Medieval Indian Painting

Medieval Indian Painting

Medieval Painting

For the convenience of study, medieval painting is divided into two categories:

• Central/Imperial Style

• Regional/Provincial Style

Central/Imperial Style

Painting in Sultanate Period

• The conservative Muslims believed that a painter tries to make a creature, animal, or bird come alive by drawing it, and this way he interferes with Allah's work and tries to be a rival of Allah. In this way, the depiction of living beings is considered irreligious in Islam, and painting is prohibited.

• Sultans of the Delhi Sultanate didn't completely disregard this prohibition.

• During the Sultanate period, the limited wall paintings/murals (paintings made on walls), manuscript paintings (paintings made on manuscripts), portraits (Shabeeh painting of a person), and patchitra (paintings made on clothes) were created. But now the remains of such paintings are very rare.

Vijaynagar Style

• Vijaynagar style was a continuation of the Chola style. Krishnadeva Raya himself was a good painter and patron of art.

• The paintings of Vijaynagar empire are found in Anegundi, Tadpatri, Kanchipuram, Tirupati, Chidambaram, Srirangam, Lepakshi etc.

• Lepakshi temple is located at Lepakshi in the Anantpur district of Andhra Pradesh.

• Lepakstu (1538, Achyutdeva Raya) is known as Shaivites Alanta.

• These paintings depict stories from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata, the Puranas, saints, rulers, soldiers, musicians, and dancers.

Mughal Style (1526-1707)

The rise and fall of the Mughal painting corresponded to the rise and fall of the Mughal Empire.

The Mughal paintings are categorized into:

• Portrait (Chhavichitra)

• Miniature (Laghuchitra)

Portrait (Chhavichitra)

• A single picture of specific persons (e.g., emperor, queen, prince, princess, courtier, chieftain, etc.) and creatures/things (e.g., animals, birds, etc.).

Miniature (Laghuchitra)

• Miniatures were used in illustrations in Mughal manuscripts. Mughal painters were experts in rendering miniature paintings.

Characteristics of Mughal Painting Style

1. The specialty of Mughal painting is curved lines.

2. The reasons for the fame of Mughal paintings are subtle motifs, decorative painting, excellent fine drawing, use of golden colors on clothes, etc.

3. Green, red, blue, and golden colors have been used extensively in Mughal paintings.

4. The themes of Mughal painting mainly focused on royal court and natural scenes; it lacks depiction of the lives of common people.

5. Mughal painters introduced scenes involving royal courts, prey chasing, and battle scenes.

Babur (1526-30)

• Babur was a cultured person and had a good taste for fine arts.

• He had a great desire to invite Behzad (1450-1535), a master painter in miniature painting from Herat, to his kingdom. But before his wish could be fulfilled, he left the world.

• Babur could not bring Behzad to India, but his son Humayun was successful in bringing Behzad's disciples to India.

Humayun (1530-40, 1555-56)

Humayun is credited with starting the Mughal painting style; thus, he is revered as "the Father of the Mughal painting style."

• While returning from Iran, he brought two Iranian painters—Mir Sayyed Ali Tarbizi & Khwaja Abd-us-Samad Sheeraji—to India.

• Later, Mir Sayyed Ali was awarded the title Nadir-ul-Asr, and Khwaja Abd-us-Samad the title Sheereen Qalam.

• He founded Nigaar Khana (painting workshop), which was also a part of his library.

Since he died on January 15, 1556, he didn't get enough time to develop the Mughal painting style.

Akbar (1556-1605)

The real development of the Mughal painting style took place during the long reign of Akbar.

• He ordered the manuscript of Dastan-i-Amir Hamza (popularly known as Hamzanama) to be painted in 1567.

• It was completed by 100 painters in 15 years (1567-82) under the guidance of Sayyed Ali (earlier) and Abd-us-Samad (later).

• It was painted on brightly colored cloth (linen).

• Akbar was very fond of this pictorial storybook, Hamzanama (in 14 volumes, 1400 pages).

He appointed his painting ustad Abdus-Samad the head of Nigaar Khana (painting workshop) at Sikri. About 100 painters were employed in Nigaar Khana.

• Prominent Hindu painters: Dashawant, Basavan, Lal, Kesu, Mukund, Harivansh, etc.

• Prominent Muslim painters: Abdus-Samad, Sayyed Ali, Miskin, Farrukh Beg, etc.

The paintings of Akbar's time were found on the manuscripts of Hamzanama, Tareekh-i-Khandaan-e-Taimur, Ramayan, Razmnama (Persian translation of Mahabharata), Akbarnama, Baburnama, etc.

The paintings of Akbar's time are of 4 categories:

1. Paintings based on non-Indian stories

2. Paintings based on Indian stories

3. Historical paintings

4. Portraits

Jahangir (1605-28)

• Jahangir was a proficient painter, a great connoisseur of painting, and a big patron of painters.

• In his memoirs, Tuzuk-i-Jahangiri, he prides himself on connoisseurship, on how he could discriminate the work of one artist from another.

• The Mughal painting style reached its climax during Jahangir's time; thus, his period is accepted as "the Golden Period of Mughal Painting."

