Mir Jumla

Mir Jumla, Lord Chamberlain to Jahangir, c. 1618-20, attributed to Shiv Das (active early seventeenth century), opaque watercolour and gold on paper, approximately 38.5 × 25.4 cm, Victoria and Albert Museum, accession no. IM.121-1921, masterfully balanced use of portrait, text and embellishment which makes use of a relatively small section of space for painting, yet controls the rhythm of the page. The drawing can be read as contained by concentric areas: in the centre is a portrait against plain brownish red ground, then a wide outer margin filled with Persian verse, further set off by a dense deep blue border interspersed with decorative gold designs. These visual effects begin straight away: gold here not an accent, but an organizing pigment, that is to trace out flower, leaf, stalk and cartouche across the page. The blue zone, which absorbs the light, contrasts richly with gold vegetation that appears to lift out from it. There is exquisite precision in the handling of plant contours, and fine detail in the almost calligraphic use of the brushes with the inscription framing the portrait. Concentrated areas of color are the white jama and its flowing draperies which hang away from the figure, the latter defined by minute tonality rather than emphasis, together with an orange head wrap, purple pyjama and yellow shoes. Plain and undistributed, the plain background further eliminates any idea of a setting. Not setting, but the figure itself. The drawing looks almost like a transcription given shape. A clearly legable identity to adorn the centre of the page that acts as text that introduces and places the figure. The poetry and flowers are no merely decorative additions but actively support interpretation. The text is Persian poetry. Together text and illustration elevate this person's standing in rank and his level of learning. The flowers suggest an imaginay Garden. An emblem commonly used within the court culture in which Persian was one of the predominant languages, as a symbol of earthly order and richness of spirit. It may have been used to conjure up the idea of an exoticised bloom, although the garden doesn’t appear too close to any actual place but creates a vibrant backdrop. Mir Jumla’s measured posture as well as court dress and deliberate and confident gesture convey a similar authority based on controlled sophistication rather than outspoken boldness. So in conclusion we are invited to interpret this portrait not just as an image of one courtier but as a vehicle to present one individual as a part of much wider Mughal empire’s culture of image, ceremony and discourse by a careful application of containment and power which does not need to resort to the violent act of warfare but is represented by restrained poise that must be slowly analysed if we’re invited to see the person as an embodiment of the text that surrounds him with attention and care that we normally see applied to the literary discourse in the Indian subcontient.