Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai, in colloboration with
Pan Macmillan India, presents:
The Trail of the Horse in Indian Art
by Yashaswini Chandra
About the talk:
Horses are a thread that connects Indian history, mythology, art, literature, folklore and
popular belief. In her book The Tale of the Horse: A History of India on Horseback,
Yashaswini Chandra follows the trail of the animal into and within India in ‘the age of the
horse’, and examines its enduring hoofprints on the Indian landscape. Art is examined as
a sphere reflecting the multifaceted significance of the horse. And this aspect of her
research forms the focus of this talk through the example of painting. As well as
examining the horse as a motif, she emphasises the importance of art-historical sources in
such animal histories. The talk is illuminated by a range of beautiful images – from
equestrian portraits, paintings of horse sports and hunting scenes, to studies of individual
or actual horses and paintings of traders, grooms and farriers. Such diverse examples in
fact reveal the extent to which horses filled our historical past. It becomes clear that the
horses in many of these paintings were not incidental as ‘props’ or even stock figures, but
helped constitute the very nature of such artworks.
About the speaker:
Yashaswini Chandra has a PhD in History of Art from SOAS University of London, where
she was also a teaching fellow. She has been guest/visiting faculty at JNU, New Delhi, and
Ashoka University, Sonipat. She has worked for Sahapedia managing the multi-volume
documentation of the Rashtrapati Bhavan and an institutional collaboration with Rupayan
Sansthan, Jodhpur. She previously co-edited Right of the Line: The President’s Bodyguard
on the household cavalry of the head of state. Her latest book is titled The Tale of the
Horse: A History of India on Horseback. Yashaswini is an avid horsewoman; her horse is
called Sue.
Yashaswini Chandra’s The Tale of the Horse: A History of India on Horseback published by
Macmillan is available on Amazon. Use the code TTOH for a discount, valid upto 14th
February 2021.