Read the passage on the women in early Deccani painting and answer the question.
In sixteenth-century Ahmadnagar, painters showed women with their hair rolled up in a bun on the nape of the neck, similar to the Lepakshi murals. The same feminine dress is seen in a series of paintings that are counted among the most striking and moving examples of the sixteenth century Deccan Schools of Painting.
Which series of paintings is meant in the passage?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Ragamala
Option (1) Nujum al-Ulum — Incorrect. This is the illustrated encyclopaedia of Bijapur, dated 1570, with pictures of weapons, utensils and constellations.
Option (2) Ragamala — Correct. The feminine dress appears in a series of Ragamala paintings, the most striking and moving examples of sixteenth century Deccani painting.
Option (3) Tarif-i-Hussain Shahi — Incorrect. This is the Ahmadnagar volume on Hussain Nizam Shah I. The woman in its miniatures belongs to the northern tradition of pre-Mughal painting, not the dress described here.
Option (4) Diwan of Hafiz — Incorrect. The earliest five Golconda miniatures, showing court scenes of a young ruler, were bound up in it.
NCERT (2026-27): “Ahmadnagar School of Painting …The women in the paintings of Ahmadnagar wear a modified northern costume with choli (bodice) and long braided pigtails, ending in a tassel. …These feminine dress, present in a series of Ragamala paintings, are the most striking and moving examples of the sixteenth century Deccan Schools of Painting. The women’s hair is rolled up in a bun on the nape of the neck, similar to the Lepakshi murals.” |