the lede
AUGUST 2019 11
thoughphotographyhadtakenover
theirroleofcapturinganexact
renditionofwhattheeyecouldsee,
themediumhaditslimitations.
“Paintingandphotographyhave
alwaysbeenlinked,”Yogananthan
toldme.“Painterswerelookingat
photographsandviceversa.”
Bythemidnineteenthcentury,
paintingsandphotographywere
fusedtogetherintoa hybridart
forminIndia.Overtheyears,
hand-colouredphotographs
becamemoreaccessible,asphoto
studioshiredskilledhand-paint-
ersandofferedtheirservicesto
thepublic.InhisbookPainted
Photographs:ColouredPortrai-
tureinIndia, RahaabAllana,the
curatoroftheAlkaziFoundation
forArts,writesthat“coloursin
Indiantextilesconveymeaning
embeddedinseveralsimulta-
neousregisters—theyindicate
socialandmaritalstatus,signify
theseasonsandmajorfestivals.
Ritualsareoftenassociatedwith
theuseoftextilesina specific
colour.”Headdsthatthe“need
forphotographstoconveytheco-
lourfulsplendourandsymbolism
ofIndiantextilesquicklymani-
festedthroughthenewmedium
ofpaintedphotographs.”opposite page: “Dasaratha and
Kaushalya longing for a son” (Ramtek,
Maharashtra, 2015), from Vasantha
Yogananthan’s book Early Times, hand-
painted by Jaykumar Shankar.left: “Magic Jungle” (Jog Falls,
Karnataka, 2016), from Vasantha
Yogananthan’s book Dandaka, hand-
painted by Jaykumar Shankar.courtesy vasantha yogananthan