Artists in India read and followed certain canons of painting through centuries, and these canons became the basis of all styles and schools of painting in India. In which text are these canons explained?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Vishnudharmottara Purana
Option (1) Kalpasutra — Incorrect. The Kalpasutra is a Jain text illustrated in Western Indian manuscripts. It is not the text that lays down these canons of painting.
Option (2) Kalakacharya Katha — Incorrect. The Kalakacharya Katha is a Jain text illustrated in Western Indian manuscripts. It is not the text of these canons.
Option (3) Vishnudharmottara Purana — Correct. Its chapter Chitrasutra explains the canons of painting and its limbs. Artists followed these canons through centuries, so they became the basis of all styles and schools.
Option (4) Prajnaparamita — Incorrect. The Prajnaparamita is a Buddhist text illustrated in Pala manuscripts. It is not the text of these canons.
Note: This topic was not named in the CUET 2026 syllabus, but it was part of the NCERT chapter. In 2025 and 2026, NTA also asked questions on topics in NCERT that the CUET syllabus did not name. So our mocks have questions from every part of the NCERT chapter, to give you enough practice. Read the whole chapter, not only the sub-topics named in the syllabus.
NCERT (2026-27): “The Manuscript Painting Tradition …The third Khanda of the Vishnudharmottara Purana, a fifth century text has a chapter Chitrasutra, which should be considered as a source book of Indian art in general and painting specifically. It talks about the art of image making called pratima lakshana, which are canons of painting. …Different limbs of painting, such as roopbheda or looks and appearance; pramana or measurments, proportion and structure; bhava or expressions; lavanya yojana or aesthetic composition; sadrishya or resemblance; and varnikabhanga or use of brush and colours have been explained at length with examples. Each of these have many sub-sections. These canons were read and understood by artists and followed through centuries, thus, becoming the basis of all styles and schools of painting in India.” |