Take the case of Kalidasi, a self-assured sculptor who worked on the Hoysalesvara temple at Halebidu in Karnataka. Evidently, he was a past master in the delicate art of chiselling insightful details in stone (photo). And he wasn’t shy of staking this claim for posterity.
Just last week, about 800 years after Kalidasi and his ilk breathed life into the 12th-13th century temples of Cennakesava-Belur, Hoysalesvara-Halebidu, and Kesava-Somanathpur in Karnataka, these monuments have been declared as Unesco World Heritage Sites. Reason enough to rejoice, as this is a modern international tribute to medieval Indian artistic genius.
The Deccan’s topography and strategic location had for long made it a melting pot of cultures that attracted artists and art styles from the North and the South, also beyond the subcontinent’s borders. During the time of the early Chalukya rulers of the Deccan, 600 years before the Hoysalas, diverse art vocabularies existed cheek by jowl at the monumental complexes of Badami-Aihole-Pattadakal in northern Karnataka.
These artistic expressions from the Deccan are not hybrid patchworks of ‘parent’ styles from other regions. What one experiences there is a feverish pace of experimentation and innovation that has reimagined different art influences to create fresh modes of artistic expression.
Contrary to general perception, the artists of early medieval Deccan were not always self-effacing artisans. Some among them were individuals of refined taste and high learning, aware of their unique contributions and excellence. They have left behind a number of ‘signed’ artworks. Many of them have etched their names, at times with messages that speak of their self-image, working methods, aspirations and nearness to political power. A few, like the great 7th century architect-sculptor Narasobba at Aihole and the 8th century dancer-actor Natasevya at Pattadakal, have incised self-assured claims of supremacy in artistic achievements that could never be matched by their competitors. Artists who worked in these regions during Rashtrakuta and Later Chalukya rule from the 8th to 11th centuries carried such legacies forward and passed them on to Hoysala artists like Kalidasi. Kalidasi’s skill in chiselling the exquisite torana-lintel on the southern side of the Hoysalesvara at Halebidu defies the very material that he sculpts, making stone yield to his chisel to reveal the most intricate and minute details imaginable. He has conceived his masterpiece as a sinuous archway meandering between two crocodile-like creatures (makaras). A grand dancing Siva occupies its centre. His dance and the sound of his drum symbolise cosmic creation. On either side are Brahma and Vishnu, completing the Puranic triad of gods (Tripurushas). Together they represent all that is manifest in its creative, protective and destructive aspects. At the top margins, the eight guardians of the directions (ashta-dikpalas), represent the dimensions of space. What Kalidasi has created is a veritable microcosm.
Just under this amazing arch rich with profound symbolism, Kalidasi records his message for posterity. It says that the sculptor Kalidasi has carved this torana-lintel for the Hoysala king Narasimhadeva’s sculptor, Kedaroja. Kalidasi qualifies himself as one who conquers the pride of others and is like a thunderbolt to the mountainous egotism of rival sculptors! Such names and messages of artists are found elsewhere, too, among the Hoysala structures.
By embellishing their works with minutiae, artists like Kalidasi could convey cosmic profundities within the limits of a stone slab. Hoysala artists expressed perennial narratives in ways that resonated with many associated cultural values, yielding complex textures of meaning.
More than 800 years ago, these artists knew the intrinsic worth of their creations. That the international community of heritage-keepers today has also woken up to their universal value augurs well for the future.
