colours have been
used in these paintings. All the sub-styles possess certain common factors that
suggest a generic Rajasthani style with gave birth to these regional forms. These
illustrations are strongly influenced by the contemporary literary and musical
forms, and draw upon their motifs. They are all decorative in their composition and
colour scheme.
Mewar It is with a set of Ragamala paintings, done in 1605 in the
mountainous regions of Mewar (the house Nitha-din) that we come to the first
specific work belonging to this school. The Mewar paintings portray incidents
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mainly from the life of Krishna and his frolic with the ops the hero and heroine
themes of Hindi poetry and the pictorial representations of the Indian musical
(Ragamala) nodes. Illustrations from the Bhagavata and the Ramayana are
conceived and executed on a wider canvas and hundreds of figures overcrowding
the scenes play their role against the background of the social life of the time.
Scenes from rural life, marriage ceremonies processions, dance and, music parties
and life of the palace are depicted with feeling.
The portrayal of birds and animals shows their Gu1arat origin through the
Mughal influence can be felt in the realistic treatment of horses and elephants in
the manner of the Shah Jahan period. The landscape lacks the naturalsim of the
Mughal School but it has an imaginative character which reveals unsurpassing
beauty even in its conventional treatment. The tree types with dense foliage, rivers
full of lotus blossoms and drops of rain falling from deep blue clouds, streaks of
gold indicating lightning are all striking.
There is little material to follow the progress of the Mewar School after
1652, but judging from the Ragamala series and an illustrated Bhagavata Purana, it
appears certain that the rich traditions of Mewar painting were continued upto the,
close of the 17th century.
Marwar Marwar developed the pictorial art on its own lines and Mughal
stylistic trends began to recede. Jodhpur School and from the time Raja Udai Singh
made his peace with the Mughals, the early Rajput trends went out of fashion at the
court .After 1750, however, the Rajput elements began to emerge once again, and
though the later Rajput artists continued to show a preference for Mughal
techniques, the art slowly changed into a genuine Rajput style. The most important
Jodhpur illustrations are equestrian portraits of the royal house and the nobility.
The Jodhpur and Nagaur paintings show very bold types of expression with broad
fish eyes in human faces and highly stylised tree types.
Kishangarh, Bundi, Jaipur, etc. By the 18th century, the art of Rajasthani
paintings has spread to every princely court of Rajasthan, Bundi, Jaipur,
Kishangarh, Bikaner and Kotah became the new centres of the Rajasthani School.
This school is essentially Hindu in feeling and was inspired by a rebirth of the
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popular Hindu culture in the form of Vaishnavism which began to dominate the art
and literature of the country from around the 15the century.
Kishangarh developed as one of the most important schools of 18th century
Rajasthani painting. An offshoot of the Jodhpur School, the Kishangarh idiom rose
around the personality of Raja Samant Singh (1748-64), a follower of the Vallabhi
sect and a devotee of Lord Krishna. Among the court most painters, the name of
Nihal Chand is most famous. He developed an extraordinarily ‗mannerist‘ style
which exaggerated the slender curves and almond eyes of his figures. The facial
type, though idealized, is extremely lyrical in its beauty. The most popular subject
of the paintings is the love of Krishna and Radha.
Jaipur paintings, form the time of Swai Pratap Singh 1778-1803,
experienced an entirely new outlook. Imperial Delhi was in disgrace and decline. It
therefore ceased to make any genuine impression on Rajput art. It was also the
time of general lawlessness and insecurity, moral laxity and immense luxury.
There was a new approach to religion that strove to ease the conscience. For
instance, the Raslila of Krishna became ―an earthly erotic amusement‖. All this
was reflected in painting. Although it retained its conventional expressions, the
painting became an extravagantly decorative art.
The kingdoms of Bundi and Kotah in south-east Rajasthañ developed more
consistently interesting painting styles. Bundi paintings began to concentrate on
court scenes under Rao Chattar Sal and Bhao Singh and many scenes of nobles,
lovers and ladies in palaces were produced throughout the 17th and 18th centuries.
The kingdom of Kotah had been created by a Mughal decree in 1625, and
some artists, Kotah seem to have worked at the Mughal court. One anonymous
artist in particular transformed painting in Kotah into a refined and imaginative
genre with his masterly drawings of elephant fights and of royal patrons. Kotah
became renowned for the superb hunting scenes painted in the 18th century but
competent court paintings continued to be done even during the 19th century The
last great patron of Kotah painting, and indeed one of the last patrons of Rajput
paintings in general, was Rao Ram Singh II (1827-1865), an ebullient ruler who
commissioned a number of well-drawn and finely detailed scenes of worship at the
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shrine of his family deity as well as of the more conventional hunt, durbar and
processional scenes.
Pahari Painting
Although the term ‗Rajput Painting‘ has often been used to refer solely to
the art of Rajasthan, important and quite distinct artistic developments also took
place among the small Hindu kingdoms of the Punjab Hills. This long, narrow
region of the Himalayan foothills was split up, like Rajasthan, into many
independent states dotting the rich valleys of the Chenab, the Ravi, the Beas, the
Sutlej and the Yamuna. Most of these states such as Basohli, Chamba, Guler,
Jammu, Nurpur1 Kulu, Garhwal, Kangra and a couple of others were situated amid
snow-clad mountains and exquisite woodland scenery. Their rulers were hereditary
Rajput families, related among themselves by marriage or other family ties.
The painting of the hill states, described by the generic name of ‗Pahari Art‘,
was not a sudden development, nor unrelated to the life of the people. It was
deeply rooted in the feelings and experiences of the human heart and saturated with
the Hillman‘s poetry, music and religious beliefs.
Love is the inspiration and the main preoccupation of the Pahari School.
Whether the miniatures portray the boyhood pranks of Krishna and his cowherd
companions or his amours with Radha, the pageant of the seasons or the modes of
music, the principal theme is always provided by the love of man for woman or of
woman for man, symbolised by Krishna and Radha in the relation of lover and
beloved.
In its first phase, the Pahari style of painting developed in the state of
Basohli. The Basohli style as found in the reign of Raja Kripal .cingh (1678-1694)
appears totally evolved with a strong individual flavour which could have been an
assertion of the folk art tradition in conjunction with the Mughal technique. In the
early 18th century ateliers cane up, all practising the Basohli style and introducing
local elements in it. Extensive sets, each comprising more than a hundred
miniatures, were prepared of the Rasanianjari, the Bhagavata Purana, the Gita
Govinda, the Barainasa and Ragamala themes. Basohli paintings show a stylised
facial type in profile, dominated by the large, intense eye. The colours are always
brilliant, with ochre yellow, brown, and green grounds predominating. A
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distinctive technique is the depiction of jewellery by thick, raised drops of white
paint, with particles of green beetles‘ wings used to represent emeralds.
The Basohli style with its primitive vigour and fierce vitality, bold lines and
brilliant hot colours, continued to be the norm till about 1740 when changing
political conditions in northern India vitally affected the art of miniature painting
in the Punjab Hills. With the invasion of India by Nadir Shah, the apathy of the
Mughal emperor, Muhammad Shah, and the surrender of the Punjab governor in
1750 to the Afghanistan king Ahmad Shah Abdali, the situation in the northern
plains was in chaos. A mass movement began of traders, merchants and artists who
sought the comparative security of the hill states.
The new arrivals mingled with the local artists-and the refinement, born out
of their combined talent left its own mark on the work of the hill artists who
gradually abandoned the intensity of the Basohli School. Two states –Guler and
Jammu— appear to have been the important centres of the new school of painting,
and the works produced in the changed style belong to what is known as the
middle periood of Pahari Art.
The new style at Guler in the lower Himalayas was largely the work of a
single family of influential artists who may have originated in Kashmir and settled
in Guler. Although the members -of the family, headed by Pandit Seu, worked at
several centres in the hills, the style that developed at Guler itself is the most
typical of this later phase, with its lyrical and cool depiction of women who bear
their lovers absence with much more composure than the unhappy and passionate
heroines of the earlier Basohli School. Pandit Seu‘s son Nainsukh stands out as the
best known and most innovative artists of the Guler School.
A number of miniatures devoted to the Krishna legend are associated with
the Guler portraits and they are painted in the finest quality of the style of the
middle period.
Both in Kashmir and Guler a marked Mughal influence can be seen, and
while an attempt at adjustment with the Mughal style is obvious at Jammu, a
synthesis of the Mughal and Basohli Schools is more satisfactorily realised at
Guler. The drawing is light and fluid and the composition naturalistic. Poses and
gestures play important roles in the portrayal of individuals, and the face becomes
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the index of character. Along with these new features, the qualities of the warm
and rich Basohli palette persist.
The paintings of Kangra exhibit the fine workmanship of Mughal
miniatures; their tones are subdued and the lines are exquisitely fine and
melodious, especially in the female figures illustrating the delicate graces of Indian
womanhood. An important theme of Kangra painting is shringar. The Bhakti cult
was the driving force and the love story of Radha and Krishha was the main source
as well as the base for the visual expression. Bhagavata Purana and the poems
Gita- Govinda by Jayadeva were the most popular subjects dealing with the
legends and the amorous plays of Radha and Krishna symbolizing spiritual
devotion to God. The paintings portray incidents from the life of the young
Krishna, against the Brindavan forest or River Yamuna. The other popular themes
were the stories of Nala and Damayanti and those from Keshavdas‘s Baramasa.
The style is naturalistic and great attention is paid to detail. The foliage, depicted is
vast varied and this is conveyed through the use of multiple shades of green. The
Kangra paintings feature a profusion of flowering plants and creepers, rivulets and
brooks. The Kangra artists adopted various shades of the primary colours and used
delicate and fresher hues. For instance, they used a light pink on the upper hills to
indicate distance. Later Kangra paintings also depict nocturnal scenes, and storms
and lightning. The paintings were often large and had complex compositions of
many figures and elaborate landscapes. Towns and house clusters were often
depicted in the distance. The colours employed are cool and fresh. The colours
were extracted from minerals and -vegetables and possessed enamel like luster.
Verdant greenery of the landscape, brooks, springs were the recurrent images on
the miniatures. This -style reached its zenith during the reign of Maharaja Sansar
Chand Katoch who reigned in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.
An offshoot of the Kangra School was the Sikh school which flourished under
Ranjit Singh of Punjab in the nineteenth century.
Thanjavur Painting
The Thanjavur style of painting dates back to the beginning of the
seventeenth century when the Nayaka rulers of the South encouraged the art. But it
gained prominence under the royal patronage of Thanjavur‘s Sarabhoji 11(17971833) and Shivaji 11(1833-58),
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Vishnu, Shiva and Krishna were the favourites of the artists. Traditionally,
the painters adhered strictly to the canons of iconography as the paintings were
made for ritual and worship and not for display as is mostly the case today.
It takes about three weeks to finish one painting in the Thanjavur style. The
paintings are made on jackwood pasted with unbleached cloth (called gada in
Telugu) to which a mixture of limestone, chalk powder, gum and honey are applied
in layers on a sketch of the icon. At this stage, the traditional designs with
thousands of dots are embossed with the paste. All surface areas raised in certain
sections from the background, such as, sari borders, furniture, drapery and
jewellery are given extra coats with the above paste. Once dry, the gems are set—
in the past, diamonds, pearls and rubies were used—and gold leaf pressed onto the
painting with glue made of tamarind gum and jaggery. Finally, the decorations are
etched.
The figures in Thanjavur paintings are static. The figures are housed in the
centre of the board, inside beautifully decorated arches or curtains. Tradition
dictates also the use of colours which are pure and flat. The background is always
painted red or green. Green is also used for drapery and for Parvati‘s attire. Baby
Krishna is often fair of skin but as an adult he is depicted blue-skinned. The outline
of figures is in a dark reddish brown.
