Important Notice

Painted during a period when a young nation was asking itself what it meant to be Indian, M F Husain considered the essential Indian identity to be rural. This was a result of his secular ideals since the demarcation between religious communities was less pronounced in villages as compared to cities at the time. Husain’s idealised conception of the Indian village could partly be a response to the stresses of urban living according to art critic... Painted during a period when a young nation was asking itself what it meant to be Indian, M F Husain considered the essential Indian identity to be rural. This was a result of his secular ideals since the demarcation between religious communities was less pronounced in villages as compared to cities at the time. Husain’s idealised conception of the Indian village could partly be a response to the stresses of urban living according to art critic Geeta Kapur. She also notes that although he idealised the rural he did not emphasise the beauty of its dwellers like Amrita Sher-Gil, choosing instead to imbue them with a vitality that was fed by their milieu. “His villagers are not particularly beautiful; but surrounded by their tools, their animals, their magic signs and symbols, they appear more truly alive, secure and rooted in their environment.” (“Maqbool Fida Husain: Folklore and Fiesta,” Geeta Kapur, Contemporary Indian Artists, New Delhi: Vikas Publishing House Pvt Ltd, 1978, p. 127)

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