.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
.jpg?w=1)
Lot Essay
Among the many depictions of romantically charged emotions in classical Indian poetry and painting, the Vipralabdha Nayika, the heroine who casts off her jewellery in anger stands as one of the most compelling archetypes. In Sanskrit and regional literary traditions, she embodies longing, daring, and often, heartbreak. Courtly norms assumed that such women, impelled by passion, might take the initiative in romantic encounters, leaving the safety of their homes to rendezvous in forests or moonlit groves. A pitch-dark night was often idealized as the proper cover for these trysts; yet here, the heroine dares even the exposure of a full moon.
In this striking painting from the Nurpur school of Pahari painting, dated circa 1770–1780, the vipralabdha nayika is portrayed at the height of emotional tension. Clad in a vivid red skirt symbolising passion and a pale yellow bodice tightly bound across her chest, she stands in a clearing beside a solitary tree, the designated meeting spot. She has prepared a makeshift bed of leaves and has waited in vain for her lover’s arrival. The bright moon above casts her into full visibility, and the scene’s stark exposure mirrors her emotional vulnerability.
The tree beside her, with its upright, unbending trunk, might be read as a symbolic stand-in for the absent lover, a visual metaphor for steadfastness ironically betrayed by the lover’s absence. The heroine’s emotion, however, is barely contained. Her face, though seemingly expressionless, bare veils deep anguish. In a poignant gesture of despair and fury, she discards the white flower garland she had intended for her lover and begins to remove her jewelry. A tassel has already fallen to the ground; another is about to follow. These acts of disrobing and discarding ornaments signal the unraveling of her hope and emotional restraint.
This theme was a favourite among Pahari painters, especially those influenced by Rasikapriya and other poetic texts that categorized heroines by their emotional states. Similar depictions of Vipralabdha Nayika can be found in the collection of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (Randhawa, 1962, p. 78, fig 45) and another version of the same period from Nurpur is in the San Diego Museum of Art (Archer and Binney, 1968, p. 104, 80a).
This Nurpur rendering, together with another page from the series, utka nayika (Archer, 1973, p. 322, no. 56), distinguishes itself through its stark compositional simplicity and emotional clarity. The minimal landscape, dominated by the tree and the open space, draws the viewer’s attention entirely to the figure of the heroine, her body language, costume, and gestures forming the crux of narrative drama. It is an exquisite example of how Pahari artists visualized the psyche of a woman caught in the throes of unfulfilled love.
In this striking painting from the Nurpur school of Pahari painting, dated circa 1770–1780, the vipralabdha nayika is portrayed at the height of emotional tension. Clad in a vivid red skirt symbolising passion and a pale yellow bodice tightly bound across her chest, she stands in a clearing beside a solitary tree, the designated meeting spot. She has prepared a makeshift bed of leaves and has waited in vain for her lover’s arrival. The bright moon above casts her into full visibility, and the scene’s stark exposure mirrors her emotional vulnerability.
The tree beside her, with its upright, unbending trunk, might be read as a symbolic stand-in for the absent lover, a visual metaphor for steadfastness ironically betrayed by the lover’s absence. The heroine’s emotion, however, is barely contained. Her face, though seemingly expressionless, bare veils deep anguish. In a poignant gesture of despair and fury, she discards the white flower garland she had intended for her lover and begins to remove her jewelry. A tassel has already fallen to the ground; another is about to follow. These acts of disrobing and discarding ornaments signal the unraveling of her hope and emotional restraint.
This theme was a favourite among Pahari painters, especially those influenced by Rasikapriya and other poetic texts that categorized heroines by their emotional states. Similar depictions of Vipralabdha Nayika can be found in the collection of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (Randhawa, 1962, p. 78, fig 45) and another version of the same period from Nurpur is in the San Diego Museum of Art (Archer and Binney, 1968, p. 104, 80a).
This Nurpur rendering, together with another page from the series, utka nayika (Archer, 1973, p. 322, no. 56), distinguishes itself through its stark compositional simplicity and emotional clarity. The minimal landscape, dominated by the tree and the open space, draws the viewer’s attention entirely to the figure of the heroine, her body language, costume, and gestures forming the crux of narrative drama. It is an exquisite example of how Pahari artists visualized the psyche of a woman caught in the throes of unfulfilled love.