Hadauti Painting

Hadauti Painting 

The painting traditions in the region of Kota and Bundi located in southeastern Rajasthan are collectively known as Hadauti paintings.

Bundi

One of the earliest examples of the Bundi Paintings is the Chunar Ragamala painted in 1561. The painting showed marked influence of the Mughal style. The development of the Bundi School in the early 17th century is unclear but isolated examples of creative brilliance reveal the ongoing development of Bundi style. Wall paintings from the reign of Rao Ratan Singh (1607-31) are significant examples of Bundi Style.

Under Rao Chattar Sal (1631-58) and Bhao Singh (1658-81) Bundi paintings emphasized on court scenes. Themes from the life of nobles, lovers, and ladies were extensively used in the paintings. Bhagavata Purana illustrations of 1640 are other notable works of art from this genre.

Though Bundi School had close association with the Mughal style yet it was never fundamental to the evolution and growth of Bundi paintings.

From the second half of the 17th century three significant paintings; one, dated 1662, of a couple watching pigeons, second, from 1682, of a couple in a pavilion, third, dated 1689, of lovers viewing a crescent moon show the artistic merit of this school. These paintings employed bold, bright colors of Rajasthani style however the delicacy of the Mughal style was also not abandoned.

Kota

A Mughal Decree in 1624-25 led to the carving of Kota state from the kingdom of Bundi. Kota paintings were spontaneous and calligraphic in execution and emphasized on double lidded eye and marked shading. It is likely that artists traveled freely from state to state and hence the influence of each other styles is conspicuous in the paintings.

During the reign of Jagat Singh (1658-84) portraitures were produced that employed vibrant colors and bold lines. Under the reign of Arjun Singh ( 1720-23), a style emerged where a male was depicted with a long hooked nose.

In the 18th century, Kota became popular for its superb hunting scenes, Ragamalas, and portraits that often bore high documentary value.

In the 19th century during the reign of Ram Singh II (1827-66), the Kota paintings underwent revival. He commissioned number of paintings depicting scenes of worship, hunting, darbar and processions.

The Hadauti paintings are often regarded as one of the highest quality of paintings in the Rajput style.