Page 193 - Eye of the beholder

by a jali marble parapet. It is supported by two baluster shaped pillars that resonates in its style to the reign of Shah Jahan and inlaid with lotus leaves. Adjacent to the open terrace is another pavilion in which can be seen two ladies one in profile and the other full face, but surprisingly they are not distracted by the lovers’ quarrel as they seem preoccupied in their thoughts. The enclosing wall which is painted green has beyond it the representation of a dense forest of trees. The trees are in full blossom with pink flowers echoing the love sentiments in the hearts of the lovers. In the distance can be seen the green undulating hills dotted with bushes and trees and a blazing sun emerging from behind it. The sky is delineated in shades of grey to suggest rays of sun breaking the light of the day. The picturesque sensuous undulating hills are part of the natural topography of this region which, the artists has portrayed with verity.
The painting has the representation of the Khandita nayika represented as Radha who is enraged with her beloved Krishna from her posture and body language and Krishna’s gesture of confusion and puzzlement. Though dramatic in its intensity, Radha in her anger has thrown away her jewels in utter displeasure as evidenced from the anklets, the pearl mala and many other ornaments that lie strewn with equal anger as that of its mistress.
Radha’s posture as she sits with her one leg folded and the other bent upwards, her right hand distressingly on her head and the other resting on bent knee and her gaze looking down on the ground. She is truly disturbed and enraged as she refuses to meet the gaze of Krishna. He seems to have come to her after his dalliances with many other gopis having made her wait torturously long and agonizing. A meaningful metaphor from the Kangra region where the Krishna cult had a strong presence, symbolizing the agonizing wait of the human soul represented in the form
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