According to art historians, traditional Thanjavur art was the product of a
people who turned to their gods and goddesses for solace and for the assertion of
their identity at a time when the native rulers sold themselves to the English.
Although the Tanjore style of painting is not rated as high art, the school
nonetheless has historical importance. The Maratha period to which this art
belongs and its aftermath saw the disintegration of the Indian visual arts tradition
until modern art was born.
Mysore School
When the Vijayanagar Empire fell in 1565, there was initially much distress
for the families of painters who had been dependent on the patronage of the
empire. However Raja Wodeyar (1578—1617) provided a vital service to the
cause of painting by rehabilitating several families of painters of the Vijayanagara
School at Srirangapatna (near Mysore in Karnataka). The successors of Raja
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Wodeyar continued to patronise the art of painting by commissioning the temples
and palaces to be painted with mythological scenes. However none of these
paintings survived the warfare consequent to the ascendance to power of Hyder Ali
and Tipu Sultan and the ravages of war between them and the British. After the
death of Tipu Sultan in 1799, the state was restored to the earlier royal family of
Mysore under Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar (1799-1868) who ushered in a new
era by reviving the ancient traditions of Mysore and extending patronage to the
arts. Most of the traditional paintings of the Mysore School, which have survived
until today, belong to this -reign. Several paintings can be seen on the walls of
Jagan Mohan Palace, Mysore. These range from portraits of the Mysore rulers,
their family members and important personages in Indian history, through selfportraits of the artists themselves, and murals depicting the Hindu pantheon and
scenes from the Puranas and the epics.
Several literary pieces were illustrated, the most famous of such manuscripts
being Sritattvanidhi, a voluminous work of 1500 pages prepared under the
patronage of Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar. This pictorial digest is a
compendium of illustrations of gods, goddesses and mythological figures with
instructions to painters on a wide range of topics such as composition placement,
choice of colour and mood. The ragas, seasons, the animals and plant worlds are
also effectively depicted in these paintings in the context of the theme.
Mysore paintings are characterised by delicate lines, intricate brush strokes,
graceful delineation of figures and the discreet use of bright vegetable colours and
lustrous gold leaf. More than mere decorative pieces, the paintings are designed to
inspire feelings of devotion and humility in the viewer. The first stage was to
prepare the ground; paper, wood, cloth or wall grounds were variously used. The
paper board was made of paper pulp or waste paper, which was dried in the sun
and then rubbed smooth with a polished quartz pebble. If the ground was cloth it
was pasted on a wooden board using a paste composed of dry white lea4 mixed
with gum and a small quantity of gruel. The board was then, dried and burnished.
Wood surfaces were, prepared by applying dry, white, lead, yellow ochre and gum,
and walls were treated with yellow ochre, chalk and gum. After preparation of the
ground a rough sketch of the picture was drawn with crayon prepared from the
straight twigs of the tamarind tree. The next step was to paint the furthest objects
such as sky hill and river and then gradually animal and human figures were
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approached in greater detail. After colouring the figures, the artists would turn to
elaboration of the faces, dress and ornaments including the gesso work.
Gesso work was important in traditional paintings of Karnataka. Gesso
refers to the paste mixture of white lead powder, gambose and glue which is used
as an embossing material and covered with gold foil. The gesso work in Mysore
paintings is low in ‗relief and intricate as compared to the thick gold relief work of
the Thanjavur School. ‗
Modern Era
With the advent of Europeans and, more specifically, the British, new
developments began in the field of painting.
During the latter half of the eighteenth century the paintings of Indian artists
attracted the attention of the English traders at many places. The East India
Company‘s merchants began to procure items of Indian arts and crafts.
Simultaneously, interested persons among them drew the attention of the Indian
artists to the technique, of water-colour painting. Artists were required to depict
Indian life arid, scenes but in a medium of the foreigner‘s liking. In the
circumstances, artists were required to imitate the English style of painting. Art
critics found this tendency dangerous and to them it was the beginning of the
degradation of Indian art, since any imitation was suicidal. The ‗Company
Painters‘ became the term for these artists, who worked to satisfy the needs of their
new masters for some economic gain. When combined, the Western technique and
the Indian form brought about a synthetic style.
There was a blend of traditional elements from existing miniature style with
a more Western treatment of perspective, volume .and recession. Most of the
paintings were small, following the Indian miniature tradition; however, the
paintings of plants and birds (natural history paintings) were usually life size.
Company art flourished at the main British settlements of Calcutta, (Kolkata),
Madras (Chennai), Delhi, Lucknow, Patna and the Maratha court of Thanjavur.
Portraits, landscapes and views, and scenes of Indian people, dancers and festivals
were painted. Series of figures of different castes or trades were particular
favourites, with an emphasis on differences in costume. Another popular subject
was architecture, usually done in a detailed and frontal style more like, that of an
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architectural draughtsman. Mostly, paper was used for the paintings, but
sometimes paintings were made on ivory, especially those from Delhi. The works
were mostly kept in portfolios or albums rather than displayed on walls.
Towards the end of the nineteenth century a notable Indian artist, Ravi
Varma, tried to re-establish Indian art through Western methods, techniques,
principles and traits. He studied the technique of oil painting from the famous
European portrait painter Theodore Jenson. The artist‘s chief concern was to
reproduce Indian life and scenes: as well as the traditional mythological subject
matter in oil painting in the Western style. Ravi Varma employed this new medium
in painting Indian mythological themes which at once attained wide recognition
and through oleographs became popular throughout the country. Critics accuse him
of having failed to convey adequate expression of Indian feeling or of the group
combined Indian subject matter with post-Impressionist colours, Cubist forms arid
Expressionistic styles. The group wished to break with the revivalist nationalism
established by the Bengal school of art and to encourage an Indian avant- garde,
engaged at an international level. Their intention was to ―paint with absolute
freedom for content and technique, almost anarchic, save that we are governed by
one or two sound elemental and eternal laws, of aesthetic order, plastic coordination and colour composition‖. In 1950, Vasudeo S. Gaitonde, Krishen
Khanna and Mohan Samant joined the PAG, following the departure from India of
the two main founders, Souza and Raza. The group disbanded in 1956. Even as the
group as a whole was influenced by European modernism, each artist worked in
his own distinctive style. Furthermore, specific Indian imagery and landscapes
were also adopted, particularly by Tyeb Mehta and M.F. Husain.
Other artists of this period to have stretched the idioms were Narayan
Shridhar Bendre and Kattingeri Krishna Hebbar.
Over time three major trends became visible: projection of the disturbed
social unrest and instability with the predicament of the human being as the main
theme; an interest in Indian thought and metaphysics, manifested in what is called
‗tantric‘ paintings and in paintings with symbolical significance; and the new
interest in vague surrealist approaches and in fantasy. There is little conflict
between form and content or technique and expression; almost everybody is certain
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that technique and form are only important prerequisites to something more
essential—the idea, message or spirit.
Some Personalities of the Modern Art Movement
Some of the prominent artists who contributed to the modern art movement in
India are considered here.
A.K. Haldar Asit Kurnar Haldar brought novelty in the field by working poetical
rhythms in the realm of art. His colour schemes and line play were intended to
show the beauty and harmony of poetical composition. Ornamental designs of a
fine quality painted with extreme precision, represented yet another aspect of his
art.
Abanindranath Tagore The pioneer of‘ the new school,of art, his work
was two-fold—to rediscover the best in the Indian art of the ancient and medieval
eras, and to regenerate art in its modern setting. In reviving the spirit of the lost,
art, Abanindra decided to use the ancient artists‘ supreme mental weapon—
emotion or feeling. His paintings thus began to narrate a philosophy and an
impulse. For example, his famous picture, Shah Jahan Looking at the Taj, depicted
the very depth of the artist‘s emotion in line and colour. A new school of artists
began to emerge under his influence to represent. ‗Indianness‘ in all its vivid
meaning in their creations.
Amrita Sher-Gil Amrita Sher-Gil‘s vibrant canvasses and her short but
dynamic life have established her as one of India‘s most celebrated modern artists.
Born in Budapest in 1913, to a Hungarian mother and Sikh father, she trained at
the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris where she became influenced by Realism. Upon
returning to India, she adopted this modernist approach to portray the lives of local
people in her community.
Anjolie Ela Menon Born 1940, Anjolie Ela Menon has achieved fame as
one of India‘s leading contemporary female artists. Her preferred medium is oil on
masonite, though she has also worked in other media, including glass and water
colour. She is a well-known muralist.
Francis Newton Souza F. N. Souza was a founding member of the
Progressive Artists Group of Bombay, and was the first post-independence Indian
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artist to achieve high recognition in the West Souza‘s expressionistic style sought
to illustrate both lowlife and high energy. In 2008, his painting Birth (1955) set a
world auction record for the most expensive Indian painting sold till then by selling
for $2.5 million (Rs 11.3 crore) at a Christie‘s auction.
Gaganendranath Tagore Gaganendranath Tagore shared very much with
the painters of the Indian Renaissance but, he, like the distinguished poet-painter
Rabindranath, was an individualist of an extraordinary order. His paintings have
something considerably common with cubistic approach as in his study of a
magician. His paintings are distinguished for his individualistic, highly dramatic
concept of light and shadow.
J. Swaminathan Paintings from the 1960s by J. Swaminathan belong to a
phase of contemporary Indian painting in which one sees an attempt, again, to
rediscover sources of indigenous inspiration.
Jamini Roy Originally a painter in oils in the European style, Jamini Roy
returned to the village to study art from the Indian point of view. His later style
was both a reaction against the Bengal School and the Western tradition. His
underlying quest was threefold: to capture the essence of simplicity embodied in
the life of the folk people; to make art accessible to a wider section of people; and
to give Indian art its own identity. Working entirely with native materials, he was
deeply influenced by the folk art tradition. He used folk forms with his own
colours and design and began a new movement in the art world. He produced
masterpieces in murals, miniatures, and portraits.
K Sreenivasulu K. Sreenivasulu, like Jamini Roy, was greatly moved by
folk art and rural life. By virtue of the directness, decorative effects and stylisation,
his work should be understood along with Jamini Roy‘s. Sreenivasulu drew much
inspiration from the art heritage of South India, particularly from the mural
tradition of Thanjavur and Lepakshi.
KG. Subramanyan K. G. Subramanyan invented traditions by juxtaposing
contemporary art with popular culture, and folk art with urban trends. He studied
under Nandalal Bose at Santiniketan outside of Kolkata. His influence extended far
and wide through his writings on art theory and teaching at Maharaja Sayajirao
University in Baroda.
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KK Hebbar Krishna Hebbar was born in Karnataka and received his
diploma from the Sir J. J. School of Art, and he studied art at the institution from
1940 to 1945. While being influenced by the academic style taught at the school,
Hebbar felt a strong urge to paint in a genre which drew from traditional Indian art.
His concern with the human condition made him focus on themes like poverty,
hunger, and the destruction wrought by war and the nuclear explosion. At the same
time he was acutely sensitive to music and dance and once having, learnt the dance
form Kathak made many paintings in brilliant hues of dancers and performers.
Kshitindranath Mazumdar Another artist of the modern school, Mazumdar
achieved considerable success in giving art a newness in the context of Indian
themes. The episodes of the epics, lives of great saints and spiritual and devotional
scenes from actual lives, were the sources of inspiration to him. His colour
schemes were also attractive. A noteworthy feature of Mazumdar‘s paintings was
his depiction of modern figures as the figures of traditional mythological themes.
