Monkeys and Bears Fighting in the Madhuvana-Grove

The Fight of Drunken Monkeys and Bears (c. 1720) painted by the remarkable Pahari artist Pandit Seu feels surprisingly alive even centuries after it was created. At a time when most Indian court paintings focused on gods, royal portraits or idealized romance Pandit Seu chose something completely unexpected a chaotic brawl between intoxicated monkeys and raging bears. That unusual choice alone gives the painting a strange charm and individuality that sets it apart from many works of it’s period. At glance this painting looks funny and crazy. Monkeys that seem drunk are fighting with bears. They are throwing themselves at each other. There are lots of arms and legs flying around. The monkeys are making big gestures. If you look closer you realise that it's actually a very smart painting. It shows emotion and rhythm well. The painting does not look like court paintings from that time. Those ones are usually very stiff. This one, by Pandit Seu is full of life. Each monkey has a face. Some look naughty some look scared. Some look really angry. The bears are big and move in a kind of way. But the animals in the painting are not just there to look pretty. They are actually showing us what people are like when they are foolish or acting on instinct or just doing things without thinking. There is an honesty behind it that Seu’s way of portraying a subtle commentary on human behaviour Today, preserved in the Museum Rietberg the artwork continues to stand out because it feels so unexpected, imaginative and deeply observant of both nature and human emotion.