Pichhawai for Varsha (Rainy Season)

Pichhawai, the devotional hangings dedicated to Krishna, are an integral part of worship among the Pushti Marg sect. The hand-painted, hand-embroidered or woven cloth pichhawai are part-theatrical backdrop, part-religious icon. They also create the mood (bhava) for the many festivals or events that are celebrated in the liturgical calendar of the Vallabhachraya Sampradaya, the sect dedicated to Krishna as Shrinathji. Since many of the devotees of the Pushti Marg were merchants who had migrated to the Deccan for trade, they used local artists to fulfill their ritual needs. This pichhawai would have been made by Deccani artists. The extensive use of gold leaf, and the presence of a kadamba tree in the centre, in front of which the Krishna statue would have been kept, are typical features of Deccani pichhawais.

This indigo-dyed painted cotton pichhawai is made for the varsha, or rainy season, when it would have been hung in a shrine to evoke the thunderous, gloomy skies outside. Five maidens stand near a tree in a forest, holding morchhals (peacock feather flywhisk), chauris (fly whisk) and fans. Parrots, squirrels and peacocks are beautifully depicted on the trees, while tiny flowers drop down, forming a background pattern. Above the trees, the artist shows dark thunderclouds and lightning flashes of the monsoon.

A horizontal line drawn beneath the maidens delineates a shift in location, where we see cows with calves prancing at their feet, and a gopa (cowherd) stands nearby. The lavish use of gold indicates that the pichhawai was a gift from a wealthy devotee. The extent to which the gold has been rubbed off suggests that this pichhawai was used in the temple for a long while.