Laxman Pai Born in Goa in 1926, Laxman Pai uses bright and vibrant
colours in his works. In Pai‘s vision, man and nature are inseparable. The image is
elementary but highly suggestive.
Maqbool Fida Husain Maqbool Fida Husain is perhaps are one of the finest
and most famous painters of India. Born at Pandharpur in Maharashtra, he did his
schooling in Indore. His artistic aspirations led him to the J.J. School of Art in
Bombay (now, Mumbai). As a young artist he had to struggle to get recognition. At
first he painted cinema hoardings but came to the limelight in the 1940s, joining
the Progressive Artists‘ Group led by F.N. Souza. After his international debut in
1952 with a solo exhibition at Zurich, Switzerland, he earned worldwide
reputation. The flamboyant artist, calle4 the ‗Picasso of India‘, put Indian art on
the world map. His paintings express the essence of Indian culture and are
symbolic and abstract in nature.
Husain‘s art was associated with Indian modernism in the 1940s. He is
famous for his narrative paintings, executed in a modified Cubist style, that were
serious and caustic as well as funny. His themes, usually treated in series, had
diverse themes: eminent personalities like Mahatma Gandhi and Mother Teresa;
the Indian epics; the British era and motifs of rural and urban life He was
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influenced by European modernists like Cezanne and Matisse in his depiction of
particular scenes from the Ramayana and the Mahabharata and the: Hindu
pantheon.
Some of his famous paintings include a series on the Indian epics and a
series of 49 watercolours; ‗Passage Through Human Space‘ (completed in 1975).
He is famous for horses on canvas that have a startling real-life-like resemblance;
the painting ‗Bharat Mata‘; and ‗Ritual‘, that draws from the vibrancy of folk art. .
Some of his paintings became controversial over the last years of his life.
Some l4indu groups described them as obscene and issued death threats against
him. He was forced to shift base. He was offered the ‗citizenship of Qatar and he
accepted it in 2010, dividing his time between homes in Qatar and London.
Husain‘s creative spirit led him to experiment with cinema. His first film Through
the Eyes of a Painter was made in 1967 and it won the Golden Bear at the Berlin
Film Festival. He made two Hindi films: Gaja Gamini with Madhuri Dixit whom
he described as his muse; and Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities. He was awarded
the Padma Shri (1955), the Padma Bhushan (1973) and the Padma Vibhushan
(1991).
M.F. Husain died in 2011, at the age of 96.
Muhammad Abdur Rahman Chughtai Yet another famous artist of the
modem school, Chughtai‘s art contained romantic themes in pleasant colour
schemes, with delicate, and beautiful figures in fine lines. An echo of the old
Persian style is evident in his works, as also the influence of the Kangra paintings.
But the artist‘s originality lay in working out colour play to appeal to the eyes
while adding the appropriate excellence to the themes. Chughtai attained notable
success in his field of experimentation.
Nandalal Bose Mythological themes appeared in the art of Nandalal Bose with the
artist‘s own feelings depicted in them. Historical themes were reoriented with
meaningful originality. He also painted pictures of the real life around. Nandalal‘s
art was remarkable for its bold lines and simple colour work. That was the
traditional mode of Indian painting as represented at Ajanta. The masterpieces of
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Nandalal include Uma‘s Tapasya, Pranam, Spring, Shiva and Parvati and Gopini.
Nandalal‘s experiments with sketches were most successful.
S.H. Raza Born in Madhya Pradesh, Syed Haider Raza studied painting at
the Nagpur school of art. He later moved to Mumbai to study at the J.J. School of
art. He was one of the founder members of the Progressive Artists Group. In his
early days, he struggled to develop a modernist language. His works basically
include real and abstract landscapes that glow with vibrant colours. Raza also
integrated rudiments of Tantricism which retains Indian scriptural texts.
Sarada Ukil Sarada Ukil ventured to open up new horizons for Indian
painting while trying to revive past traditions. In depicting the human form, he
depended on idealistic conceptions rather than ot natural features. The subject
matter of his art emanated from his imagination. He even changed the prevailing
colour technique by bringing in a more soothing and pleasant blending of colour
devices and by using only, black and white. Besides his imaginative creations, he
also worked on historical themes against an emotional background. He depicted
the life of the Buddha in a series of pictures. Ukil‘s contributions to the modern
school of art were original, appealing and valuable.
Satish Gujral Painter, sculptor, muralist, architect and writer, Satish Gujral
who was born in 1925 is one of the few who have consistently dominated the art
scene in India for the entire post-independent era. He diversified his sculptural
materials with machined industrial objects in steel, copper, glass, often painted in
strong enamel colours. Later he tried out junk sculptures, introducing light and
sound in them. He has also won acclaim as an architect.
Tyeb Mehta Born in Gujarat in 1925 Tyeb Mehta spent an initial period
working as a film editor in a cinema laboratory. His interest in painting, however,
took him to the Sir J. J. School of Art. A close friend of the Progressive Artists
Group with considerable stylistic affiliation, he left for London where he lived and
worked between 1959 and 1964. He broke free from the nationalist Bengal alcohol
and embraced Modernism instead, with its Post-Impressionist colours, Cubist
forms and brusque, Expressionistic styles. His film Koodal, a powerful depiction
of the ordinary man‘s dilemma, won the Filmfare Critic‘s Award in 1970.
FOLK PAINIING TRADITIONS
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Pattachitra
Pattachitra is a traditional painting style that originated and flourished in Odisha.
The name pattachitra comes from the Sanskrit words patta, meaning cloth/canvas,
and chitra, meaning picture. The paintings depict mythological characters on
treated cloth—made by gluing together layers of old cotton cloth with tamarind
glue and chalk to create a leather-like surface. The traditional colours used in the
pattachitra art are red, ochre, indigo, black and white, all obtained from natural
sources like Hingula, Ramaraja, Haritala, lamp black, and burnt coconut shells.
The brushes are crude, made of the hair of domestic animals. The painters do not
use pencil or charcoal for the preliminary drawings, but simply draw directly with
the brush either in light red or yellow. Then the colours are filled in. The final lines
are drawn and the patta is given a lacquer coating to protect it from weather, thus
making the painting glossy.
These paintings are specially inspired by the Jagannath and Vaishnava cult;
the themes are from Gita Govinda of Jayadev, the Navagunjara, the Ramayana, and
the Mahabharata. The subjects may also be inspired by Shaiva and Shakti cults.
With the emergence of Bhakti movement the paintings of Radha and Krishna were
painted in vibrant shades of orange, red and yellow. Some paintings also depict
social scenes. The paintings resemble the old murals of Odisha, especially of the
religious centres of Pun, Konarak and Bhubaneshwar, dating back to the 5th
century BC. The region around Raghurajpur village is a well-known centre for
pattachitra. The style is a mix of folk and classical elements with a bias for folk
forms. The dress style shows Mughal influence. There are a few well- defined
postures used by the painters to accentuate the narrative character of the style. The
lines are bold and clean and angular and sharp. Generally there are no landscapes,
perspectives and distant views. All the incidents are seen in close juxtaposition.
The background on which the figures are represented, is delineated with
decorations of flowers and foliages and is mostly painted in red colour Decorative
borders frame the paintings.
Palm leaf pattachitra in Odia language is known as talapattachitra. The palm
leaves are left to become hard after being plucked from the tree. Then these are
sewn together to form a surface like a canvas. On this the images are traced by
using black or white ink. The panels of the palm leaves can also be easily folded
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like a fan and packed in a compact pile for better conservation. Often, there are
superimposing layers that ate glued together for most of the surface, leaving some
areas that can open like small windows to reveal a second image under the first
layer.
Madhubani Painting
Madhubani painting, also called Mithila painting, has been done traditionally
by the women of villages around the present town of Madhubani (the literal
meaning of which is forests of honey) in Bihar. It is also practised in the adjoining
parts of Terai in Nepal. Fingers, twigs, brushes, nib-pens, and matchsticks are used
to apply the paint. Natural dyes and pigments are used. These paintings are
characterised by striking geometrical patterns. Paintings are made for each
occasion such as birth and marriage, as well as for festivals such as Holi, Chhatt,
and Durga Puja.
Though the origins of Madhubani painting are not clear, it, is said that they
originated during the Ratnayana age when Janaka, king of Mithila, made people
paint the floors and walls of their houses on the occasion of‘ his daughter Sita‘s
marriage to Lord Rama. The folk belief that the gods visit each house in the
morning is also an inspiration behind the painting tradition; the art primarily dons
the walls and doors, intending to please the gods.
Traditionally, Madhubani paintings required a paste of cow dung and mud to
be applied to the walls and floors to give a dark background on which pictures
were drawn with rice paste and vegetable colours. Over time, the paintings
graduated to using cloth, hand-made paper and canvas as a base. Cotton wrapped
around a bamboo stick forms the brush. The colours applied are prepared by the
artists. Black colour is obtained by mixing soot with cow dung; yellow from
turmeric or pollen or lime and the milk of banyan leaves; blue from indigo; red
from flower juice or red sandalwood; green from the leaves of the wood apple tree;
white from rice powder; and orange from palasha flowers. The colours are applied
flat with no shading, so there is a two-dimensional effect. There is normally a
double line drawn fort the outlines, with the gap between the lines filled by crossed
or straight tiny lines.
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The subjects of Madhubani paintings are mostly drawn from Hindu religious
motifs, and the themes generally centre on Hindu deities like Krishna, Rama,
Shiva, Durga, Lakshmi, and Saraswati. The figures of the deities have an abstract
touch. Natural objects like the sun, the moon, and plants with religious associations
like the tulsi are also painted, along with scenes from the royal court and social
events like weddings. Hardly any space is left empty; paintings of flowers,
animals, birds, and geometric designs fill the gaps. Some of the other attributes of
Madhubani paintings are double line border, ornate floral patterns, bold use of
colours, and bulging eyes and a jutting nose on the faces of the figures.
Symbolic meanings are attached to most of the figures depicted in
Madhubani paintings. Fishes in a Madhubani painting, for instance, depict good
luck, fertility and procreation, while peacocks symbolise romantic love, and
serpents are identified as divine protectors.
The skill has been handed down the generations, mainly by women, in the
families of the region, and hence the traditional designs and ‗patterns are widely
maintained.
Madhubani painting got national recognition in 1970 when the President of
India gave an award to Jagdamba Devi of Jitbarpur village near Madhubani.
Madhubahi painting has remained confined to a compact geographical area,
and the content and the style have largely remained the same. That is the reason
this style has been given the GI (geographical indication) status.
Some of the famous names associated with this style of painting in recent
times are Bharti Dayal ‗Ganga Devi‘, Bua - Devi, Jagdamba Devi, Sita Devi, and
Mahasundari Devi among others.
Patua Art
Patua art of Bengal goes back some 1000 years. Patuas, like the Kumars, started
out in the village tradition as painters of scrolls or pats telling the popular mangal
stories of the gods and goddesses. (Mangal kavyas are auspicious poems dedicated
to rural deities and appear as a distinctive feature of medieval Bengali literature.)
For generations these scroll painters or patuas have gone from village to village
with their scrolls, singing stories in return for money or food. Many come from the
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Midnapur district of West Bengal or else from the 24 Parganas and Birbhum
districts and call themselves chitrakar. The pats or scrolls are made of sheets of
paper of equal or different sizes which are sown together and painted with ordinary
poster paints. Originally they would have been painted on cloth and used to tell
religious stories such as the medieval mangal poems. Today they may be used to
comment on social and political issues such as the evils of cinema or the promotion
of literacy.
