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Dharamshala walls become artists’ canvas
With the hill town getting a facelift for Global Investors’ Meet, it’s untidy walls are starting to teem with life.
With the hill town getting a facelift for Global Investors’ Meet, it’s untidy walls are starting to teem with life.
Walking through the heart of Dharamshala, the eternal love between Radha and Krishna, the main theme of Kangra art, is seen adorning the walls.
A group of half a dozen artists, who practice Kangra miniature painting, are behind the artistic makeover of the town, the venue for the state’s Global Investors’ Meet which would be held on November 7 and 8. The meet will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and would be attended by over 2,000 investors from India and abroad and ambassadors of as many as 16 countries.
The art project is being executed by the Language, Art of Culture Department of Himachal Pradesh government.
Kangra deputy commissioner Rakesh Kumar Prajapati said the aim is to promote Himachali culture during the meet. “And what would be better than the Kangra art,” he said.
“Walls along the major roads passing through the town have become a canvas for the artists, who have been assigned to paint them in vibrant colours,” said Prajapati.
The Kangra miniatures are noted for portraying the feminine charm with natural grace. Apart from female beauty, there is also a loving interest in landscapes, countryside, rivers, trees, birds, cattle, and flowers which have been meticulously portrayed in these paintings.
Rajeev Kumar, 38, a member of the group doing the artwork, said it was a great experience to work on such a larger canvas.
“Creating miniature painting on Dharamshala walls will promote the art globally as people from various countries would be coming to attend the event,” said Kumar.
Another artist, Kamaljeet, 37, said the upcoming event has given him and other artists an opportunity to showcase talent.
“Hopefully, this centuries-old art form will gain more popularity after the event,” he said.
Kangra art originated in a small hill state ‘Guler’ in the Lower Himalayas in the beginning of 18th century when a family of Kashmiri painters trained in Mughal style of painting sought shelter at the court of Raja Dalip Singh (1695-1741) of Guler.
The new arrivals mingled with the local artists and were greatly influenced by the atmosphere of the hills.
Instead of painting flattering portraits of their masters and love scenes, the artistes adopted themes of eternal love between Radha and Krishna. The paintings were naturalistic and employed cool, fresh colours. The colours were extracted from minerals, vegetables and possessed enamel-like lustre. Verdant greenery of the landscape, brooks, springs were the recurrent images on the miniatures.
This style reached its zenith during the reign of Maharaja Sansar Chand Katoch (1776-1824) who was a great patron of Kangra art.
Currently, the art form is dying a slow death due to neglect by the successive government. There is no policy to promote the art form and there are few artists left who practice Kangra miniature painting.
