Pahari painting style dying without state support

Lalit Mohan

The art of Pahari paintings is dying. There is no government policy in place to preserve the Pahari style of paintings of Himachal. There are very few teachers of Pahari paintings left in the state and they are not in a position to pass on their legacy to the next generation due to lack of government patronage.

Vijay Sharma, the Padma Shri awardee painter from Chamba district, said this while talking to the Himachal Tribune. Sharma is among the few experts of Pahari miniature paintings left in the state and is known worldwide for his art. He is presently posted as a senior artist in the Chamba museum.

Sharma said the Kangra miniature painting style was among the most famous and unique styles of paintings in Himachal. The Languages and Culture Department of the state had started a ‘Guru-Shishya’ (teacher-disciple) programme in Himachal to preserve the Pahari miniature painting style. Under this scheme, the students registering as disciples under registered artists were given stipends to learn Pahari style of painting. The scheme had yielded some results. However, it was abruptly stopped by the Himachal government.

Sharma said today he had offers from the Jammu and Kashmir government to restore the Basholi art gallery. Many other state governments have also invited me to give lectures on miniature paintings. Every year some foreign students come and learn the art of miniature paintings from me. However, ironically I am not being able to spread the art in my own state where it has its origins, he said.

He further said that most of the work that was done to preserve the rare arts of Himachal was done at the time of former rulers of hill states. The Chamba museum that now restores the rare heritage of former Chamba state was brought by TP Vogal, a Dutch artist, under the patronage of then ruler of Chamba state Bhuri Singh, he said.