Sep 26 2025 to Sep 26 2025 6:30 p.m.

EVENT HAS ENDED

Where

Bangalore International Centre

7 4th Main Rd, Stage 2, Domlur 560071

Event Description

The Mughal court breathed in rhythm and melody. 

From dawn prayers to twilight revelries, from joyous weddings to the thunder of battle, music augmented every moment of life. Painters of the time caught these echoes in colour: musicians in the durbar, women singing in the zenana, instruments poised in the naubatkhanas of gateways, songs rising even in hunting fields.

In this illustrated lecture, Dr. Asok Kumar Das will discuss the presence of music and musicians in a selection of paintings dating from the reign of Humayun (r.1530-40, 1555-56) to Shah Jahan (r.1628-1658). These exquisite paintings reveal an enduring ensemble of percussion, wind and string instruments, and performers of all genders and creeds making music for specific occasions.

Step closer to an age where melody was power, poetry, and prayer all at once.

Speaker

Asok Kumar Das
Art Historian, Scholar & Educator
Asok Kumar Das is a distinguished art historian, scholar, and museum professional whose work spans art, history, and culture. With advanced degrees in Museology and a Ph.D. from London, he has held leadership roles at the Indian Museum, Kolkata, and as Director of the Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II Museum, Jaipur. Over his career, he has been a fellow and visiting scholar at leading institutions worldwide, including the V&A Museum, London; the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; and the Smithsonian Institution, Washington D.C. A prolific writer in English, Bangla, and Hindi, he has authored several books on Mughal painting and published widely on art, culture, and museology. His scholarship brings fresh insights into the cultural life of the Mughal courts, particularly their vibrant artistic and musical traditions. Currently based in Santiniketan, he continues to teach, write, and lecture actively in India and abroad.