International Journal of Home Science 2019; 5(2): 461-464

ISSN: 2395-7476
IJHS 2019; 5(2): 461-464
© 2019 IJHS
www.homesciencejournal.com
History of Telangana cheriyal paintings
Received: 04-03-2019
Accepted: 08-04-2019
N Pavani and Dr. D Ratna Kumari
N Pavani
Department of Resource Abstract
Management and Consumer Extended audio visuals in the form of film and television are popular; Scroll paintings are another form
Sciences, College of Home of entertainment that combines audio and visual media. It is a lovely custom to combine the singing
Science, Professor Jayashankar version of the story with the painted images. These include the phad paintings of Rajasthan, the
Telangana State Agricultural
patachitra of Orissa, the rails or pattuvas of Bengal, and the little-known Telangana Scrolls- Cheriyal
University, Hyderabad,
Telangana, India
paintings. They were painted by local artists and used by the Minstrel Picture Showmen in various
villages of Telangana. It is a tradition, deeply religious in its premises and embedded in the caste system
Dr. D Ratna Kumari of the region. The painted scrolls of Telangana illustrate the myths about the origin of a particular caste
Professor, Department of and the heroic deeds of one of its legendary heroes. The stories are mainly from the vast legends of India
Resource Management and like the Mahabharata, Ramayana, legends, local folklore and the daily village life activities. Nakashis
Consumer Sciences, College of work in a very wide and impressive artistic medium and they serve a very diverse clientele. They work in
Home Science, Professor wood, cloth, cement, clay, cow dung, paper mache, and produce auxiliary structures, bride boxes,
Jayashankar Telangana State wooden masks, temple murals, portable shrines, dolls, dolls, panel paintings and scroll paintings.
Agricultural University, Previously, these scrolls and figures were used to tell the story; now they are used to decorate the walls in
Hyderabad, Telangana, India homes. Today artists are painting some modern themes with the occasional effort of artistic institutions
and encouragement.

Keywords: Cheriyal paintings, progenitor, nakashi

1. Introduction
Extended audio visuals in the form of film and television are popular; Scroll paintings are
another form of entertainment that combines audio and visual media. Scroll paintings were
accepted by the bards from village to village, using them as visual aids to the folklore they
sang. It is a lovely custom to combine the singing version of the story with the painted images.
Today, this type of entertainment is popular in remote villages or can be seen on stage at
various handicraft centers or museums. These include the Fad painters of Rajasthan, the
paintings of Maharashtra, the Patricitra of Orissa, the rails or pattuvas of Bengal, and the little-
known Telangana scrolls-cheryl paintings.
Cheryl Painting takes its name from the Cherial village of Warangal district in Telangana
where the creation of paintings is still a living tradition. It is essentially scrolls of myths and
folklore stories. It is an important part of the social and cultural background of Telangana in
the heart of the Deccan Plateau. They were painted by local artists and used by the Minstrel
Picture Showmen in various villages of Telangana. It is a tradition, deeply religious in its
premises, complex in its ideological impulse and embedded in the caste system of the region.
The painted scrolls of Telangana describe the legends of the origin of a particular caste and the
heroic deeds of one of its legendary heroes. The stories are mainly from the vast legends of
India, from the Mahabharata, Ramayana, legends, local folklore and the great legends that
depict daily village life. Although some scrolls depict episodes from Hindu mythology and
mythology, epic figures from a particular caste are fitted into the narrative.
Correspondence
N Pavani 2. Historical and stylistic development
Department of Resource The first scroll was dated 1625 because it had a date of transfer of ownership in November
Management and Consumer 1664. It depicts the legend of Markandaya and Bhavana Rishi, the legendary ancestor of the
Sciences, College of Home
Science, Professor Jayashankar
Padmashalis. This early scroll and seven other paintings circa 1775 and 1900 are in the Jagdish
Telangana State Agricultural and Kamala Mittal Museum of Indian Art, Hyderabad. Some scrolls have inscriptions in
University, Hyderabad, Telugu that give dates for donors, artist or artists, witnesses and ownership of the scroll to
Telangana, India another family.
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International Journal of Home Science

