In photos: Check out miniature art by the award-winning Raghupathi Bhat

Bhat is a Ganjifa artist. He paints on small, round cards about 4 inches wide. The work is intricate, painstaking and has roots in an ancient game. Take a look.

A representation of Shiva in the Mysore Ganjifa style. The Ganjifa card game travelled to India with the Mughals in the 15th century. One side of the cards had numbers; the other featured elaborate art. (Image courtesy Raghupathi Bhat)

A painting of Saraswati. In the original Persian cards, the art consisted of floral motifs and scenes from folk lore. In India, these were replaced, over time, by Hindu deities and scenes from Hindu myth. (Image courtesy Raghupathi Bhat)

A painting depicting a yogic asana. Bhat, now 67, has had his eyesight suffer from the strain of creating the intricate art. He now paints in line drawings. But 30 of his former students are now Mysore Ganjifa artist, and can continue the legacy, he says. (Image courtesy Raghupathi Bhat)

A line drawing depicting a scene from the Ramayana. Bhat is currently working to tell the story of the Mahabharata in a series of line drawings. (Image courtesy Raghupathi Bhat)