History Of Phad-Art Is So Famous, But Why?
Updated: Mar 28
Phad-Art is one of the world's few remaining scroll painting art forms. This folk craft was started by a
family (the Joshi Family of Shahpura, Bhilwara, Rajasthan) during the reign of Mughal emperor
Shahjahan, and the art is now in the hands of their descendants. The scroll paintings are done on a
long length of cloth called Phad (a specially prepared canvas), hence the name.
Phad-Artdiffers from other traditional art forms in that it depicts exceptional topics and stories in
their entirety, flowing with a graceful rhythm and conveyed through melodious songs sung by the
bhopas in front of the viewer. These painted ballads were accompanied by melodies performed by
Rajasthani priest singers known as bhopas, and constitute a visual narrative of regious epic, folklore,
legends of local heroes, and historical stories. These Bhopas move from town to town, narrating the
stories in community gatherings with the use of this scroll and songs and music.
In the History Of Phad-Art when the Bhopas from Marwar (Jodhpur-Nagaur area) travel from village
to village with their audio-visual paraphernalia, which includes painted Phadscrolls and their musical
instruments, the Ravanahatha(Believed to be a precursor to the violin) and lyrical narration
accompanied by dancing, it is a joyful occasion. These performances begin shortly after dusk and last
all night. The scroll is gradually unfolded, and the prabcham(narration) acquires velocity as each
event comes to life, and the mute audience, enthralled, savors the dramatic aspects of the legend.
Except during the rainy season, when the deities are meant to be in slumber, the Bhopas perform all
year.
Apart from being a fun and engaging activity for the villagers, these performances were also crucial
to preserving history and folktales, as well as passing along traditions from generation to generation.
Origin, Themes & Traditions
Vijay Joshi teacing his kids PhadVijay Joshi teacing his kids Phad
Vijay Joshi teaching his kids Phad
The Shahpura School of Phad-Painting was initiated by the Joshi Family of Shahpura, even before
Shahpura emerged as a princely state of Rajasthan. Descendants of the Joshi family are still the
custodians of this 700-year-old art inheritance.
Phad Hanuman ChalisaPhad Hanuman Chalisa
Phad Hanuman Chalisa
Traditionally, Shahpura Phad Paintings are divided into two categories based on their themes:
devotional and historical. One is based primarily on religious tales and anecdotes from the lives of
Hindu Gods and Goddesses such as Pabuji, Devnarayan, Ramdala (related to Lord Ram), Krishnadala
(related to Krishna), Ramdevji, and Mataji ka chandwa (a depiction of Mother Goddess displayed at
temples), as well as Hindu epics such as Ramayana, Hanuman Chalisa, Mahabharata, Bhagvat Gita
etc.
Battle of Haldi GhatiBattle of Haldi Ghati
Battle of Haldi Ghati
The historical section depicts significant historical events in Rajasthan, such as Maharana Pratap's
life & the Haldighati Battle, Prithviraj Chauhan's valour, Ghori vadh by the blinded Prithivaraj,
Mahmud Ghaznavi's invasion of the Somnath Temple, and Rani Padmini's Jauhar (Jauhar is the
Rajput tradition of a wife self-immolating to avoid being captured by the enemy), Sanyongita-
Prithviraj Chauhan elopement, and the Gangor Sawari of Shahpura, etc.
The Bhopas engage traditional PhadArtists to create these classic Phad scrolls. The Bhopas rely on
the artist to portray their views, whereas thePhad artist paints to meet the needs of folk storytelling.
The Bhopas' phads are always signed, with the signature located near the largest central figure.
Depending on the subject and purpose of the demand, these scrolls are 5×16 feet or 5×30 feet in
size.
From the origin of the Phad Art, the work on the phad scroll for Bhopas, to inducting it to work, to
disposing of it once it has lived its life(which is normally not less than 100 years), certain rituals are
performed. On the auspicious day of Sarasvati Pooja, the painting begins with much flourish. The
process begins with a coconut offering to Saraswati (Goddess of Learning), and the first stoke of colour is always applied by a young girl from the artist's family. Before being inducted by a Bhopa for display and presentations, these scrolls are prayed to on an auspicious day. On decommissioning of the scroll, Bhopas dip the Phad in Pushkar Lake with certain traditions after it has lived its life.
Techniques, Canvas & Colors
A traditional Shahpuraphad painting is normally painted on a big scroll of handmade khadi canvas,
up to 5×16 feet or 5×30 feet in size, depending on the subject matter to be depicted. Artwork can take anything from a few weeks to a few months to produce, depending on the subject, story, and canvas size.
Phad Canvas Making Process
The entire process of making a Phad painting is completely natural, with the use of natural
handmade canvas and stone-based natural colors.
The canvas preparation is an event by itself just like color preparation. This canvas is prepared with a hand-woven coarse khadi cotton cloth, which is soaked overnight to thicken the threads. It is then stiffened with Paper painting starch from rice or wheat flour, stretched, and dried in the sun. This dried cloth is then rubbed with a moonstone to smoothen the surface and give it a sheen.
Phad Color Making
Specific Colors are obtained from the stones which are collected from nearby mountains & river-
banks. The colour-making process is a tedious one and sometimes, it takes up to 2 months to
prepare the colors from these stones. These stones are powdered and grinded with water in a
mortar-pestle to make a smooth paste. These are mixed with natural gum and processed again to
get the desired consistency and stickiness The non-stone-basedcolour is black which is obtained
from lamp blacks. which is obtained from lamp-blacks.
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