The overall impact and various details of the early scroll of called nakashis and use the surname Olten Nakash. Nakashi
circa 1625 show the strong influence of the Vijayanagara Studio was founded by the legendary Nakashi
style of painting, best seen in the wall paintings of Lepakshi Venkataramaiah as 'Cherial', who lives in a small village near
(Circa 1540), scrolls painted circa 1775-1900, and later owed Vemulavada, the famous temple town of Karimnagar district
much to the South Lindian Nayak styles of painting. This is of Telangana.'
because the cultural and artistic tradition laid down by the Nakashis work in a very wide and impressive artistic medium
Vijayanagara rulers and maintained by the southern leaders and they serve a very diverse clientele. Nakashis work in
was practically imitated by all the Hindus of the Deccan and wood, cloth, cement, sludge, cow dung, paper mache; they
South India. After the defeat of Vijayanagara at the hands of produce an amazing range of artwork: relief structures, bride
the Muslim sultans of Deccan in 1565, some painters who boxes, wooden masks, temple murals, portable shrines, cow
were affiliated with the Vijayanagar court or worked for their dung toys, children's toys, panel paintings and scroll
feudal lords migrated to the north and found encouragement paintings.
in the small courts of the Hindu Zamindars. Golconda and Among their clients are new (and growing) urban bourgeois
Bijapur kingdoms. shopping and commercial emporiums for cultural elitism,
traveling storytellers, street performers, established temple
Contrary to the folk style of the narrative scroll organizations, village children at local festivals and, most
Telangana people are very refined, with mythological themes recently, state-sponsored events for cultural Brick-a-Brac.
painted by artists - minstrels or village painters in different Needless to say, this diversity in artistic commissions is
parts of India, which cannot be termed as folklore. They do attributed to the plurality of transactional systems between
not show the effectiveness of court painting in the different artists and their patrons at Cheryl's Nakashi Studios today.
periods of the Golconda-Hyderabad Muslim courts. The But, despite the range of patrons who work for the nakashis, it
refined style of the scrolls of this group makes it clear that is the commissions of their storytelling clients that have the
some painters were employed by the Hindu aristocracy and greatest import and consequence.
the common people. The invasion of television and cinema in the villages has
In order to better understand the style of the early scrolls and reduced the patronage of the wandering performers. There
other later examples of this group, and to establish their were many families that once painted these scrolls, but over
connections in the pictorial conferences with Vijayanagara the years, due to a lack of nutrition, painters took on a more
and Dakshinayak, it is necessary to understand the lucrative career - mostly furniture making.
characteristics of the latter-two styles. The following features
and parallels in style are the scrolls of the early date and the 4. Characteristics peculiar to Telangana scrolls
two Southern painting schools - half-naked figures are active Tradition traditionally combines the caste of its professional
and are oriented to one side, standing at baseline with feet and painters with other castes that present articles for audiences of
heads, leaving the chest almost in front view. They show a different social backgrounds. It is an insight into the
gentle appreciation of the volume in their rounded shapes, perceptions of these four main participants - painters,
which are treated lightly and clearly, and with powerful limbs performers, patrons and spectators - through meta-folk or folk
and intense gestures that emerge with their gliding curves. exegesis.
The forehead and nose are in a maximal line and are large Story tellers are professionals who travel according to caste or
without an eye forward. The more sinful the profile in some tradition, and perform their shows at the request of various
statistics, the farther away the eye looks. patrons from village to village. They employ a wide range of
Interestingly, even in our opening scroll, after the objects - from nakashls to scroll paintings, small paintings,
Vijayanagara conference, large-eyed students were painted mobile temples and masks. Objects are the only means of
along the lower eyelids. The swinging of striped garments and livelihood for the storyteller. An elaborate system of caste
the swinging of the bouncing shields give the illusion of identity and interdependence connects performers, their
