Scroll Paintings of India

Scroll paintings were once considered visual aids which accompanied story telling by wandering mendicants or bards. Today, the story telling has come down considerably, what remains are the paintings. These are collector's pieces which grace many a wall or home or gallery. The paintings are beautiful, accurate presentation of a story. They stand out for the naive innate charm. The book covers 4 of the scroll paintings which are alive and made with gusto, though are fast losing out in the modern world. These are the Phad from Rajasthan, the Patua or Pata paintings from Bengal, the Cherial paintings of Andhra Pradesh and Chitrakathi from Maharashtra. The book covers the paintings, its making as also the story telling component. The huge scrolls have now been replaced by paintings which can be framed and hung on walls. But it does not in any way diminish the intricacy of the painting. It is done with equal care. The themes for the wall paintings are taken from the original story telling and are compressed ones.