Which three kingdoms of the Deccan developed a highly sophisticated and distinct school of court painting?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Bijapur, Golconda and Ahmadnagar
Option (1) Malwa, Ahmedabad and Ahmadnagar — Incorrect. Malwa and Ahmedabad were centres of the northern pre-Mughal tradition, not Deccan kingdoms.
Option (2) Bijapur, Golconda and Ahmedabad — Incorrect. Ahmedabad was a centre of the northern pre-Mughal tradition. It was not a Deccan kingdom.
Option (3) Bijapur, Golconda and Ahmadnagar — Correct. These three Deccan kingdoms each built a distinct school of court painting.
Option (4) Golconda, Malwa and Ahmadnagar — Incorrect. Malwa was a centre of the northern pre-Mughal tradition, not a Deccan kingdom.
NCERT (2026-27): “The Deccani Schools of Painting The kingdoms of Bijapur, Golconda and Ahmadnagar developed highly sophisticated and distinct school of court painting. Its unique sensuality and intense colours have strong affinity to regional aesthetics. The school preferred dense composition and attempted to create an aura of romance, which invariably expressed itself in an idiom that was eloquently natural and vivid.” “Ahmadnagar School of Painting …The woman represented in it belongs to the northern tradition of pre-Mughal painting, which was flourishing especially in Malwa and Ahmedabad during this period.” |