The tradition of painting in India is as old as Rigveda. We have clear evidences of this tradition in this great epic. The Ancient Indian compositions right from Rigveda to the works of Kalidasa are full of the narrations regarding painting. We have Vishnudharmottarpurana, which is a pioneer ancient Indian text of this area. There are several books in different languages, which give ample information regarding this unique tradition. The book of Mr. Narmada Prasad Upadhyaya, which has been recently published in Hindi under the title 'Bhartiya Chitrankan Parampara' gives the complete information in respect of this glorious Indian tradition.

The basic and foremost feature of this unique style of art is an exhaustive detailing of each and every component relating to the scene. There are different themes, which have become the base for the flight of the imagination of artist. These themes are traditional and have come out from the great compositions like Ramayana, Mahabharata, Meghdootam, Geetgovindam and several others alike in the earlier centuries of our cultural history. These themes have also emerged from the compositios of the great poets like Sur, Keshav, Bihari, Matiram, Dev and Puhukar who wrote great poems like Sursagar, Bihari Satsai, Rasraj, Ashtayam and Rasbeli. There are several themes of different nature and attitude. They centered on the love stories, Nayak-Nayika Bhed and mostly the Leela of Radha and Krishna.

The tradition of wall paintings in India is very rich and colorful. This tradition touched its zenith in Ajanta and the line of Ajanta never collapsed. It transformed and got its fine assimilation in the Mughal period. The painting tradition of Iran merged with the Indian tradition and wrote a unique chapter in the history of Indian art. The Mughal kalam touched its zenith during the reign of Jahangir.

After the fall of Mughal Empire the artists went in the desert and in the hills. Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh became the shelter for them and we see the superb, unique, colorful and eternal skill of Indian artist in the different styles flourished in different time frames in Rajasthan and in Himachal Pradesh. Even in the small Riyasats and Thikanas, the ateliers were established and the concerning kings played a role of patron of this great cultural heritage. The small Thikana of Riyan of Rajasthan and a very small state of Nahan of Himachal Pradesh represented this rich Indian heritage. The prominent styles flourished in Rajasthan during medieval and later medieval period were Mewar, Devgarh, Shahpura, Nathdwara, Jodhpur, Bikaner, Kishangarh, Jaisalmer, Bundi, Kota, Amber, Alwar and Jaipur etc. In the hills, the styles, which developed in their full bloom, were Kangra, Basohali, Guler, Mandi, Chamba, Garhwal, Bilaspur, Nurpur, Jammu and Kullu etc.

Apart from the above, the painting tradition also flourished in Malwa, Vidarbh and Bengal. In every part of the country this painting tradition flourished and was nourished by the kings and emperors on one end and on the other the contemporary society itself played a great role in making it popular.

Dr. Anand Coomarswamy was the pioneer in this field of Indian art. He first studied systematically the paintings of different styles and published his monumental volumes under the title "Rajput Painting" in 1916. Since than the study of these paintings started by the eastern and western scholars but this study centered on the paintings executed in the royal ateliers. The themes of the great epics like Ramayana and Mahabharata and the themes of great compositions like Geet Govinda and Kavipriya also became the matter of depiction by the artists of the contemporary society. These artists did not get any patronage but they devoted their lives for this great art and enriched our great heritage. Likewise, the areas of Malwa, Vidarbh and Bundelkhand remained mostly unstudied. The small riyasats like Raghogarh were responsible for the nice depictions but no serious effort was made to study the paintings of this type of small state.

Here you will find an effort to display the paintings, which are still waiting for their proper provenance and recognition.