Wait

These two ladies, one standing and the other seated on the threshold of their home await the return of the men of the house. It may be a daily affair, waiting for them to come home after tilling their land or any such daily occupation, or the men may be awaited after an overseas journey. Considering the ornaments they are bedecked in, and the finery of their garments, the maximum their tribal outfit will allow, is an indication that it has been a long time since the men left their home. In fact it has been such a long wait that one of these graceful ladies unable to stand any more has found it necessary to seat herself. It is a pointer to their affection for those awaited that to give rest to her limbs she did not go inside the house, but stayed put at the threshold.

The highpoint of this artwork is the perfect blending of the stylized, elongated forms with the natural rotundity of the female figure. With a strong twist of line the artist has outlined their bosoms as pitchers. Indeed in the highest echelons of Indian classical thought, this part of the female anatomy is visualized as pitchers, brimming with the nourishment necessary for sustenance of life on this earth.

This description by Nitin Kumar, Executive Editor, Exotic India.