angular spiraling motion, which favors the finest jewel patrons and audiences with the themes of the visual objects
crowns, and the widely folded and pleasant draperies, used in the shows.
contrasted with the rigid flat curves of their designs and Each story-telling caste is based on their particular patriarchal
designs. There is heavy pressure on the flesh-folds of the caste explaining their caste myth (myth). So, the storytellers
neck, the necklaces, the hands, the ankles, and the many are the 'patrons' of the painted scrolls, and they are the
echoing curves, such as the excessive use of ornaments on the "patrons" of the performance.
epalates and heavenly beings. The term used for the demonstrators is "askukunetoltu",
The color and displacement of draperies and ornaments is which literally translates to "castes of the beholder." Narrators
purely formal, and although the line cannot resist the desire to can only ask for compensation from their own patrons and
follow the swelling patterns of the dolls, it gives them scale they are forbidden to go to other castes. It is the duty of
and dignity, which is not allowed to disturb the rich two- patrons to periodically sponsor the performance and host the
dimensional texture of the painted surfaces. tellers in the Village. The storytellers and patrons are
With every decade or two, crowns and jewelery show slight mutually committed, and one of the services provided by the
changes; Regional priorities are also observed in these system is the fulfillment of responsibilities.
matters. What is remarkable is that these reflect the evolution Despite their specific themes, the scrolls of these different
of the tradition from a more sophisticated style to one castes differ in length, texture, and even in the general
another's folklore. direction of their painted narratives. Some scrolls are built
vertically. Some scrolls are built horizontally. Some articles
3. Geographic origin and spread of artisans start on the right and go to the left. Some start on the left and
The artists who paint these caste scrolls belong to the go to the right. Others, like Enoti Gonds, start at the top and
Somakshetra caste. Their Kuladeva (Caste deity) is go down; Gonda starts at the bottom of the Chetties and
Minambikadevi. These Telugu-speaking craftsmen are also moves up. The differences with the scrolls are related to the
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caste and they are the key designers of identity among the of flour, white clay, edible gum and tamarind seeds,
narrators. Therefore, they are strictly enforced by the which gives it the needed rigidity and closes the pores,
performers and are carefully adhered to by the nakashis. facilitating color retention.
Every article painted is a sacred caste narrative; It describes  The canvas is spread on equal surface and burned with
how a particular caste is in its present form. These texts, polished stone.
though distinct and distinct, are interrelated and, in addition,  The panels are marked on the entire length of the canvas,
inter-textual. The heroes of one caste myth are often seen as with the drawing painted lightly in Indian Red.
heroes in other caste myths, and in this way, each painted  The red color of the background is applied next. After
scroll stands alone at the same time, which is part of the larger this, the faces are filled with color, clothing, and other
family scrolls. textures.
Artists who paint caste scrolls, however, are nowhere in the  Finishing ornaments, leaves and other small details is
pie system. According to Chandaiah, none of the Nakashis done at the end.
rely on a caste, nor do they depend exclusively on any caste.  The colors are bold and vibrant, which adds to the folk
They have no race, responsibilities and restrictions and they touch. The dominant background color is in red or
cater to many castes and diverse economic and social groups. orange. Generous use of yellow, royal blue, green, white
and black takes place. Formerly, all colors were natural
5. Procedures and rituals vegetable colors; now synthetic colors are being used.
Commissioning of the scroll: This can be done by a  Colors, dresses and characters take much from the local
performer or patronage caste. Each cast that performs has its lifestyle, clothing and traditions.
own set of stories. Whenever the performers need a new
scroll, they will stay with the painter for 3-4 days and draw 7. Features
rough layout and drawings in accordance with the articles  Scrolls go into several meters depending on the story.
depicted on the old scroll. They closely monitor the
They are usually vertical, but are also known as some
preparation of the knuckle (under the drawing), and when