Kalighat Painting
Kalighat painting was a product of the changing urban society of the
nineteenth-century Calcutta (now, Kolkata). With the growing importance of the
Kalighat temple as a pilgrimage centre in the then British capital, Calcutta (now,
Kolkata), the scroll-painters and the potters who had migrated from rural Bengal
and settled in and around the temple, practised this sort of painting. They used
water colours and painted on mill paper with brushes made from squirrel and calf
hair. The cheap pigments were applied in transparent tones in contrast to traditional
Indian tempera or opaque colours. With shaded contours and articulated gesture
and movement, the figures attained a plaque-like effect on a neutral unpainted
ground. Formal and linear economy, expressive gestures, and quality brushwork
and flawless rhythmic strokes characterise the style. Kalighat painting started on a
religious note with the subjects being Hindu gods and goddesses along with their
incarnations. However, over time, social sentiments came to be expressed in the
medium of paper and colours. Kalighat painting was the first of its kind in the
Indian subcontinent that expressed sulaltern sentiment and addressed customers
directly. There were romantic depictions of women. There were satirical paintings
lampooning the hypocrisies of the newly rich and the changing roles of men and
women after the introduction of education for women.
While some critics opine that Kalaighat painting style has a distinctive
British influence, others hold that local technique and social settings are entirely
responsible for the Kalighat style. However, it is now acknowledged that Kalighat
painting is a legacy, a record of the past that we may not have otherwise known of.
For long, scholars ignored this art; it was only in the twentieth century that
this art started getting the attention and appreciation that it deserves.
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Paitkar Painting
The Paitkar paintings of Jharkhand—or scroll paintings—are one of the most
ancient schools of painting in India, and it is practised by the tribal, people, of the
state. The cultural heritage of this old form of painting has associations with one of
the most well-known goddesses in the Bengali household, Ma Mansa. The Paitkar
paintings of Jharkhand have links with the socio-religious custom of holding
yajnas and giving alms. The ‗paintings have a common subject—what happens to
human life post death. Unfortunately, the art form is in decline and may soon
become extinct.
Kohvar and Sobral Paintings
The Kohvar and Sohrai paintings from Jharkhand are delicate and beautiful,
but the art form faces the threat of extinction. These paintings may be sacred or
secular, but are relevant to a woman‘s world. This painting is practised exclusively
by married women, during weddings and at harvest time, and the traditional skill is
passed on to younger females of the clan. Comb-cut or finger-painted, Kohvar art
celebrates marriage, and the wall-painted Sohrai celebrates ‗bumper crops.
Elaborate design motifs, animal and plant forms, and fertility motifs are abundant
and often reflect the ancient cave art found in the region. The colours used are all
natural— neutral earth shades, red oxide from stone, red ochre, kaolin white,
manganese black earth etc. Blue and green colours are not prominent.
Kalamkari
As the name suggests, kalamkari is the art of painting with a kalam, i.e., a pen,
which is a sharp pointed bamboo that regulates flow of colour. The painting is
done on cotton fabric. Kalamkari has an ancient history. Srikalahasti and
Machilipatnam in Andhra Pradesh, the nerve centres of this art, continue with this
activity. The artists of Srikalahasti create wall hangings with free hand drawing.
Hindu mythology is the main source of themes. Some of the craftsmen in
Srikalahasti also produce beautiful textile materials drawn free hand. Kalamkari
colors, are made from vegetable dyes. The Machilipatham artists use designs of
different forms of the lotus flower, the, cart wheel, parrots, an interlacing pattern of
leaves and flowers.
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Warli Painting
The Warlis (who are the indigenous people occupying the Maharashtra-Gujarat
border region mainly) carry oh a painting tradition going back to 2500 or 3000 BC.
Their mural paintings are similar to those done between 500 and 10,000 BC in
Bhimbetka, in Madhya Pradesh. Rudimentary in style, the wall paintings use a very
basic graphic vocabulary involving a circle, a triangle and a square. The circle and
triangle are drawn from observation of nature—the circle representing the sun and
the moon, and the triangle could have been derived from the shape of mountains
and conical shaped trees. The square seems to be a human invention, indicating a
sacred enclosure or a piece of land. The central motif in each ritual painting is the
square, known as the chauk or chaukat. There is Palaghata, the mother goddess,
symbolising fertility Male gods are unusual among the Warli and when represented
are frequently related to spirits which have taken human shape. The central motif,
in these ritual paintings is surrounded by scenes portraying hunting, fishing and
farming, festivals and dances, trees and animals. Two triangles joined at the tip are
used to represent human and animal bodies.
The ritual paintings are usually done inside the huts. The walls, made of a
mixture of branches, earth and cow dung, offer a red ochre background for the
paintings. Only white pigment made of a mixture of rice paste and gum is used for
the paintings. The wall paintings are done only for special occasions such as
weddings or harvests.
Thangka Paintings
The typical paintings of Sikkim (as well as Tibet) are the thangkas,
originally a medium of reverence through which the highest ideals of Buddhism
were evoked. Thangkas are created on cotton canvas and often framed -with silk.
They depict images of different deities and philosophies related to Buddhism.
Thangkas were traditionally made by Buddhist priests and monks and specific
ethnic groups, the skills being passed from generation to generation. Now this art
form has spread among a larger group of people and has assumed a commercial
aspect as well. The revenue earned from this art have also helped the monasteries,
besides helping the artists to keep the art form alive.
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There are three types of thangkas. One depicts the life of Buddha, his birth,
his disillusionment with life, his search for enlightenment and his understanding of
life. The second is more abstract, representing Buddhist beliefs of life and death
one example could be the Wheel of Life, which symbolise the Buddhist belief of
transmigratory existence. The third type consists of paintings that are often used as
a tool for meditationx, or as offerings to the deities. These paintings are usually
done against a white background. The colours used in thangkas have special
significance. White stands for serenity, golden for the birth or life, enlightenment,
and Parinirvana, red for the intensity of passion—both love and hatred, black for
anger, yellow for compassion and green for consciousness. The colours used in
making a thangka are all vegetable or mineral dyes extracted from nature.
CRAFTS
India‘s deep-rooted tradition in crafts can be traced back to the ancient times
when the country, famous for its cotton, was an important trading centre for mainly
textiles and dyes, and ivory. Sailors from the West and the Far East poured silver
and gold into India in return for its hand printed cotton textiles and other
handicrafts. Under the early Mughals Indian crafts touched new heights: the art of
textile-making and jewellery was highly developed and new techniques/skills such
as velvet manufacturing were introduced and perfected. Local patronage
diminished with the weakening of the Mughal power. The colonial era discouraged
trade in crafts; Indian crafts were now challenged by the cheap, imported,
machine-made goods. Gandhi‘s swadeshi movement was aimed at reinforcing the
status of the Indian crafts. After independence, the government‘s efforts have been
to launch developmental programmes for the crafts industry, revive many
traditional crafts, identify new craft centres and make people more aware of their
country‘s rich, cultural heritage.
Textiles
Indian textiles produced by a range of techniques and abounding in designs,
nevertheless display some common features determined by geographical and
climatic influences. The origins of figured muslin—now called jamdani—are not
clear, but it is an ancient art. The earliest mention of the origin of the textile style
and its development as an industry is found in Kautilya‘s Arthashastra where it is
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stated that this fine cloth used to be made in Bengal and Pundra (parts of present
Bangladesh). Its mention is also found in the book of Periplus of the Eritrean Sea
and in the accounts of Arab, Chinese and Italian travellers and traders. It is also
mentioned in Sanskrit literature of the Gupta period (4th—6th century AD). It was
in the, Mughal period, most likely during the reign of either Akbar or Jahangir, that
the figured or flowered muslin came to be known as the jamdani. In the Mughal
period the finest jamdanis were produced at Dhaka, now in Bangladesh, the work
being characterised by extremely elaborate designs. In India now the style prevails
in West Bengal. The weaving of jamdanis was introduced in Lucknow, Uttar
Pradesh, under the nawabs of Awadh in the late 18th century and attained great
excellence. A striking feature of jamdanis is that the patterns are of Persian
derivation.
The method of weaving resembles tapestry work in which small shuttles of
coloured, gold or silver threads, are passed through the weft. The jamdani
dexterously combines intricate surface designs with delicate floral sprays. The
anchal or palm is often decorated with dangling, tassel like corner motifs, known
as jhalar. Some of the types of Jamdani sarees are Daccai Jamdani, Tangail
Jamdani, Shantipur Jamdani, and Dhaniakhali Jamdani (the last three being from
West Bengal). There are other regions in India which produce this style of
weaving. The main centres of jamdani weaving in Uttar Pradesh are Tanda
(faizabad district) and Varanasi. In Andhra Pradesh, the style is produced in
Uppada village of East Godavari district. Venkatagiri is also famed for its finetextured woven cotton cloth. The kodali karuppar textiles of Tanül Nadu are hand
woven and hand-printed with cotton and zari using the jamdani weaving technique.
Ikat (or ikkat) is a type of weaving where the warp, weft or both are tie-dyed
before weaving ,to create designs on the finished fabric. Great care must be taken
in tying resist areas with water repellent material. The precision of the wrapping
determines the clarity of the design. After wrapping, the warp threads are dyed.
When finished and unwrapped, the areas under the ties have the original colour.
Numerous colours can be added after additional wrappings. Care has to be taken in
putting the warp on the loom, as keeping all, the threads in position is necessary for
the design to work. The natural movement during weaving gives ikat designs a
characteristic feathered, edge.
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India, Japan and several South-East Asian countries have cultures with long
histories of ikat production. Ikat varies from country to country and region to
region. Researchers have discovered a link between ikat production in India and
South-East Asia. Gujarati merchants are said to have taken ikat or Patola, as it is
known in Gujarat, to Indonesian rulers and there this activity was taken over by the
Dutch. The patterns in the Patola Ikat are prominently similar to the double ikat
produced in Bali, Indonesia.
In India there are many kinds of ikat weaving, with differences from region
to region. The finest double ikat is woven in Patan, Gujarat, by the Salvi
community and is known as Patan patola; the others are the Vachitrapuri saktapar
pattern in Odisha, known as bandha, and rare examples of Tilia Rumal in Andhra
Pradesh. Pochampally is a small town in Nalgonda district of Andhra Pradesh A
handloom cluster, it is known for its unique ikat design for centuries. The
Pochampally ikat saree is the first traditional Indian craft to receive the status of
geographical indication (GI) protection. GI is an intellectual property right, which
identifies a good originating in a certain region where a given quality, reputation or
other characteristic of the product is essentially attributable to its geographical
origin.) Koyalagudum, Andhra Pradesh, one of the busiest hand weaving Svillage‘s
centre around co-operative producing ikat. They specialize in warp ikat particularly
suitable for furnishing fabrics made from cotton.
Kota in Rajasthan is famous for the fine translucent muslins called Masuria
malmal (called Masuria because they were originally woven in Mysore). The
weavers were subsequently brought to Kota in the late 17th and early 18th century
by Rao Kishore Singh who was a general in the Mughal army. The cloth woven in
Kota came to be known as ‗Kota-Masuria‘. These fabrics are popularly known
Kotatadoria outside the state. They are made up of cotton and silk yarn in different
combinations in warp and weft, which are woven in such a fashion that they
produce square check patterns in fabric. These checks are popularly known as khat
and these are made so skilfully that the fabric is almost transparent, which is a
unique characteristic of this hand woven fabric.
Chanderi in Madhya Pradesh is a renowned centre for traditional weavers of
sarees. Chanderi sarees are made with a mix of silk and cotton these days, though
originally, Chanderi was always woven using handspun cotton warps and wefts. It
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was spun so fine that it was as prized amongst cotton fabrics as the famed muslins
of Dhaka. In the 1930s, Chanderi weavers became familiar with Japanese silk
which they began to substitute in the warps in cotton sarees; they also developed a
silk in which their profit margins were higher. These fabrics are marked for their
sheer texture, light weight and a glossy transparency. Chanderi fabric production is
protected by India as a GI.
