The rise & decline of Pahari miniature

Raaja Bhasin

When Vijay Sharma was a small boy growing up in Chamba, he, by his own admission, was fascinated by the Pahari miniature paintings on display at the Bhuri Singh Museum. Both the paintings and the museum were to become his ‘karmabhoomi’, as it he calls it. His dedication and talent have brought him both honour and fame. Today, a Padma Shri awardee, he is an internationally acclaimed artist creating works in the tradition of Basohli, Guler, Kangra, Chamba and Mandi schools.

Down the decades, the study of these paintings and their multiple schools has attracted the attention of several noted scholars — MS Randhawa, Karl Khandalavala, Jagdish Mittal, Eberhard Fischer, Prof Ludwig Habighorst, VC Ohri and, of course, Prof BN Goswamy whose erudition continues to enlighten us in this newspaper. There is, however, one difference between many of these art scholars and Vijay Sharma. He is an artist who has turned his hand to the study and explanation of the art that he has practised most of his life.

The tradition of painting in India goes back to the caves of Ajanta. Over time, across the country, several fairly distinctive schools emerged. Then, a great impetus came when the existing forms were exposed to Islamic civilisation. In the court of the Mughal kings were born the catalysts that were to carry deep influences across the subcontinent, the introduction of Persian miniatures being one. These creations were clearly two dimensional with a few artifices. A largely established belief was that Pahari miniature paintings emerged as a distinct school as the influence of the Mughal empire ebbed away and artists sought fresh patronage. This, however, became a matter of contention amongst scholars. This is an issue that this book addresses.

A tract that was some 500 kilometres in length and a mere 150 in breadth became home to Pahari School. This geographical confine held the kingdoms of Jammu, Kangra, Basohli, Guler, Kullu, Nurpur, Chamba, Mandi, Bilaspur, and extended to the Garhwal hills.

The primary focus of the book is the paintings of Kangra and those of Guler where centuries of evolution, influence and statis touched an apogee of sorts. Almost like epiphytes thriving on the patronage of princes and courts, these paintings blossomed with grace and beauty.

It was the artists of Kangra who set the benchmarks of Pahari miniature. The refinement and technical skill that made the paintings of Kangra act as the touchstone for the 40-odd sub-schools was greatly due to the interest of Sansar Chand, who came to the throne in 1775. Another school, Guler, focused around the now-forlorn town of Haripur, was home to the renowned Pandit Seu and his progeny, including the prodigious Nainsukh. In later years, however, technical capabilities and ornamentation increased, but aesthetics declined. These aspects are among several others that Sharma brings into the ambit of his text.

The themes for this genre, if it may be called that, apart from the portraits of members of various ruling houses and nobles, began including episodes from the life of Shri Krishna — his heroism, dalliances and the nayak-nayika. The baramasa, 12-month set with courtship modes appropriate for various months of the year, illustrations from love poetry and images of various deities of the Hindu pantheon were painted. But love, with all its joys and pains, was the main theme. All these form the subject matter of this fine book which provides an excellent introduction to the paintings, the background of their creation, the historical context and the artists and their patrons. The beautifully illustrated book is a delight to handle and read. It has around 150 plates with descriptions and an exhaustive text that runs alongside. This will be of interest to scholars, art lovers and to all who would like an introduction to Kangra paintings.

A news item posted a couple of days back informs that Vijay Sharma has just retired from government service. This may well be the beginning of a new innings where pitch is the corpus of historicity and scholarship.