![]() ![]() Tulika Kedia, who founded Unique Creations and Arts Gallery, in Delhi in 2010, lists a couple of factors that set the folks and tribal Ramayanas apart from miniatures and other mainstream versions. the Bhils, Mundas, Santhals, Gonds, Sauras, Korkus, Rabhas, Bodo-Kacharis, Khasis, Mizos, Meiteis, etc. Numerous versions of the Ramayana exist amongst the Indian tribes e.g. of Performance Studies and Head of Janapada Sampada Division IGNCA,Īround the 16th century, Mughul influences Emperor Akbar’s Persian Ramayana manuscripts and illustrated miniatures, including the Persian treatise Ramcharitamanas by Tulsidas, followed by Ramayana themes portrayed in Company style, Rajasthani (Bikaner, Bundi, Udaipur/Mewar, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Kishangarh, Kota) and Pahari (Kangra, Guler, Basohli, Mankot, Mandi, and Jasrota) schools of miniature paintings. It is this period that sees a proliferation of tradition, and it is logical to presume that folk and tribal paintings like West Bengal’s Patua and Patachitra scrolls or Andhra Pradesh’s kalamkari traditions are when Ramayana scenes begin to figure in, says the doyen of Indian and tribal and folk art traditions, Molly Kaushal, Prof. However, the Bhakti movement that began in south India, particularly Tamil Nadu, between 7th and 12th centuries, and reached north India by the 15th century is largely credited for the spread of Tamil and Telugu sessions of Harikatha (discourses on a saint’s life), and mendicants travelling across the lands, using painted scrolls as tangible visual aids to accompany their oral narratives of the epic traditions. ![]() In relation to these traditions, one should rather talk about continuities, transformations, and their contemporaneity instead. The obsession with finding exact dates is quite Western in its origin. Its melodies are immediate, its emotions subtle, its impact lasting - and, with that timeless sound, Painted from Memory illustrates that craft cannot only be its own reward, it can be genuinely moving.It is difficult to ascertain a definite timeline to the birth of folk and tribal paintings in India in particular to the emergence of painted scenes from the Ramayana. With its lush arrangements, sighing brass and strings, gentle pianos, and backing vocals, it's clearly a classicist album, yet it sounds utterly timeless. Costello keeps Bacharach from his schmaltzier tendencies, and Bacharach keeps Costello from overwriting. Often, the music not only evokes the spirit of Dionne Warwick, it's reminiscent of Elvis' torching ballads for Trust. It's a testament to both that even if the album is clearly in Bacharach's territory, it feels like a genuine collaboration. Bacharach hasn't written such graceful, powerful melodies since his glory days, and Costello hasn't crafted such a fully realized album since King of America. Instead, it's a return to form for both artists. Wisely, they chose to work within the stylistic parameters of Bacharach's '60s material, but Painted from Memory never sounds like a stylistic exercise. It was a stunning song in the tradition of Bacharach's classic '60s work and it was successful enough that the composers decided to collaborate on a full album, Painted from Memory. Elvis Costello and Burt Bacharach first collaborated on "God Give Me Strength," a sweeping ballad that functioned as the centerpiece in Allison Anders' Grace of My Heart. ![]()
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