Maheshwar in Madhya Pradesh has been a centre of handloom weaving since the
fifth century. The colourful Maheshwari sarees are woven with distinctive designs
involving stripes, checks and floral borders. The sarees can be worn either side
because of the reversible borders which is known as bugdi. The pallu of the
Maheshwari saree is also unique with five stripes with three coloured and two
white alternating. In the beginning the Maheshwari saree was made of pure silk;
then gradually these sarees began to be made in pure cotton and with a mixture of
silk and cotton. Now these sarees are also made in artificial silk. The designs of the
motifs are derived from the temples and the palaces of Maheshwar, a town said to
have been established by Rani Ahilyabai. The Maheshwari sarees were initially
made only in red, maroon, black, purple and green but today these sarees are also
made in lighter shades. The fabric is very soft.
Gadwal was under the rule of the Gadwal and Wanaparthy dynasties, but
now it is in the district of Mahabubnagar of Telangana region in Andhra Pradesh.
Gadwal is a small town whose weavers have a rich tradition of weaving
techniques. The richly brocaded sarees have contrasting pallu and border carrying
distinctive patterns, influenced by the tradition of stone and wood carvings of that
area. The hamsa, the mythical swan, combined with curving tendrils, is an
important border pattern. The yaali, the stylised lion, and the double-headed eagle,
are other important motifs used. The most distinctive style of the Gadwal sarees is,
however, a combination of cotton and silk. Often the cotton body is woven in small
checks with a rich silk and gold border and pallu.
Ilkal saree takes its name from the town of Ilkal in the Bagalkot district of
Karnataka. Ilkal was an ancient weaving centre where the weaving seems to have
started in the 8th century AD. The growth of these sarees is attributed to the
patronage provided by the local chieftains in and around the town of Bellary. The
availability of local raw materials helped in the growth of this style. Ilkal sarees are
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woven using cotton warp on the body and silk warp for border as well as for the
pallu portion of the saree.
Paithani sarees, centred in Paithan in Aurangabad district in Maharashtra, have
evolved from a cotton base to a silk base.
Silk was used in designs and in the borders; whereas cotton was used in the
body of the fabric. The Paithani silk sarees are of the richest gold brocade. The
saree has an ornamental zari border and pallu, and buttis (little designs) of star;
peacock, parrot, flower, coin, fan, lotus; moon, coconut and so on. These motifs
and designs are found on the border and pallu in different sizes and patterns. As the
Ajanta caves are near the centres of Paithani weaving, the influence of the
Buddhist paintings can also be seen in the woven motifs. A kaleidoscopic effect is
achieved by using one colour for weaving lengthwise and another for weaving
widthwise. The colours typically used in these sarees are black (‗as well as a
lighter shade of black), yellow, blue, a combination Green, red and pink, a blend of
green, white and red, mixture of ‗green and red, and a purple and red combination.
The art of jamawar weaving is said to have been brought from Persia to
Kashmir where it flourished, reaching its, zenith during the Mughal period. Akbar
was one of its greatest patrons. The early 19th century saw a major innovation in
the weaving of the jamawar: embroidery began to be used to enhance and
embellish the woven design. The shawls using this technique are famous, some of
them recreating the entire woven design in embroidery so skillfully that it is hard
to tell one from the other. However, by the end of the century, the art had begun to
wane. In recent years, the Indian government has attempted a modest revival of
this art by setting up a shawl weaving centre at Kanihama in Kashmir.
Efforts to revive this art have also been made by bringing in innovations like
the creation of jamawar sarees by craftsmen in Varanasi.
In the north-east, weaving is practised alike, by all tribal groups in
Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and in the valley of Assam. There are only
a few exceptions, such as the Nokteys of Tirap in Arunachal Pradesh and the
Khasis of Meghalaya who do not weave. However, it is the women who weave in
this region unlike the other parts of. India where men predominate the weaving
profession. Many of the tribes have a taboo which prohibits Weaving by a man.
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The weaving in the hilly parts of the north-east differs from that in other
parts of India in that the loin-loom is used here as opposed to the larger fly-shuttle,
throw-shuttle and pit-looms used in‘ Assam and in the southern states of India. The
loin-loom is also found in Mexico; Peru and Guatemala where it is known as ‗the
‗backstrap loom‘. Made of bamboo, the loin-loom is simple; cheap and mobile, so
the weaver can sit out in the sunshine as she weaves or roll up her work and move
indoors if the weather turns wet.
Every tribe has distinctive cloths of its own. The designs are not just
something created individualistically by the weaver but have a cultural
significance. Creative and new designs are always made in keeping with traditional
norms. They may be inspired by natural phenomena: the markings on a snake, the
black and white of the human eye, or the design on a butterfly‘s wings. The colours
originally used in the traditional cloths were white, black, red and ‗blue.
A particular warrior shawl of Nagaland, known as the Tusungkotepsu shawl,
has in the centre a white panel enclosed by red and black ‗stripes and cheeks. This
white panel carries drawings made in indigenous, indelible black ink, of mithuns,
cocks, human heads, spears and daos, and of the sun and the moon.
Banaras or Varanasi is one of the rich weaving craft centre of India, famous
for brocade sarees and dress material. Exclusive varieties of ―the saris are Jangla,
Tanchoi, Vaskat, Tissue, and Butidar. The designs on the borders and pallu are
specially elabotate. In the ancient times, Banaras was famous for the weaving of
cotton saree and dress materials, but gradually switched over to silk weaving
during the Mughal period around the 14th century. Weaving of brocades with
intricate designs using gold and silver threads is the speciality of Banaras.
Brocade refers to those textiles in which patterns are created in weaving by
transfixing or thrusting the pattern- thread between the warp. Jangla is a design in
which wildly scrolling and spreading vegetation motifs are used; it is among the
oldest types of- Banaras brocades. Colorful silk threads are used along with the
golden/silver threads in the designs. Tanchoi, a technique said to have originated in
China, involves a satin base and an extra weft woven over the fabric to create the
patterns. The background colour is bright blue, purple, green or red. The patterns
often consist of images of flying birds or paired peacocks surrounded by flowers
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and baskets containing flowers. The designs have a Chinese touch, but the weavers
from Banaras have integrated Indian motifs, like the mango, into these designs, and
also introduced zari threads in the weave. The weavers also use tone-on-tone
colours as well as multiple colour combinations in jacquard weaving.
The pure silk brocade with a touch of gold is called bafta and the finely
woven brocade of variegated silk is known as amru.
In 2009, weaver associations in Uttar Pradesh secured GI rights for the
‗Banaras Brocades and Sarees‘. As per the CI certificate, Banarasi products fall
under four classes (23-26), namely silk brocades, textile goods, silk saree, dress
material and silk embroidery. Most importantly this means that no saree or brocade
made outside the six identified districts of Uttar Pradesh, that is, Varanasi,
Mirzapur, Chandauli, Bhadohi, Jaunpur and Azamgarh districts, can be legally sold
under the name of Banaras saree and brocade.
Among silk weave designs, the Balucharj sarees of West Bengal with their
gorgeous borders arid pallu depicting stories or scenes from mythology and even
modern scenes, are famous. They were traditionally produced in the town of
Baluchar in Murshidabad district of West Bengal. Historically the Baluchari sarees
were woven using, the jala tradition and its origins are usually traced to the midl8th century. Murshjdkulj Khan, Nawab of Bengal, patronised its rich weaving
tradition and Baluchari flourished from that time onwards. But this weaving
tradition declined during British rule, due to political and financial reasons, and it
became a dying craft as most of the weavers were compelled to give up the
profession. In the first half of the twentieth century, Subho Thakur, a famous artist,
felt the need of recultivating the rich tradition. He invited Akshay Kumar Das, a
master weaver of Bishnupur, to his centre to learn the technique of jacquard
weaving. Das then went back to Bishnupur and worked hard to weave Baluchari on
the looms using silk. Bishnupur was once the capital of the Malla dynasty.
Temples made of terracotta bricks were one achievement of these rulers. A major
influence of these temples can be seen in Baluchari sarees. Mythological stories
taken from the walls of the temples are woven on Baluchari sarees. Documentation
of the sarees usually refer to Dubraj Das the last known weaver, who died in early
1900. Many of his works, beautifully handwoven, at times depicting the social
activities of that era, can still be seen at various museums. Mostly nature designs
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like flowers, shrubs etc. are woven into the silk base of these sarees. Narrative
designs such as people on horses, musicians playing, men and women in various
poses are also popular Baluchari designs.
The tradition of using jam looms to weave the Baluchari was revived in
Varanasi.
Kancheepuram is a temple town in Tamil Nadu. It is also known for its
thriving handloom industry, and is known as ‗Silk City‘ since the main profession
of the people living in and around it is weaving silk sarees. Typically, these sarees
are in lustrous heavy silk and have contrasting borders with gold work. In 2010,
‗Kancheepuram Silk Sarees‘ not only received the GI tag but also became the first
product in India to implement the security protocol, which includes penalty of jail
and fine for violators. Besides Kancheepuram, Arni, Kumbakonam, Salem and
Thanjavur are silk weaving centres in Tamil Nadu. In Andhra Pradesh, besides
Pochampally, Dharmavaram is a silk weaving centre.
Assam is famous for its -silk handloom and the weavers are expert in various
types of silk like endi, muga, etc. The most prominent and prestigious is muga
which is a golden silk found exclusively in this state.
Woollen fabrics are also woven in different parts of India, mainly in the
colder climes. The shawls and fabrics from Kashmir are well known, as are those
from Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
Shawls of very fine wool laid with intricate designs displaying excellent
craftsmanship are a feature of Kashmir, which is famous for kani woven pashmina
shawls and the dorukha (double-sided) shawls. Kulu shawls with check patterns
use motifs associated with Buddhism.
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Shawls need not be of wool alone. The Panchachuli women from
Uttarakhand are expert in making shawls from the giant nettle plants which have
proved to be anti-allergic. The village women gather the giant nettle plants that are
found in abundance in the Almora region during autumn. After gathering the bark
from the plant, they boil and beat it to pulp, bleach it with chalk and then soak it
for a few days. After washing the stuff, it is processed into fibre. Then it is woven
to make scarves and shawls.
Kashmir carpets, which are akin to Persian carpets of Iranian origin, are
completely hand-made, hand-knotted and are primarily made in pure wool, pure
silk and occasionally wool and silk blends. These beautiful carpets are primarily
made in Srinagar although a significant part of the production also comes from
rural Kashmir. Kashmir rugs are renowned to have the most amazing colours that
have jewelled tones like sapphire blue, ruby red, emerald green, aquamarine,
amethyst, ivory and other brilliant and alluring colours. Rugs from Kashmir
traditionally have floral designs that typically involve culturally important motifs
such as the paisley, Chinar leaf, and Tree-of-Life.
Dhurries are thick flat-woven rugs used traditionally as floor-coverings.
Dhurries are made manually by skilled artisans on a traditional horizontal loom or
vertical loom. In Rajasthan, pit looms are also used for weaving in which the
weaver sits in a pit and feet are used in weaving. Dhurries made in Rajasthan at
Salawas are known as Panja dhurries and are exported on large scale. Khairabad in
Uttar Pradesh is a major dhurrie making centre. Sitapur dhurries are based on flat
weave technique using horizontal looms. Madhya Pradesh dhurries are known for
their sturdy character and delightful colours. Punjab, Haryana and Himachal
Pradesh also make distinctive type of dhurries. Dhurries of fame include the
Navalgund dhurrie with rich patterns; the bhawani dhurre of silk and cotton form
Salem, Tamil Nadu; and the bandha (ikat) dhurrie of Warrangal n Andhra Pradesh,
where the cotton thread is first subjected to tie-and-dye.
