by Ranjha. From the Nala Damayanti series.
Kangra School. Late 18th century AD.
Painters of Kangra Scool excel in depicting the nuisances of love. Fattu depicted the language of the eyes in a love affair; Ranjha captures the pangs of separation. Love has never been captured in her subtleties better than in the Kangra School. This has placed Kangra School in the world league of great art.
Damayanti is restless as she can no longer bear the separation from Nala. Love stricken, she constantly thinks of him. But the more she day dreams, the more she feels feverish. By night, the heat is palpable in her body. Each maid rushes to Damayanti with her own remedy. One wipes her perspiration with a cloth, another fans her. The old maid fans her with a lotus leaf; she has already placed a lotus on Damayanti's exposed breats. Another rubs the sole of her feet. A maid is busy making a sandal paste in the foreground; maids are carrying her bed in the background. The night is going to be a long one for the maids; one of them, pours oil into the torch.
Ranjha captures the hustle and bustle of the palace, the anxiety of the maids, the restlessness of Damayanti in all its facets. The palace is agog with activities. The first tide of love has struck Damayanti.
Even the rich are victim of Kama (love) and of unfulfilled desire. Desire is the cause of pain. And the pain has just begun.
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