Schools of Rajasthani painting

In 1973, India Post issued a stamp showing the profile of a woman with an impossibly long, curving eye, a sharp nose and delicate features, framed by a veil. She was Bani Thani, painted in the eighteenth century by Nihal Chand at the court of Kishangarh. The painting has been called the "Indian Mona Lisa", and it is one of the best-known images of Rajasthani painting — a tradition of many regional schools, each with its own style, colours and themes.

What is Rajasthani painting?

From roughly the sixteenth to the nineteenth centuries, the courts of Rajasthan patronised painting in miniature — mostly on paper, in manuscript illustrations and albums — as well as larger works on cloth and walls. The schools share certain features:

• bright, flat colours (red, yellow, green, blue);
• religious themes, especially Krishna and Rama stories, the Gita Govinda, the Bhagavata Purana;
• Ragamala (musical modes represented as scenes) and barahmasa (the twelve months);
• court life, portraits, processions and hunts;
• a strong sense of pattern and decoration.

Over time, contact with Mughal painting brought more naturalism, portraiture and finer detail — without erasing each school's local character.

Scholars often group the schools into four broad families:

The major schools

Mewar

• One of the earliest schools. A famous Ragamala set was painted at Chawand in 1605 by the artist Nisardi (Nasiruddin), during Amar Singh's reign.
• Sahibdin (seventeenth century) painted celebrated illustrated manuscripts of the Ramayana and Bhagavata Purana.
• Features: bold colours (red and yellow), stylised figures, fish-shaped eyes.

Nathdwara

• An offshoot of Mewar, centred on the Shrinathji temple of the Pushtimarg tradition.
• Known for Pichhwais — large painted cloth hangings placed behind the image of Shrinathji, depicting Krishna in seasonal and festival scenes.

Marwar (Jodhpur)

• Bold colours, strong lines, and themes from folk romances (such as Dhola–Maru), court life and portraits.
• Flourished under rulers such as Man Singh of Jodhpur (early nineteenth century), a patron of the Nath sect.

Kishangarh

• Reached its peak under Raja Sawant Singh (who wrote poetry as Nagari Das) in the mid-eighteenth century, with the painter Nihal Chand.
• Features: elongated lotus-shaped eyes, arched eyebrows, sharp noses, slender figures, and romantic scenes of Radha and Krishna set in lakes and landscapes.
• Bani Thani — believed by many to be inspired by a singer at Sawant Singh's court — is its icon.

Bundi and Kota (Hadoti)

• Bundi: lush landscapes, monsoon scenes, rich greens, animals and birds; the Chitrashala in Bundi palace preserves murals.
• Kota: famous for hunting scenes — rulers hunting tigers in dense jungles — painted with energy and movement.

Amber–Jaipur

• Strong Mughal influence; large portraits, court scenes and religious themes.
• Flourished under Sawai Jai Singh II and especially Sawai Pratap Singh.

Bikaner

• Deeply influenced by Mughal painting; many artists came from Mughal ateliers.
• Usta artists (such as Ali Raza and Ruknuddin) worked here. Bikaner is also known for Usta art — gold embossing on camel hide.

Alwar

• A later school (late eighteenth–nineteenth centuries) combining Jaipur and Mughal styles; known for fine manuscript illustration.

Folk painting traditions

Why Rajasthani painting matters

1. It is one of India's great artistic traditions, with distinct regional identities.
2. It records religious devotion, court life and nature.
3. It shows cultural exchange with the Mughals.
4. Folk forms such as phad continue today and are protected by GI tags and craft programmes.

Practice

Prelims-style:

1. Which painter created Bani Thani, and at which court?
2. Which school is famous for hunting scenes?
3. Where was the Ragamala set of 1605 painted?
4. What are Pichhwais, and where are they associated with?
5. Which folk deities are depicted in phad paintings?

Mains-style (50 words): What are the distinctive features of the Kishangarh school?

Mains-style (100 words): Compare the Mewar and Bundi schools of painting.