Surface Decoration of Textiles: Printing, Painting, Tie-and-Dye Embroidery
Printing techniques of fabrics include the popular direct printing where
carved blocks of. . wood are used to print bleached cotton or silk; resist printing
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which makes use of a paste of various materials to print sections of the cloth that
are not dyed; and printing of fabrics by using mordants.
Kalamkari Kalamkari—literally ‗pen craft‘—is an art that involves hand
block printing apart from painting. The kalamkari goes through a vigorous process
of resist- dyeing and hand printing. The antiquity of natural dyed fabrics in India
dates back to the pre-Christian era. The samples of these fabrics have been found
in many excavations carried out at several parts of the world like Cairo, Greece,
Central Asia and Arabia suggesting an overseas trade. Percy Brown in his Arts and
Crafts of India mentions that kalamkari during the 18th century was practised all
over the Coromandal Coast.
There are two main styles of kalamkari—the Srikalahasti and Machilipatnam
(Masulipatnam) styles. Both centres are in Andhra Pradesh.
The craftsmen of Srikalahasti (a temple town in Chittoor district of Andhra
Pradesh) still use the ancient techniques of dyeing, which they inherited from the
earliest days. The wall hangings drawn free hand are the most popular creations of
the craftsmen. Hindu mythology is the main source of themes. Some of the
craftsmen in Srikalahasti also produce beautiful textile materials drawn free hand.
These works are characterized by elaborate decorations on jewellery/costumes etc.;
use of beaded line and use of heart-shaped designs in borders; simplification of
colours, with shading being eliminated; rounded faces, long and big eyes; and
dominance of the colours red; yellow, blue, and black. In some cases, the outlines
and main features are done using hand-carved blocks; The finer details are later
done using the pen. Only natural dyes are used, for example, red colour is obtained
from Indian madder, yellow from myrobalan flower, blue from indigo plant and
black from iron filings and sugar molasses. This style owes its present status to
Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay who popularised the art as the first chairperson of the
All India Handicrafts Board.
Owing to Muslim rule in Golconda, the Machilipatnam kalamkari was
influenced by Persian motifs and designs, widely adapted to suit their taste. The
outlines and main features are done using hand carved blocks. The finer details are
later done using the pen. Under the British rule, floral designs were popular. The
artisans did even portraits of Englishmen.
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In the Thanjavur region during the Maratha rule, kalamkari work was used
as a further embellishment to the gold brocade work in the woven fabric, which
was used as sarees and dhotis by the royal family during the period of Raja Sarfoji
and later Raja Shivaji.
The Machilipatnam style is more famous for the home furnishings, bed
covers and curtains but the traditional Kalahasti style is more prominently seen in
wall hangings and dress materials. Thanjavur kalainkari craftsmen specialise in
temple decorations like thumbais, etc.
Bagru, Sanganer, Palampur and Faizabad are a few centres in northern India
where kalamkari is practised.
The kalamkari technique first requires the cloth and colours to be decided.
The cloth is bleached with goat or cow dung and then treated with myrobalan and
milk solution to avoid the colour spreading. The painting is done using iron,
acetate resist for solid spaces or outlines and alum is used as mordant. Wax resist is
used for dyeing the cloth in different colours.
Tie and Dye Tie and dye is one of the most widely practised and traditional
methods of textile surface decoration in India, though it goes by different names in
different regions—bandhini is Rajasthan, bandhej in Guajarat, chungidi in Tamil
Nadu. Ikat is a style of weaving with yarn that:is tied and dyed to produce coloured
patterns, and is practised in Guajarat, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
While it is widely believed that the practice of tie and dye originated in
Rajasthan, yet others believe that it was brought from the Sindh into Kachchh
(Gujarat) by the Muslim Khatris. The earliest reference to bandhini is considered to
be in Bana Bhattas Harshacharita, where a royal wedding is described. A bandhini
garment was considered auspicious for the bride. One also finds the maids in the
Ajanta wall paintings wearing apparel of tie-and-dye patterns.
The finest bandhini work of Rajasthan comes from Bikaner, Jaipur, Jodhpur,
Banner, Pali, Udaipur and Nathdwara. Rajasthan is well known for
its leheriya
pattern—literally meaning waves. These are harmoniously arranged diagonal
stripes of two alternating colours, though originally only the auspicious colours of
yellow and red were used.
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The centres of tie-and-dye fabrics in Gujarat (where the style is called
bandhej) are Jamnagar (the water in this area brings out the‘ brightest red while
dyeing), and Ahmedabad. The process of tie-and-dye varies in Gujarat and
Rajasthan. Even the patterns, designs and craftsmanship vary in both the places.
However, there are common factors.
The process involves bleaching a piece of cloth first. The cloth may be
muslin, silk or handloom. The pattern is then marked on the cloth by wooden
blocks dipped in a burnt sienna colour mixed with water. Then the specialists in
tying knots go into action, pinching and tying the dots created by the artist. There
may be thousands or millions of knots tied in the fabric before it goes for dyeing.
The dyeing specialist takes over next dipping the fabric into selected dyes made
from vegetable sources, though now synthetic dyes are also used. The process is
repeated for each colour. The lightest shade is dyed first and then tied up tightly
with threads, and successive processes take care of the darker hues.
Colours and patterns are the two most important factors that make a bandhej
or bandhini work stand out. The various traditional patterns involved in this
printing technique are barah baag, bavan baag, chokidal, ambadal, and kambaliya.
The pattern of squares with elephants and other animals is known as chokidal. The
katnbaliya pattern is a dotted pattern in the centre with different designs along the
border. Meant especially for the brides are two designs called shikhara and
chandokhni. Basant bahar is a special design to symbólise the colours of spring.
The colours commnly used in the traditional tie-and dye bandhini fabrics are red, a
symbol of marriage; saffron, a colour denoting spirituality or holiness, yellow,
which stands for spring; and black and maroon, used for mourning.
Bandhini material is usually sold folded and with the knots tied to indicate
that it is actually, tie-and-dye material and it has not been merely printed in that
design.
In Tamil Nadu, the method of tie and dye is locally known as chungidi, and
Madurai is the key centre. Traditionaliy the colours used are a dark red (maroon),
purple, blue and. black, though now many other shades are also used. The
speciality here is the kolam or rangoli patterns. The kolams are all geometric in
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nature and the borders of the saree are in contrasting colours and may have zari
designs.
Batik Batik is a process of decorating cloth by covering a part of it with a
coat of wax and then dyeing the cloth so that the waxed areas keep their original
colour, and when the wax is removed, the contrast between the dyed and the other
areas gives the pattern. The creation of batik is a three-stage process of waxing,
dyeing and removing the wax. There are also several sub-processes like preparing
the cloth, tracing the designs, stretching the cloth on the frame, waxing the area of
the cloth that does not need dyeing, preparing the dye, dipping, the cloth in dye,
boiling the cloth to remove wax and washing the cloth in soap. The characteristic
effects of the batik are the fine cracks that appear in the wax, which allow small
amounts of the dye to seep in. It is a feature not possible in any other form of
printing. However, the right type of cracks or hairline detail need to be achieved,
for which the cloth must be crumpled correctly. This requires a lot of practice and
patience. Batik is created in several ways. In splash method the wax is splashed or
poured onto the cloth. The screen- printing method involves a stencil. The hand
painting one is by a kalamkari pen. The scratch and starch resist are the other
methods.
Indian batik is considered to go back some 2000 years. Indians knew the
resist method of printing designs on cotton fabrics long before any other country
had even tried it. However, the art declined. In modern times, it received an
impetus when it was introduced as a subject at Shantiniketan near Kolkata, and
began to be practised in the Cholamandal Artists‘ Village near Chennai.
Applique Work and Embroidery Applique work is a decorative work in
which fabric is embellished with pieces of cloth, glass pieces, metals, wood or
metal wires stitched on to it. The craft is practised in many regions of India, but
centres in Odisha, Punjab, Gujarat and Rajasthan are famous. It is believed that
applique work made its way into western India either from Europe or Arabia in the
Middle East through trade contacts.
In Odisha, applique work is an inseparable part of the temple tradition, and
its main centre of production is in and around Pippli, a small town near
Bhubaneswar. Traditionally, the applique work of Odisha is used as canopies
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during the annual Rath Festival at Pun to protect the chariots of Lord Jagannath,
Balabhadra and Subhadra (Lord Jagannath‘s brother and sister, respectively). In
recent times, the appliques of Odisha in the form of beautiful animals, birds,
flowers, leaves and other decorative motifs have been used as household
lampshades, garden umbrellas and even handbags. Red, purple, black, yellow,
green and white fabrics are mostly used in this craft. First, a base material in the
shape of square, rectangle, circle or oval is prepared. Raised motifs are prepared by
giving several folds. The actual grace of applique craft lies in its intricate stitches.
Nowadays, small mirrors and bright metal pieces are used to enhance its beauty.
After attaching the applique patches to the base cloth, the borders are stitched.
In Gujarat, there is a practice of using old and worn-out clothes in a very
innovative manner in applique. Locally referred to as the katab, the word is
probably a distorted form of the English words ‗cut-up‘. A cloth is cut into various
shapes featuring dancing peacock, elephants, warriors, bird and other similar
decorative motifs. These pieces are then stitched onto a fabric. This work is
reflected in various garments, and wall hangings. Often the applique work is
combined with embroidery and mirror work to create an enhanced effect. The style
varies with regions and communities. The Dhanedah Jats use stripes of coloured
clothes called kingris for applique in which tiny spiked buttonhole stitches are used
along with a crisscross edging. In the Saurashtra region, the practice is to stitch
large pieces of cloth cut in a geometric fashion. The resultant product has an
overall geometric appearance. The Rabri community 9f Kachchh uses a variety of
pieces in the applique work. The pieces may be of soft patterned cotton cloth or
may contain bandhini prints. These pieces are coloured in plain cream, green,
yellow, orange or white. They are stitched onto a blue or brown coloured fabric.
In Rajasthan, the Oswal Banias have a similar tradition of stitching large
applique canopies with a range of panels or squares in different colour
combinations, for marriages. The Rajputs, Satwaras and various cattle-breeding
communities also produce similar applique art to enhance the beauty of their
canopies and quilt covers amongst other things. The Marwari community of
Rajasthan is traditionally engaged in applique art. The work is similar to the
patchwork of Kathiawar—the katab. Now commercialised, the art is prevalent in
Jaipur, Udaipur and Barmer districts. The quilts made by patchwork known as ralli
are the traditional, product of Jaisalmer. The quilt is made by sewing several layers
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of old fabrics, with the uppermost layer being made of new cotton cloth. The
colours used for patchwork are olive green, brown, maroon and black. Rajasthan
has an applique gota and kinari (gold and silver strips) work. Shekhawati is an
important centre for this technique. Besides, clothing, utility items like bags,
lampshades, and tablemats are also decorated with this technique.
Punjab also has a tradition of applique work. This craft is usually executed
on shawls and dupattas, but today even bed sheets are decorated in this style.
However, the applique work here is combined with embroidery. Small pieces of
cloth in different designs may be embroidered and then stitched on to the larger
cloth base. Phulkari is a skilful manipulation of single stitch that provides
interesting patterns on, the cloth. It is also done without applique. The smaller the
stitch, finer is the quality of the embroidery. The silk threads in golden yellow, red,
crimson, orange, green, blue, and pink are usually employed for the embroidery.
