Observe the image and answer the following question.
In the Kangra painting Abhisarika Nayika in the image, what is the sakhi recounting about the nayika?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → How she crossed the woods in the night to meet her beloved
Option (1) How she patiently waited for her beloved to arrive — Incorrect. Waiting patiently for the beloved marks Utka, not the Abhisarika.
Option (2) How she crossed the woods in the night to meet her beloved — Correct. The sakhi recounts how the nayika crossed the woods in the night to meet her beloved. This fits the Abhisarika, who braves all hazards.
Option (3) How she decorated the bed with flowers to welcome her beloved — Incorrect. Decorating the bed with flowers belongs to Vasaksajja, who awaits her beloved’s return from a voyage.
Option (4) How she resisted her beloved and then repented when he came late — Incorrect. Resisting the beloved and repenting when he comes late describes Kalahantarita.
NCERT (2026-27): “Abhisarika Nayika Even though describing Ashta Nayikas remained a favourite among poets and painters, none of them is treated with as much flair as the Abhisarika, one who hastens to meet her beloved braving all hazards. The situation conceived is, generally, full of bizarre and dramatic possibilities with the passion and steadfastness of the nayika, triumphing against the opposing elements of nature. In this painting, the sakhi is recounting how the nayika crossed the woods in the night to meet her beloved.”
Abhisarika Nayika, Kangra, 1810–20, Government Museum and Art Gallery, Chandigarh, India |
