The Chronicles of Indian Miniature Art
Miniatures are beautiful from afar and detailed masterpieces from near. India had a rich history of miniatures for over a millennium. The Indian miniature paintings are more than simple art. They are detailed with techniques, versatile in types of materials used and the areas practised in. Beyond the technicalities of art, they evoke strong emotions and depict whole stories within a few inches of canvas which are difficult to capture through any other means. It also included the art of calligraphy to quote alongside the art, wise words from scriptures, poets, literary works and such sources.
There are several schools of Indian miniatures. Each of them have their own distinct features for identification, be it the use of colour palette, the materials for the colour, the material to be painted on, the difference in brush strokes, themes, expressions and what not. Each school is a reflection of the state of society, the rulers, the beliefs and stories of the time and area they evolved from.
Initially divided into Pala and Jain , later there evolved several schools of miniatures based on locations and their distinct styles, themes and characteristic features. Rajasthani and Mughal miniatures have been at the forefront followed by Pahari and Deccani school. The extensive use of gold, vibrant colours, angularity of active lines, short saturated men and women with extra protruding eyes, angular faces, pointed noses, rich costumes and gorgeous ornaments are characteristic features of Jain paintings.
The Rajasthani school encompasses over 15 small thikanas - hotspots or centres for miniature paintings including Mewar, Bundi, Kotah, Jaipur, Bikaner and more. The speciality is their extremely expressive nature. The stories of great heroes who loved their land, people who loved even the smallest elements of life and all who were proud to be living where they did, were captured in these paintings.
There are more illustrations of texts and legends rather than portraits in these miniatures. Depiction of Durbar scenes, hunting, royal processions, festivals, outings, harem life are few of the abundant themes they covered. The Radha and Krishna were the ultimate symbol and source of love and romance and the soul of Rajasthani painter’s works elevating them from material worldly aspirations and transcendence to spirituality. The Mewar miniatures contain Hindu myths and legends; Kotah focuses on hunting scenes with a vibrant and realistic composition of nature. Bikaner excels in portraiture, hunting and Darbar scenes, soft colour tones and delicate female and robust male figures.
Mughal school originated under Akbar’s reign. Hindu and Islamic elements were blended together thanks to his liberal outlook. There was major Persian influence as well. Jahangir further added depictions of poetic fervour, beauty of lines, life-like animals, birds and nature. Shahjahan preferred portraits and random illustrations. Serialisation of romances of Dra Shikoh and Ranadil were done. The romantic heart of Shahjahan was reflected in the soft, delicate and rich texture of his miniatures.
Apart from the themes the use of colours was a huge part of miniatures. As there has been tremendous influence of Persian and Indian art since the Mughal era the determination of origin of paintings from respective regions is done via difference in range and use of certain colours. Persian paintings had abundant use of lapis lazuli (a shade of blue of the rock with the same name) while Indian paintings have more subtle tones of peori, orange and green earth. This indicates the Persian source of pigment being minerals while in India they were derived through organic means of vegetables and flowers. Post the Persian influence mineral based colours were introduced in India too.
To further delve into chronicles of Indian miniature, here's a small reveal into the process of making a miniature by artist Mohan Prajapati from Rajasthan whose family had been working for the Royal family for promotion of art for generations. Stone colours were used which are made by rubbing stones of the colour or crushing them. The brush was made from squirrel tail’s hair. The black was obtained from authentic Indian Kajal. The paper used was rice paper made almost 100 years ago as they give the painting a glow might not, as well as are recyclable and eco-friendly making them a popular and meaningful choice for contemporary art lovers.There are an extensive number of steps along with huge effort and time involved in creating the small piece of art that we call miniature. Some paintings also include decoration by real stones such as rubies. These were gifted to nobles in old times and still remain a favourite for patrons of art.
There is a whole new world of not only a wide variety of themes but techniques, skills, materials and traditional knowledge, wealth, history and aesthetics that the Indian miniatures introduce us to. Their chronicles are never ending and so are the lessons for artists and for those in search of stories to know more about the past and express the present through these small magical pieces of art which, opposite to their size, speak volumes.
