


This oleograph of Venugopala called “Bansi Nad”, by the artist Vasudeo H. Pandya was printed in Germany in 1928. "Bansi Nad" translates to "flute melody" in Hindi, where "bansi" means flute and "nad" signifies sound or melody. The title refers to the beautiful music played on a flute, associated with Lord Krishna who is depicted in the centre of the oleograph. Krishna is the god of compassion, tenderness, and love; and is one of the most popular and widely revered among Indian divinities. The image refers to when Krishna was a young man out grazing his cows and enchanted the cowherd maidens (Gopis) with the divine sound of his flute, attracting even Kamadeva (the Hindu god of love and passion). Surrounding Krishna in the oleograph are beautiful gopis drawn to his flute playing, and even swans, white doves and a monkey seem to be enchanted by Krishna’s music.
Vasudeo H. Pandya (1896-1970) was an Indian painter from Gujarat. He initially worked as a document copier in Bombay in a European firm, but became fascinated by the oleograph labels the goods came wrapped in and began to paint emulating their style. He would later travel to Germany and have his works printed as oleographs, as Ravi Varma was doing at the time.
The oleograph is dated in the left hand corner under the signature.







