indian art - miniatures - archecticture - vedic philosophy
 
 
   

 
Classical - Mewari - Gita-Govinda - Series One
 
Plate 7 - "Kapi kapola... romanca hare sanukula hein."  

 

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"Another with heavy hips (nitambavati) sways against him, leans face to face and comes close to whisper secrets in His ear. She marks with kisses the tingling cheeks of Hari."

This rich sensuous imagery, with the sense of touch pervading every word of the verse, is recreated fully by the artist. Hari is tightly locked in the embrace of the gopis. One holds him close, is face to face whispering in his ears. The others are all interlocked with arms around one another. Another group of three claps and sings. One of them plays on the vina. The passionate intensity of the verbal description, condensed in a few words, can neither be translated nor recaptured in full in another idiom. The Mewari artist does justice to it in as large a measure as much as possible through pictorial form. The choreographical pattern formed by the group of gopis, with their arms entwined with one another and with Hari is almost as eloquent as the verse. Radha continues to listen attentively to the sakhi in one corner. In the other, a vacant platform suggests that we are still in the mood of separation.