Regional art forms came into existence owing to the need of people to their story. As a result, unique art forms were developed like dance, folktales and paintings to record and retell the past.
Kathak, a dance form is derived from the word Katha which means story. Initially, it was performed only in temples; it evolved as being performed in the Mughal courts and today as a classical dance form.
Painting was also used to record history and a unique style of painting called miniature was developed. This style also evolved from being a uniform Rajasthani style into the current schools of paintings like Mughal, Kangra, Basohli and Deccan.
In Mewar, Jodhpur, Bundi, Kota and Kishangarh, painters depicted themes from mythology and poetry.
In Himachal Pradesh, the painters developed a bold and intense style of miniature painting, called Basohli. The most popular text to be painted here was Bhanudatta’s Rasamanjari.
After Nadir Shah’s invasion of Delhi, these artists found patrons in the hills where they founded the Kangra school. The most popular themes in the Kangra school were taken from the Vaishnavite traditions.