horizontal formats. The vertical scrolls illustrate the
finalized they return 5 to 6 months later to pick up the stories in descending horizontal panels, separated from
finished painting.
each other by the borders of the arrow. The number of
How to Draw a Written Discourse or Why a Scroll There is
panels in each vertical scroll ranges from 20 to 30. Each
no manual for the model because the patterns of the scrolls panel has one or more events painted from the article.
are based on old and contemporary scrolls. The act of scroll
 Horizontal shapes are divided into 2 horizontal panels.
painting for nakashis is similar to writing a new edition of
These scrolls have continuous narrow floral borders at
painted text.
the top, middle and bottom. The middle border separates
The artist's ination to painting is largely unrelated; He adheres
the 2 panels; the articles in these are marked by a tree or
to the guidelines set by the narrator. The matter is settled, but
columns or decorative lines.
the liberty to improve its contents, in the end, is largely a
 The general layout, the choice of the episodes to be
privilege among patrons. The narrator is responsible for
painted on each panel, and the iconography of each deity
observing narrative, iconography, and content issues and
seem to have been set for scrolls traditionally made for
providing clear terms for their needs.
different castes.
An artist has very little to say about the content and the
layout, layout and layout of scrolls. His competence is
determined by the excellence of his figure drawings, the 8. Ritual display
The show takes place in the evening and lasts for at least a
details of surface decoration and decoration, and the
week. The scene and narrative begin with the prayers of Lord
emotional investment of an artist who can afford to scroll.
Ganesha, whose image is shown in the opening panel of many
However, when artists paint for specific clients, or when they
scrolls. In some scrolls, besides Lord Ganesha, the 3 Supreme
draw common themes on auspicious occasions, artists' work is
Gods of Hindus - Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva - are also
free, improvisational and less restrictive. The degree of the
depicted.
will of the artists varies with the context and the
The narrative is part of the Telugu language, part of the poem
circumstances of the style and the particularities of the theme
and part of the prose. The main narrator is accompanied by 4
and clients.
or 5 male members of the family. Some of them sang, while
others played musical instruments. Rarely do women join this
Consecration ceremony: The sacred ceremony takes place
group. The pain hangs from two wooden or bamboo poles, is
after the painting is ready. The performer pays the artist with
fixed against the wall and slowly unrolled from above. The
cash and grace. The scroll is taken to a temple and left there
minstrels describe the events shown in each panel. Performers
for 3 nights; A goat sacrifice is done, followed by a lavish
will be paid in cash and in kind by invitees; Others in the
feast and revelry. The state of this ritual painting represents
audience also collaborate. Sometimes individuals in a
the switch from aesthetic to a karmic object.
particular community will offer the entire production cost of a
scroll and give it to a talented performer.
Death of a scroll: When the colors of the scroll are flaked, it
is given to the artist to re-paint. However, if the scroll is
severely damaged, it can be replaced and ritually fed to the 9. Conclusion
Cheryl paintings have developed into a unique art form - very
water. All Hindu death ceremonies are celebrated, followed
stylized in form and technique. It was only after 1975 that the
by drinking wine and eating meat.
All India Handicraft Board became aware of it. Since then,
the government has been exhibiting the art at various
6. Techniques
handicrafts exhibitions and festivals. With television and film
 They follow an elaborate process of preparing the
strikes, this great tradition of story-telling is becoming extinct.
painting. A khadi cloth is treated or coated with a mixture
There were many families that once painted these scrolls, but
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International Journal of Home Science

over the years, with encouragement, painters moved on to

10. References
1. https://cherialpaintings.wordpress.com/2015/08/04/hello-
world/
2. http://store.nazariya.in/cheriyal-art-discover-ancient-
style-storytelling/
3. https://rangandatta.wordpress.com/2014/01/15/cherial-
scroll-paintings/
4. https://www.thebetterindia.com/101589/artisan-husband-
wife-duo-legacy-cheriyal-paintings/

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