Indian painting. Recognising a story

Jain manuscripts, Hindu subjects and regional court life.

Viewers often recognised a scene from an attribute or gesture. Painters could assume familiarity with an epic, religious text or courtly poetry. We examine these clues while preserving distinctions between Jain and Hindu traditions, then turn to rulers’ portraits.

Manuscripts and religious narratives

Texts identify characters and the order of events. Different religions had their own figures and reading practices.

Devananda's Fourteen Auspicious Dreams Foretelling the Birth of Mahavira: Folio from a Kalpasutra Manuscript

Master of the Jaunpur Kalpasutra · ca. 1465

Dream emblems above Devananda’s bed foretell Mahavira’s birth. The long leaf preserves the format of earlier palm-leaf books. Gold and lapis-derived blue connect this Jain manuscript with Iranian artistic materials and approaches.

Jain Ascetic Walking Along a Riverbank

Basawan · c. 1600

A Jain monk carries a manuscript, staff, pot, and broom. The portrait was made for Akbar's collection during the emperor's interest in Jain teaching. Representatives of different religions joined court discussions, and he listened closely to Jain teachers. The monk's belongings explain his practice and connection with learning.

Rama Releases the Demon Spies Shuka and Sarana: Folio from the Siege of Lanka series

Attributed to Manaku · ca. 1725

Three episodes share one leaf: spies are captured, Rama releases them, and they report to Ravana. The unfinished Siege of Lanka series is attributed to Manaku. It bridges Basohli’s flat colour with developing Guler-Kangra naturalism.

The Demon Hiranyaksha Departs the Demon Palace: Folio from a Bhagavata Purana Series

Unidentified Indian painters · ca. 1740

Hiranyaksha leaves to attack Earth while Vishnu sleeps cosmically. The episode prepares Vishnu’s rescue of Earth as the boar Varaha. Within a Bhagavata Purana sequence, departure begins a familiar story of disrupted and restored cosmic order.

Gods, music and relationships

Scenes of play, music and encounters take part in religious and poetic narratives.

Shiva and Parvati Playing Chaupar: Folio from a Rasamanjari Series

Devidasa of Nurpur · dated 1694–95

Parvati protests after Shiva cheats at chaupar and wins her necklace. The leaf belongs to a Rasamanjari series describing lovers’ emotions. Gods take part in a recognisable domestic quarrel, expressed through vivid Basohli colour and gesture.

The Gopis Plead with Krishna to Return Their Clothing: Folio from "Isarda" Bhagavata Purana

Master of the "Isarda" Bhagavata Purana · ca. 1560–65

Krishna has hidden the bathing gopis’ clothes, and they ask for their return. Devotional poetry interprets their attraction to him as profound religious attachment. This important mid-sixteenth-century manuscript preserves North Indian traditions during the emergence of Mughal court art.

Krishna Revels with the Gopis: Page from a Dispersed Gita Govinda (Song of the Cowherds)

Unidentified Malwa painter · ca. 1630–40

This page illustrates the Gita Govinda, a poem about Krishna and Radha. Gopis gather around Krishna beside a river. Bright color and patterned clouds belong to the early Malwa painting tradition. Within a manuscript, the figures and their gestures accompanied a familiar poetic story.

A Lady Playing the Tanpura

Unidentified Kishangarh painter · ca. 1735

A courtly musician embodies the ideal heroine of devotional poetry. Tanpura, jewellery and fine clothing also suggest Radha, important to Kishangarh’s patrons. Music at court meets a language of religious love.

Royal lovers watching rain clouds: The month of Bhadon, from a Barahmasa

Unidentified Indian painters · c. 1790

The painting represents Bhadon, a month near the end of the monsoon. Rain hindered travel and warfare, keeping men at home. Monthly painting cycles therefore associated this time with lovers' meetings. A palace couple, musicians, and storm clouds turn the calendar theme into a particular scene.

Protector and ruler

Devotion to a deity and a ruler’s image could support the same dynastic history.

Mahadevi, the Great Goddess

Unidentified Bikaner painter · ca. 1725

Mahadevi’s twenty arms carry the gods’ weapons and connect her with Durga. The ruling family of Bikaner honoured this protective deity. Multiple arms allow several powers to be represented at once within one figure.

Maharana Sangram Singh Riding a Prize Stallion

Stipple Master · ca. 1712

A radiant halo asserts Sangram Singh’s solar ancestry. The unidentified artist is conventionally named for stippling. Tiny marks and restrained colour leave paper visible, creating an unusual Rajput approach with Mughal and Deccan parallels.

Maharana Bhim Singh in Procession

Attributed to Ghasi · c. 1820

Mewar’s ruler rides with jewels, a hookah, hunting animals and dynastic emblems. The procession projects wealth and authority. Yet in 1818 Bhim Singh had to accept British protection. The ceremonial image shows the status the ruler sought to sustain as his state’s independence weakened.

The House of Bijapur

Kamal Muhammad and Chand Muhammad · ca. 1680

Nine Adil Shahi sultans appear together in an assembly made for the young Sikandar. The painting dates shortly before Bijapur fell in 1686. An exchange of a key invokes dynastic legitimacy and links with Safavid Iran. A later inscription misidentifies the Iranian ruler and cannot be accepted at face value.

Prince and ascetics, from the Late Shah Jahan Album

Attributed to Painting by Govardhan · c. 1630

A Mughal prince visits a Sufi teacher. The finished painting was later removed from an earlier setting and inserted into Shah Jahan's new album. Its selection emphasized the religious side of court life. Additional ascetics in the margins connect the central encounter with the album page's decoration.

Familiar subjects allowed different solutions

Familiar subjects allowed different solutions. Artists varied scale, colour and the number of episodes on a sheet according to workshop and commission.

A region’s name helps locate an artistic setting without always identifying a painter. Inscriptions and manuscript histories can clarify what the image leaves unknown.