The notable aspect of this technique is that single strand was used at a time, each
part worked in one colour and the varied colour effect obtained by clever use of
horizontal, vertical or diagonal stitches. The base cloth that was used for phulkari
in olden times was usually homespun cloth. When the design is worked so closely
that even a square inch of the base cloth is not visible, then it is called bagh.
Besides floral motifs, birds, animals, human figures, vegetables, pots, buildings,
rivers, the sun and the moon, scenes of village life, and other imagery are
embroidered. There are dhaniya bagh (coriander garden), motia bagh (jasmine
garden), satranga bagh (garden of rainbow), leheria bagh (garden of waves) and
many other depictions.
In Andhra Pradesh, Banjara women wear blouses and head scraves
decorated with applique and mirror work. - In Gujarat, too, mirror work is famous:
little discs of mirror are stitched on amidst other embroidery designs.
Zardozi has remained as an applique method of embroidery. With one hand
the craftsman holds a retaining thread below the fabric. In the other he holds a
hook or a needle with which he picks up the applique materials. Then he passes the
needle or hook through the fabric. After hours of painstaking Labour, the result is
an exquisite gold-veined work of art. From the medieval times the art of zardozi
has flourished, reaching its zenith under the patronage of Emperor Akbar. This
gorgeous embroidery can be seen in wall hangings, chain stitch on saris, caps and
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other articles with heavy embroidery. As the embroidery is dense, designs done are
extremely intricate. After a period of decline, the art of zardozi was revived along
with many traditional methods of embroidery in the middle of the twentieth
century. Zari work was mainly done in Madras (now, Chennai) and zardozi in
Hyderabad until a few decades ago. Today, Uttar Pradesh is home to this finest
work of gold and silver embroidery.
Sujuni is the traditional form of embroidery from Bihar done on a fabric that
is enforced with fine muslin. The base fabric is generally red or white. The outlines
of the main motifs are highlighted with thick chain stitch and the inner spaces are
filled with different coloured threads. Other motifs are filled with red colour or the
colour of the base fabric.
Aribharat, very ornamental form of embroidery, is produced in the kachchh
region of Gujarat. The name comes from an, a hook that is plied from the top and
fed with silk thread from the bottom. The cloth to be embroidered is stretched on a
frame: Stitches are applied using the hook, to make loops, which are similar to the
chain stitch. Techniques vary with the community and region. There is the simple
needlework but exquisite effects of Bavalia embroidery or the fabulous bright
yellow and red Banni embroidery; the embroidery of the Rabari cameleers, is
reminiscent of their pastoral life style, inlaid with triangular, square and almondshaped mirrors. The geometric and floral motifs of the Ahir community with
circular mirrors; the chain stitches and tiny mirrors used by the Jats; the delicate
soof embroidery of the Sodha Rajputs around Lakhpat; the tiny broken mirrors
embroidered into fabrics by the Mutwa cameleers; and the exquisite Mukka
embroidery of the Hali putras, Rasipotra and Node herds people reflect the
diversity of embroidery styles.
Chikankari is an intricate and fine shadow-work type of embroidery
traditionally done with white yarn on colourless muslins called tanzeb (tan
meaning body and zeb meaning decoration). The word chikan, according to one
school of thought, appears to have had its origin in Persia, derived from chakin or
chakeen. Another explanation ascribes its origin to East Bengal where the word
chikan meant fine. Stitches employed in chikankari can be divided into three
categories: flat stitches, which are delicate and subtle and lie close to the surface of
the fabric giving it a distinctive textural appearance; embossed stitches which are
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highlighted from the fabric surface lending it a characteristic grainy texture; and
jali work which creates a delicate net effect. Lucknow and the areas around it in
Uttar Pradesh are famous centres of chikankari.
Crewelwork is said to be an old technique of beautifying fabrics.
Crewelwork is mainly a work of wool over the surface of cotton or linen.
Craftsmen need special needles to carry out crewel embroidery. Besides, to create
a textual and colourful effect on the surface of the garment many different kinds of
embroidery stitches are used like couching stitch, split stitch, chain stitch and stem
stitch. Stylised flowers are the main motif used in crewelwork. The entire surface
is not covered and the background is left untouched. Woollen threads are used in
crewelwork. Generally, only three or four colours are used. Many home furnishing
items like curtains, cushions, woollen floorings, bedspreads and wall hangings are
beautified by the crewelwork. Crewelwork is a popular craft form of Kashmir.
Kantha is the local Bengali tradition of embroidery, practised by women.
Traditionally1 the ground is made up of old cotton saris, and old threads are used.
Small stitches are applied to create a series of dotted lines. On the reverse, of the
cloth long, decorative floats are stitched, which are used for filling in motifs and
figures. The surface is then profusely covered with needlework so that the old sari
acquires a new look as well as a new lease of life.
Karchobi, a form of raised zari metallic thread embroidery, is popular in
Rajasthan. It is created by applying flat stitches on cotton padding, and is seen
usually on bridal and formal costumes. It is also done on velvet coverings, curtains,
tent hangings and the coverings of animal carts and temple chariots.
Kathi is the embroidery done by women folk of the nomadic (Rabari) tribes
Of Gujarat. The embroidery combines chain stitch with applique work embellished
with small mirrors. Kathi work is done on fabrics that are dyed in bright colours,
reflecting the flavour of rural Gujarat.
Also from Gujarat comes the kimkhab in which the pattern looks as though
embroidered on top of an already rich silk. The silk fabrics have coloured silk or
gold threads interwoven to form the most attractive designs. Kimkhabs were earlier
made entirely from fine gold Or silver threads. During the 17th, 18th and 19th
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centuries, some were set with precious stones, and were used in making canopies
and trappings as seen in the late Mughal paintings.
Shawls from Kashmir are highly appreciated because of the embroidery
done on them. The fine embroidery is known as sozni. The traditional Kashmiri
dress, phiran, is also embellished with rich embroidery. The finest embroidery
from Kashmir can be found on Pashmina shawls. Sometimes the entire surface of
these shawls is covered with fine embroidery. Chain stitch is popular in Kashmir
and is done using wool, cotton or silk thread. A hook is used instead of a needle, as
it covers more area than a needle. Chain stitch is used to create chain stitch rugs or
gabbas and namdas.
Namda is a kind of mattress, originally from the state of Jammu and
Kashmir. Namdas are made by felting the wool rather than weaving it. A low
quality wool mixed with a small quantity of cotton is usually, used to manufacture
namdas. They are usually of two types, plain and embroidered. Formerly, woollen
yarn was used for embroidery, but now acrylic yarn is also used. It is said that a
person named Nubi created the first namda to protect Emperor Akbar‘s horse from
the cold.
That namda was very intricately decorated and thus impressed the emperor.
The craft of‘ namda-making is followed in very limited areas in Kashmir,
Himachal Pradesh and parts of Rajasthan. They can be termed as woollen druggets.
The craft is said to have originated in Iran and Turkey. Kashmiri namdas are
famous for chain stitch embroidery. The Rajasthani namdas of Bikaner, Malpura
(chakma and ghogi namda) and the pure wool namdas of Tonk are famous for
appliqued patterns supported by embroidery,
Gabba are recycled old woollen blankets that are washed, milled and dyed in
various colours. These pieces are then stitched together and backed with waste
cotton cloth. The gabba is then either appliqued or embroidered with crewel work.
In the appliqued type, pieces of dyed blankets are joined together and interspersed
with vividly coloured embroidery in geometric and floral patterns. Although the
common Layout is a central medallion placed in a rectangular field which has
borders, gabba are made ‗in a variety of shapes and sizes. They are used
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extensively in Kashmiri households as‘ an effective and inexpensive floor covering
and also used as mattresses in colder areas of the state.
Pottery
At Harappa and Mohenjodaro, pottery excavated shows that the craft ‗was
well advanced. Indian ceramics can be traced to the Harappan age. There is
evidence of pottery making, handmade as well as wheel-thrown, from all over
India. The art of shaping and baking clay articles as pottery, earthenware and
porcelain has evolved and endured through centuries to the modem times.
The finest pottery in India is of the unglazed variety, and this is practically
produced all over India in a variety of forms. Kangra and Andreta in Himachal
Pradesh, Pokhran in Rajasthan, Meerut and Harpur in Uttar Pradesh, Kanpur in
Maharastra, Kutch in Gujarat, Jahjjar in Haryana, Birbhum in Bengal and Manipur
are famous for their special styles in pottery.. Each region has its own specialty.
Very fine paper-thin pottery is produced in, Kachchh, Kanpur and Aiwar,
the Aiwar variety being called kagzi. There are three different styles in unglazed
pottery. One is the paper- thin, biscuit coloured pottery with incised patterns. Then
there is the, scrafito technique in which the pot is polished, painted with red and
white slips into intricate patterns while the outline is incised. Then there is the
highly polished pottery which given strong, deeply incised, stylised patterns of
arabesques. The rest of the area is covered with rows of black dots and the contrast
in colour and texture gives the incised area greater prominence.
Kangra is noted for black pottery, which resembles the Harappan pottery
style. Pokhran has stylised forms with incised decorative patterns. Kanpur makes
thin pottery with incised designs. Meerut and Jhajjar make slim-necked water
containers called surahis. These are half-turned and half moulded and have a
variety of patterns and designs. Kachchh is famous for pots, terracotta horses and
elephants. The pots are made for different occasions like marriages, death, etc.
Nizamabad in Uttar Pradesh is noted for black pottery with silver patterns worked
in it. This is similar to the Bidar work of Andhra where oxidised gunmetal is inlaid
with silver wire.
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Glaze & pottery came into use with the advent of the Arab influence in
India. This pottery is confined to certain production centres. Glazed pottery with
white background and blue and green patterns is developed in Delhi, Amritsar
(Punjab), Jaipur (Rajasthan), Khurja, Chunar and Rampur (in Uttar Pradesh), and
Karigari in Tamil Nadu. In Chunar, the raised designs in surahis are adapted for
glazed pottery. A brown slip is given finally. In Karigari in Tamil Nadu, biscuit
ware is created with incised patterns and given a blue or green glaze. The glazed
pottery of Rampur and Khuija use a base of red clay.
Delhi, Khuza and Jaipur are now known for the famed Blue Pottery. This
type of pottery makes use of multani mitti, or Fuller‘s earth. Essentially an
imported technique, it was first developed by enterprising Mongol artisans who
combined Chinese glazing technology with Persian decorative arts.
During its infancy, it was strictly used to make tiles to decorate mosques,
tombs and palaces in Central Asia but Kashmiri potters soon took to it and adapted
the process to make vessels. The craft travelled to Delhi and later to Jaipur in the
17th century. Now, vases, pots. and plates, etc. are made in this style. This
particular, art from has been named as blue pottery because, of, the eye-catching
Persian blue dye used to colour the clay. Blue pottery is glazed and high-fired
which makes it tougher, than most of the others. The Jaipur blue pottery is equally
famous and unique. No cracks develop in it and since it is impervious, it is more
hygienic for daily use. Some of this pottery is semi-transparent and mostly
decorated with animal and bird motifs.
Terracotta (from Italian for ‗baked earth‘) stands for the semi-fired
waterproof ceramic used in. pottery as well as for the items made of the material.
Terracotta panels and storage jars painted white and decorated with tiny mirrors
are common in Gujarat and Rajasthan. Molela in Rajasthan excels in sculpted
terracotta plaques and icons of Rajput heroes and 1-lindu deities. Odisha and
Madhya Pradesh have a tradition of decorative roof top tiles, made partly by hand
moulding and .partly on the wheel. These tiles, shaped like .half tubes, have
perched on top of them figures .of elephants, monkeys, bears, reptiles, gods and
goddesses and are considered a status symbol among the rural people. The famous
Thanjavur dancing dolls are made of terracotta material. Its centre of gravity and
total weight is concentrated at its bottom-most central core all the time so as to
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present a dance-like continuous movement with slow-damping oscillations. Hence
it comes back to its normal seating position automatically after being tilted or
disturbed in any way. Traditionally these toys are handmade and their exteriors are
painted.
