The Basholi style arose as a result of the marriage of the folk art of the hills with the Mughal technique. The transparent drapery of women and clothes of men are Mughal, while the facial formula is local with roots in the folk arts of the hills. The jama or side-fastening frock-coat with a sash round the waist is the dress of men, while the choli, a tight-fitting bodice covering the breasts, and the ghagra-like skirt covered with a sari is the dress of women in these paintings. Thus we find that the Basholi style of painting is not merely an importation of Mughal art from Delhi but the development of a local style. The folk art element in the Basholi style remains predominant even after the absorption of Mughal elements.
Basholi paintings have an originality of their own, and they are easily distinguished from Kangra and Rajasthani paintings. They have vigor and quality of simplicity. The painter states all the facts clearly in the boldest and broadest manner. The poetic themes Rasamanjari and Gitagovinda are expressed with serene simplicity, the artist achieving the maximum of expression with the minimum of means. The approach is, however, passionate rather than sentimental. The best specimens of Basholi paintings possess a quality of frankness, vitality and vigor which is not seen elsewhere.
While the beauty of Kangra painting lies mainly in its rhythmic line, the charm of Basholi painting is in its color appeal. Vibrant colors like yellow and red which the Basholi artists used so liberally seem to penetrate the eye, and move us deeply. The colors are used symbolically. Yellow is the color of spring and sunshine and mango blossoms. It is symbolic of the warmth of the Indian spring and the passion of lovers. It is lavishly used by Basholi artists to portray vast open spaces drenched in sunlight.Blue is the color of Krishna, the cowherd god, as also of the dark rain clouds which fertilize the earth. Red is the color of the god of Love, and admirably suits the passionate themes which form the subject-matter of Basholi paintings. The contrast of primary colors, particularly of blue and yellow and red and blue, which we see in Basholi paintings is delightful indeed. The colors grow like enamel and are used with great skill to establish the planes. The flat planes of yellow, red, blue, grey, green and brown seen in the paintings of the Gitagovinda series are truly remarkable, all illustrate the magic of color and its emotional appeal.
Apart from the bold and vigorous use of colors, the Basholi artists evolved a facial formula of their own. Basholi faces are characterized by a receding forehead and high nose painted in unbroken continuation and prominent lotus-like eyes. Physical charm of women is stressed by the enlargement of eyes which are shown blazing with passion. Ornaments and transparent drapery are skilfully painted to enhance feminine beauty. The shapely figures of women are elegantly displayed through the diaphanous dupattas which they wear. The glamorous ladies of Basholi paintings, adorned with pearl necklaces and ornaments, with their passion filled eyes, hurrying to tryst daring rain and storm are eternal symbols of the love of woman for man. The Basholi style with its frank and unrestrained delight in the feminine form loudly proclaims the joys of love. It is frankly and sincerely a sensuous art.
The Basholi state comprised a group of 74 villages which are now included in the Basholi tehsil of the Jasrota district in the territory of Jammu in Jammu and Kashmir state in the north-west of India.
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