The painting shown below is a Bhagvata Purana folio of the Pahari schools. Observe the painting and read the passage, then answer the question.
The pain of the gopis is real when Krishna suddenly disappears. The gopis recall and enact his various lilas or feats. Some of them being — the killing of Putana, liberation of Yamala-Arjun after Krishna was tied to a mortar by Yashoda, lifting of Mount Govardhan, subduing of serpent Kaliya, and the intoxicating call and allure of Krishna’s flute. The gopis take on different roles and emulate his divine sports.
Which of Krishna’s feats does the gopi in the extreme bottom right of the painting enact?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Dancing on the serpent Kaliya
Option (1) Dancing on the serpent Kaliya — Correct. At the extreme bottom right, a gopi hurls a blue garment edged with gold over the ground. It takes the form of the serpent Kaliya, and she dances on it like Krishna.
Option (2) Lifting Mount Govardhan — Incorrect. Mount Govardhan is enacted by a gopi in a turban, who lifts her piled up odhni. She is in another group, not at the bottom right.
Option (3) Being tied to a mortar by Yashoda — Incorrect. The gopi tied to the mortar plays young Krishna. She is in the group beside the Putana scene, not at the bottom right.
Option (4) Playing the flute — Incorrect. The gopi who enacts Krishna playing the flute is at the extreme left in the bottom, not the right.
NCERT (2026-27): “Re-enacting Krishna’s deeds …In the adjoining group, a gopi, sporting a turban, lifts her piled up odhni atop in the guise of lifting Mount Govardhan, while others seek protection underneath. To the extreme left in the bottom, a gopi enacts Krishna, who is playing flute, as some gopis dance and sing, … In the most magnificent of these cameos to the extreme bottom in the right, a gopi hurls a blue garment edged with gold over the ground, which takes the form of the multiple hooded serpent Kaliya, upon whom she dances like Krishna.”
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