As a child, Krishna was a wonderful child, an object of love and affection to all. His childish pranks with Balrama delighted the hearts of the villagers. In this picture, Krishna is being given a ceremonial bath, a ritual he is forced to participate in, demonstrated by Krishna's tight-fisted right arm pulled back in rebellion and a gentle tug of Yashodhra's arm and her firm hold of Krishna. She looks lovingly at him as she does the needful. A maid holds Balrama in her arms as he waits patiently for his turn to be bathed. The maids, all involved in the activity, are well dressed and well adorned. It is quite evident that they adore the child and are talking about him in hushed tones. The peahens strutting in the foreground lend movement to the picture.
The foliage in the background is dense and the sun peeking from behind the trees indicates that it is early in the morning that this ritual is taking place. The clothings of the women gave the artist a lot of scope to display the fall of their skirts folds, the texture and the color combination of the garments and he seems to have made the best use of the opportunity.
Not only is the painting a visual delight but a pictorial story, one of the many tales of Krishna's childhood.
This description by Renu Rana.
Of Related Interest:
Yashoda Krishna (Water Color Painting on Marble)
Mother Yashoda with Krishna and Balarama (Miniature Painting)
Mischievous Gopala (Batik Painting)
Krishna and Balarama (Oil Painting)
Bow to His Charms (Stone Color with Black Soot on Paper)
Krishna as Aristocrat (Kishangarh School Painting)
Murli Krishna (Kalamkari Painting on Cotton)
Little Krishna (Brass Statue)
Crawling Krishna (Silver Pendant)
Bal Gopal (Copa Doll)
Krishna (Paperback Comic Book)
Stories of Krishna (Hardcover Comic Book)
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