Nomadic Narratives and Folk Arts in South Asia

Elite vs Folk Arts

• much of premodern arts are the arts of the elites -> necessary to look beyond that

• look at the art of the subaltern

• distinction is often made between the arts of the courtly classes and the ‘crafts’

  • materials: expensive vs ephemeral

  • written vs oral histories

Rajasthan

• lots of trade moved through Rajasthan

• Thar Desert

• dominated by martial caste of Rajputs

  • integrated into Mughal empire as Hindu elites

  • allowed a certain amount of independence

  • Mughals married Rajput princesses

• 19thC James Tod wrote on Rajasthan, romanticised focus on Rajputs

Epic of Pabuji and Phad Painting

• tale of a Rajput prince engaged in a blood feud 

• Pabuji worshipped as a folk deity by the pastoral nomadic community of Raikas (low status)

• bard-priests (bhopas) are from Nayak Bhil, even lower status group

• epic performed over 7 nights against backdrop of sacred phad painting

  • enormous, has to be treated with ritual

• tale can be traced back to medieval times

• performance tradition traced back to 16thC

• visual storytelling existed in Mughal court, but monoscenic

Bengali Patua

• Bengal -> Bangladesh and Indian state of West Bengal

• one of the richest provinces in the empire

• historically dominated by villages

• Patuas created Patua scroll paintings

  • both painters and storytellers

  • vertical in format, episode stacked

• paintings depicted village life, lots of animals

  • historical proximity between humans and animals

• Patuas landless labourers of mixed Hindu-Muslim identity

• no concern for depth, Western naturalism, reminiscent of pre-Mughal aesthetics

Pahari Painting and Embroidery

• Pahari belt -> foothills of Western Himalayas

• a number of small courts emerged in late pre-modern period

• represented Hindu epics, courtly scenes, etc.

• lots of paintings of ideal feminine beauty

• derivative artform: embroideries

  • Chamba Rumal

  • women’s art

  • coverlets of muslin cloth with silk

  • similar themes to Pahari paintings

• Chamba Rumal scene as a craft, not an art