Artwork

"Radha with Her Confidant, Pining for Krishna", Folio from the "Second" or "Tehri Garhwal" Gita Govinda (Song of the Cowherd)

"Radha with Her Confidant, Pining for Krishna", Folio from the "Second" or "Tehri Garhwal" Gita Govinda (Song of the Cowherd) is an unspecified painting by the Mughal Painting artist Unknown. It dates from 1789 and is held in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

About this work

Overview

The work, titled “Radha with Her Confidant, Pining for Krishna,” is a painted folio from the “Second” or “Tehri Garhwal” version of the Gita Govinda. It portrays two women amid a verdant landscape of trees, flowers, rolling hills and a water body. The composition is tranquil, with vivid hues and detailed rendering that convey a sense of quiet intimacy.

Subject & Meaning

The figures represent Radha and a close companion, engaged in a whispered dialogue while longing for the divine lover Krishna. The right‑hand figure leans against a tree branch, suggesting a moment of private confession. The setting underscores the pastoral ideal of devotion, situating the emotional exchange within nature’s lush abundance.

Technique & Style

Executed in a traditional Indian miniature style, the painting employs bright pigments—yellow, orange, blue and green—to delineate garments and foliage. Fine brushwork defines intricate patterns on the saris and the delicate foliage, while layered washes create depth in the hills and water, achieving a richly textured surface typical of Gita Govinda manuscripts.

Context

The folio belongs to the Tehri Garhwal manuscript tradition, a regional variant of the Gita Govinda that circulated in the Himalayan foothills during the 18th–19th centuries. Such illustrated copies served both devotional and literary functions, visualising the poetic narrative of Krishna’s relationship with the gopis for courtly and temple audiences.