While domestic earthenware is of great importance, terracotta has a religious
association that gives it a wider dimension Each region, each village has an array
of deities to be worshiped on special occasions, and religious earthenware is
widely made, especially as clay is easily available and comparatively inexpensive.
There are figurines of divinities, ceremonial pottery, and votive Offerings. Ganesh,
Durga and Saraswati are worshiped at various times by different communities, and
festivals related to these deities give the potter a motivation to work on the fine art,
as his creation of hand-moulded images is in high demand during those days.
Votive figures of elephants, serpents, birds and horses are made in Uttar Pradesh,
Gujarat and the Jhabua and Bastar regions of Madhya Pradesh. The Bhils of
Jhabua and adjacent Chhota Udaipur in Gujarat also mould distinctive clay horses,
camels, elephants, tigers and bullocks that are then offered to a village deity or to a
revered animal itself such as the tiger. Set down in the sacred grove that always
lies in a secluded spot near the settlement, the terracotta animals—old and new —
are grouped together, eventually disintegrating and mingling with the earth.
Darbhanga in Bthar is famous for terracotta horses which are painted in
bright rainbow colours once they ar made. Another place known for its
magnificent, six-metre high terracotta horses is Tamil Nadu. These are the
Aiiyannar deities that stand guard at the entrances of villages, and are believed by
the villagers to protect the inhabitants from evil spirits;
The temples made of terracotta in Bishnupur in Bankura district of West
Bengal are striking. The craftsmen of Panchmura village make the ‗Barikura
horse‘—the terracotta figurine that has become famous as a piece of decorative art
but once had ritualistic use as an offering to village deities.
We are all familiar with the earthenware lamps—diyas—— that are used in
worshipping and lighting up houses at Diwali. There are other ceremonial vessels
also made of terracotta used for religious purposes.
Papier-mache
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The art of papier-mache is said to have come from Samarkhand to India in
the time of Timur Lane, in the fourteenth-fifteenth centuries. The base of this craft
is paper pulp coarsely mashed and mixed with copper sulphate and rice-flour paste.
The figure is moulded by covering a mould of it with a thin paper and then with
layers of this mixture. The designers then sketch the designs intricately on the
surface. Finally it is laquered and polished in bright colours. A touch of golden
colour is always found on all papier-mache products owing to its root in Persian
designs.
There are many centres in India that create products of papier-mache.
Perhaps the most well known are the craftsmen of Kashmir who turn out beautiful
products in papier-mache — lamps, vessels, boxes, etc. In Rajasthan, papier-mache
toys are well made in Jaipur by the artists who craft animals and birds in an
attractive blend of colours. Artists at Palai in Tonk make beautiful papier-mache
furniture. Banasthali is known for its attractive multipurpose bowls. In Jharkhand
and .Bihar, craftspersons make traditional masks of papier-mache which are used
in the Chhau dance. Animal and bird figures are the other papier-mache products
made here. Artists at Gwalior, in Madhya Pradesh, craft attractive papier-mache
toys and at Ujjain artists make models of deities. The products made from papiermache include, birds, human figures, animals, idols of gods and goddesses, and
also beautiful models of famous historical buildings such as Khajruraho. The
craftspersons of Assam, Odisha and Gujarat are also known for their papier-mache
products.
Jewellery
Mainly used by women for ornamenting themselves, the significance of
jewellery in tribal communities is extended to that of warding off evil spirits
(hence, amulets and pendants inscribed with prayers and figures of deities). The
wide range of ornaments include decorations for the head (like the bore) and hair,
nose ornaments (the elaborate phuli, the nose ring— nath), jewellery for the hands
(rings, the gajra, karda, chuda for wrists, the bank, the bazoo for the elbow), neck
ornaments and decorations for the toe such as the bichhua (scorpion ring). Special
mention may be made of the tribal bindi (silver ornament framing the face); the
hash (solid silver collar)—the heavy ones of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh and the
lighter types in Punjab and Rajasthan; the Kulu nose ornaments (mainly the nath
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and boulak designs) and the pipal patra, an ornament to frame the face made by
fastening pipal leaves to enameled silver, of Kulu and Kinnaur; the ‗ear ornaments
(kan-bahle or Jhumka) of Kashmir; hair ornaments (the tara kanta, pan kanta) of
West Bengal; and the Chettinad folk jewellery. The silver jewellery of Assam, the
folk jewellery of Odisha (famous for filigred) and the gold designs of Kerala are
rich in range.
Metalware
A range of metal work techniques have been perfected to produce household
objects and also images of gods/goddesses. Apart from the casting of bell-metal
(famous centres are in Kerala, West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar) and sheet-metal (the
deep repousse technique is specialised in Tanjore, Thanjavur in Tamil Nadu,
Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, Bhuj in Gujarat), there is the technique in which a
mould representing the initial form of the object to be cast is first prepared. Its
centres are Moradabad (Uttar Pradesh) and Jagadhri (Haryana). The lost wax
process of bronze casting (cire perdue) is well-developed.
To decorate the metal surface, popular are the Ganga-Jamuna technique; the
Koftgari of Kerala; the Bidiri— damascening of silver on copper, zinc vessels; the
Thanjavur plate work; and the niello work of Kashmir.
Stone-Carving
India‘s rich stone-carving tradition is evident in its many ancient
monuments. Mainly images of deities and places of worship are built and carved
out of stone. The stones used include marble (the Makarana marble being famous),
for which Jaipur and Agra are well-known centres; the black stone, carving on
which are a speciality of Dungarpur (Gujarat) and Mysore; the soft stone of Gaya;
and the hard, granite stone, carvings on which are a speciality of Mahabalipuram
(Tamil Nadu). Odisha‘s stone-carving tradition is deeply linked to rituals and
religious beliefs.
Ivory-Carving
Ivory-carving is an ancient craft with many centres that have developed their
own styles. It is largely practised in Delhi (ivory costume jewellery), Rajasthan and
Gujarat (lathe-worked bangles) and Varanasi (images of Buddha and Krishna).
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West Bengal carves pleasure boats and images of Durga. Kerala makes ivory
images of gods/goddesses.
Carving of Bone and Horn
Bone is used to carve animal figures (as in Odisha), and ornaments for ritual
purposes in the Himalayan regions. Horns, mainly buffalo horns, are used to create
figures and items like combs, buttons, cases and vases. Main centres are Cuttack,
Parlakimedi (Odisha), Sarai Tarin (Uttar Pradesh), Thiruvanarithapuram and
Mysore.
Woodwork
An ancient craft, woodwork is practised in different regions in distinctive
styles. The places of worship (namghars) and mythical images of Assam are
traditionally of wood. Woodcarvings are seen in the temples, rathas of Odisha;
pillars and beams of rural houses in West Bengal; facades, balconies of houses in
Ahmedabad; the furnitures (lathe-worked) of Sankheda, Gujarat. South India is
famous for its wood-carvings on rat hams. The houses in Kerala have wooden
beams, ceilings, brackets, pillars. In Kashmir, there are even wooden mosques.
Kashmiri craftsmen make beautiful wooden handicrafts with intricate
carving in walnut and chinar wood which is locally available. Tables, fruit trays,
bowls, chairs, cabinets, candle stands etc. are richly carved with floral patterns and
decorative inlay work. Beautiful furniture from rosewood is also made.
The artisans of Uttar Pradesh are remarkably, good in the art of inlaid woodwork. Wooden articles like bowls, trays and decorative items are inlaid with brass
wire. Wooden handicrafts like furniture, frames, and toys with ornamental,
intricate patterns and traditional designs are also available.
In Arunachal Pradesh, wood is carved to make dishes, bowls and cups, and
toys. Carved and‘ painted masks, miniature figurines, and statues of warriors are
very popular. Carved idols of cultural and religious value including those of Lord
Buddha are also made.
Skilled artisans in Rajasthan create decorative and utilitarian objects from
wood that is obtained locally. Painted doors depicting scenes from the Ramayana
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and Mahabharata are unique to Rajasthan. Household items, furniture, and lamps
are carved in graceful designs with gentle shapes, and are lacquered in soft shades.
Gujarat is famous for its elegantly carved furniture, large wooden chests and
ornate wooden screens. Craftsmen carve decorative panels which are inlaid with
ebony, redwood, tin etc. Wooden handicrafts display delicate floral patterns
chiselled beautifully.
Craftsmen of Odisha create exquisite wooden handicrafts with ivory inlay
work, and intricate carving. White teak or rosewood is mostly used for plain wood
carvings. Many painted wooden items like masks,—ornamental panels and boxes
are made. Special mention must be made of the handcrafted idols of the residing
deities of Puri—Balabhadra, Subhadra, and Jagannath.
Andhra Pradesh is famous for the mythological figurines, furniture and
glazed toys that are created using neem, teak, and mango wood. Artisans carve
musical instruments, arches, and wooden balustrades besides combs and trinkets.
The Kondapalli toys are famous from this state. Kondapalli toys are made in and
around Kondapalli, a little village in the Vijayawada district. The craftsmen
specialise in themes taken from their immediate surroundings. The toys are made
out of the locally-available soft Puniki wood, which is easy to carve. It is subjected
to a process of slow heating, to draw out all the moisture. The limbs are carved
separately and later joined to the body. The glue, used consists mainly of paste
made from tamarind seeds. The brushes used to colour the toys are very fine and
sharp, made of goat‘s hair. Both water colours and oil paints, are used to paint
Mythology, rural life and animals are the main themes on which the toys are made.
Swans, peacocks and parrots are popular subjects too, as are scenes from life, such
as women drawing water from a well, snake charmers, elephant with a mahout on
its back, potter at work, etc. Kondapalli toys have got GI protection.
In Karnataka, sandalwood and rosewood are chiefly used to create utilitarian
items and decorative items. The craftsmen are skilled in wood inlay work on
furniture and wall hangings. Inlay work is done with rosewood, ebony, and ivory,
though nowadays plastic has replaced ivory Carved wooden items like toys and
dolls are also available, and the rosewood elephant is famous.
Mat and Basket Weaving
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Finely-woven mats of different materials include the Pattamadai reed mats
(Tinnevelli, Tamil Nadu), the phak reed mats (Manipur), the intricately-patterned
kora grass mats (Kerala) and the sitalpatti green cane and the madhur-kothi grass
mats of West Bengal.
Jute and coir are relatively new materials, which are being used to make
various items. Coir fibre is obtained from coconut husk after a lengthy process.
Kerala is the largest producer of coir products, which include mats, mattresses,
pillow-covers, carpets, bags and wall hangings. Jute, known as the golden fibre, is
one of the cheapest natural fibres. A variety of utilitarian items are created using
jute. West Bengal is the largest producer of a variety of jute crafts, which range
from mats, floorings, cushion covers, table covers, bags, garments to stuffed toys.
Baskets are of various styles developed according to local traditions. The
fine-quality cane and bamboo baskets of the north-east are well-known. The kulas
(winnowing baskets of bamboo) of Bengal, Chettinad baskets of Tamil Nadu and
the cane baskets of Mysore are popular. Baskets made of grass include the spiral
baskets of Punjab made of wild grass—sarkanda—with intricate patterns of date
palm leaves; baskets of moonj, a monsoon grass, of Uttar Pradesh and the coiled
baskets of Bihar made of a rough monsoon grass. Baskets made from twigs of
willow are a specialty of Kashmir.
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