Painting, Narasimha destroying Hiranyakasipu, watercolour and tin alloy on paper, Kalighat, Kolkata, ca. 1835-1840

Painting, watercolour and tin alloy on paper, Narasimha, the man lion and fourth incarnation of Vishnu, is depicted ripping apart the demon king's belly. In accordance with the mythology the body of the demon king, Hiranyakasipu is resting on the thighs of Narasimha. Both figures are adorned with Kalighat style ornaments.

Narasimha, the man lion and fourth incarnation of Vishnu, is depicted ripping apart the demon king's belly. In accordance with the mythology the body of the demon king, Hiranyakasipu is resting on the thighs of Narasimha. Both figures are adorned with Kalighat style ornaments.

Narasimha, the man-lion is the fourth incarnation of Vishnu. The boy prince Prahlada was a devotee of Vishnu and regarded him as omnipotent and omnipresent. This enraged his father, the demon king, Hiranyakasipu, who felt undermined by his son's misplaced devotion. He tried to put the boy to death and asked him if Vishnu was present even in the stone pillars of the royal palace. To save his devotee and prove him right, Vishnu leapt out of the stone as a man-lion and ripped apart the demon king's belly.

Historical significance: Calcutta was recognised as the capital of British India from 1833-1912. By the 1830s, artists had arrived from rural villages in Bengal and began to produce paintings that reflected the local history, mythology, customs and conflics of a colonised society. As a popular art form, these artists are recognised for their use of brilliant colour, simplified images and swift brushstrokes that became the hallmark of Kalighat painting in the 19th and early 20th century.

IS.72-1959