painting was immensely influenced by Islamic culture. Humayun had spent more than twelve years in Persia as a refugee. He brought painters with him to India when he became the ruler of Delhi once again in 1555. Famous among them were Mir Sayid Ali and Abdus Samad who nurtured the tradition of painting manuscript. An example of it is Dastan-e-Amir Hamza, which has nearly 1200 paintings. The period also witnessed the flowering of portrait and miniature paintings. However, what is amazing is that some of these painters tried to paint the classical ragas, thereby giving form and colour to such abstract conceptions as music. Seasons or baramasa paintings were similarly given artistic forms.
Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan continued to give patronage to these artists and as a result, the Mughal school of painting continued to flourish. Akbar as a liberal ruler extended his patronage to painting. He also employed a large number of Hindu painters like Daswant and Basawan Lal. Consequently, there was a fusion of Persian and Indian styles (of painting) during his period. The European influence on Indian painting too was noticed.
The Mughal school of painting reached its zenith under Jahangir who was a famous painter. His court was adorned with famous painters like Ustad and Abul Hasan. Mansur was famous for his miniature painting. However Aurangzeb due to his orthodox views and political preoccupations, stopped patronising music and painting. Like their masters, some princes also extended patronage to painters. Thus, besides the Mughal school, the Rajput and the Pahari schools of painting also received encouragement. Even the upper classes in society started patronising painters. As a result, the havelis (big mansions) of the rich and temples were profusely embellished. These havelis in Rajasthan attract a large number of tourists even today. You can visit these havelis if you find an opportunity to visit Rajasthan.
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