Prominent painters of Jahangir's time were:

• Aqa/Agha Riza (Head of Nigaar Khana at Agra)

• Abul Hasan (title: Nadir-uz-Zaman)

• Bishandas (title: Nadir-ul-Asr, sent to Persia to make portraits of Persian king & others)

• Manohar, Govardhan, Madhav, Vichitra etc.

He encouraged portraits and albums (Murakka) rather than manuscript paintings.

Shahjahan (1628-58)

• Shahjahan was more interested in architecture than painting. Painting flourished during his reign, but its heyday was reached during the time of his father, Jahangir.

Aurangzeb (1628-1707)

• Aurangzeb, the puritan who imprisoned his father, Shahjahan, and came to the throne, could not provide encouragement to painting, as he considered it against the tenets of Islam.

• The disappointed painters of the Mughal court slowly had to find a better center for survival elsewhere.

Regional/Provincial Style

Among regional/provincial painting styles, Rajput painting was the most prominent. Other styles included Jain style (Western style), Gurjar style, Gond style, Malwa style, Deccan style, Jaunpur style, Sikh style, etc.

Rajput Style (16th-19th Century)

• Art historian Anand Coomaraswamy in 1916 coined the term 'Rajput Paintings,' as most rulers and patrons of these kingdoms were Rajputs.

• He specifically coined it to categorize and differentiate this group from the well-known Mughal School of Painting.

• Today the term 'Rajput School' is obsolete. Instead, specific categories such as Rajasthani and Pahari are employed.

• Rajput painting specialized in illustrating Hindu epic legends. It depicts the stories of Ram, Krishna, Bhagavata Purana, and Geet Govinda.

Rajasthani Style

Centers, Patrons & Painters:

• Mewar (Udaipur)

  • Patrons: Jagat Singh, Rana Pratap, Raj Singh, Jai Singh

  • Painters: Nisardin, Sahibdin, Manohar, Jagannath

• Bikaner

  • Patrons: Rai Singh, Karan Singh, Anoop Singh

• Kishangarh

  • Patrons: Bishan Singh, Samant Singh alias Nagari Das (beloved’s name—Bani)

  • Painters: Chanda, Nihal Chand, Amar Chanda, Sitaram, Bhawani Das

• Kota-Bundi (Kota, Bundi, Jhalawar)

  • Patrons: Umed Singh, Ram Singh, Chhatra Singh

  • Painters: Sheikh Hasan, Sheikh Ali, Sheikh Hatim, Utkal Ram

• Jodhpur

  • Patrons: Jaswant Singh, Ajeet Singh

  • Painter: Veerji, Dana

• Jaipur

  • Patrons: Sawai Jai Singh, Sawai Ishwar Singh, Sawai Madho Singh, Sawai Pratap Singh

  • Painters: Sahibram, Guman

Pahari Style (17th-19th Century)

• The paintings that developed in Pahar (hills or mountains) are known as Pahari paintings.

• This style prevailed in the Himalayan foothills, stretching from Jammu to Garhwal.

• Beginning at Basohli with a flamboyant style, it blossomed into the most exquisite and sophisticated style of Indian painting known as the Kangra School, through the Guler, or pre-Kangra, phase.

Centers, Patrons & Painters:

• Basohli

  • Patron: Kripal Pal

  • Specimen: Shangri Ramayana (residence of royal family)

• Guler (Haripur, capital of Guler)

  • Patrons: Dileep Singh, Govardhan Chandra

  • Painters: Pandit Sen & his sons—Manak (Manaku), Nainsukh, Khushala, Fattu, Gondhu

• Kangra

  • Patrons: Sansarchand, Aniruddhachand

  • Painters: Fattu, Purkhu, Khushala

• Jammu

  • Patron: Ranajit Dev

• Kullu

• Chamba

  • Patron: Aniruddh Chandra

  • Patron: Prithapal Singh

  • Painter: Molaram

• Garhwal (Srinagar, capital of Garhwal)

Differences between Rajput Style & Mughal Style

1. Rajput style emphasized the Indian environment, common people, and folk elements, while Mughal style focused on the Persian environment, European impact, elite persons, and court elements.

2. Rajput paintings portrayed women in multiple ways, while Mughal paintings showed them negligibly.

3. Rajput paintings lacked the use of arabesque in margin areas, while Mughal paintings used them in plenty.

4. Rajput paintings depicted animals and birds symbolically, while Mughal paintings showed them for recreation.

5. Rajput paintings were often completed by a single painter, while Mughal paintings usually required at least four painters.

6. The Rajput painting style was spiritual and idealistic, while the Mughal painting style was materialistic and realistic.

7. Time period of Rajput painting style: 16th-19th century; Mughal painting style: 16th-18th century.

Final Thoughts

Medieval Indian painting grew under both imperial and regional styles. In the Sultanate period, painting was limited, but forms like murals, manuscripts, and portraits appeared. The Vijayanagar style continued Chola traditions, with epics and daily life painted in places like Lepakshi.

The Mughal period (1526–1707) became the golden era, especially under Akbar and Jahangir, with detailed miniatures, portraits, and manuscripts. Akbar promoted epic manuscripts like the Hamzanama, while Jahangir encouraged naturalistic portraits.

Meanwhile, Rajput and Pahari styles flourished regionally, focusing on Ramayana, Krishna stories, and folk culture. Unlike the Mughal style with Persian influence, Rajput paintings were spiritual, vibrant, and people-centric, reflecting India’s rich medieval art.