What makes 'Godohan' one of Raja Ravi Varma's most beautiful and iconic paintings

When we talk about Indian art, paintings, and the likes, one of the first names to come to mind is of Raja Ravi Varma. One of the most celebrated and foreign techniques. He brought Indian art into the modern age and was one of the first Indian painters to master the oil on canvas technique.
But what made him truly appreciated and loved was his ability to breathe life into Hindu Gods, Goddesses, and characters from scriptures and texts. He gave Indian gods and goddesses a visual identity that the common people could relate to, and the deities he painted were in folk styles.

Raja Ravi Varma had many famous paintings to his name, but some really struck out. For example, there was ‘Hamsa Damyanti’, ‘Draupadi Vastraharan’, ‘Shakunthala’, ‘Ram Darbar’, and others.
Each of these paintings blended classical Indian stories with realistic Western-style painting, and gave life to the Gods, characters, and figures who Indians had only imagined, but not related to.

Godohan, which basically means ‘milking the cow’ is a beautiful painting by Varma of Lord Krishna and his mother. At first glance, it looks like a simple rural scene where a woman is seen milking a cow, while a child holds her from behind, and is looking over at the activity.
There is no grand palace, no mythical backdrop, no extravagance, nothing! It is just a simple rural scene, with its focus on everyday rural life.

Compared to his other paintings, ‘Godohan’ didn’t receive as much attention. Why? Primarily because Lord Krishna and Yoshodha seem like ordinary people without their divine auras. People were naturally drawn to his paintings of gods and goddesses with elaborate headgears, their faces pure and beautiful, and the likes.
But as time passed, people looked at paintings with a new view and an open mind, and now underrated works like ‘Godohan’ are coming to light.

The beauty of Varma’s ‘Godohan’ lies in its simplicity, charm, innocence, and quiet backgrounds. There is a calm energy in the painting with Yashodha doing her daily chores, and Lord Krishna sticking with her as she completes it. The cow is still, trusting, and patient, her eyes as beautiful as those of a deer, and there is no chaos or urgency, just hints of daily life.
Ravi Varma’s use of light in the painting is gentle and warm, and there is a bright quality that enhances the beauty of the ordinary task. The colours too are earthy and natural, with shades of beige, white, brown, and more, and the colours of Yashodha’s clothes are bright and beautiful with hues of red and green.

One little detail that many people miss in the painting is what makes it truly adorable.
When you zoom into it, you will see little Krishna holding a cup in his hand, possibly asking his mother to share some milk with him too, and as everyone knows how fond Lord Krishna was of milk, butter, ghee, and all things dairy, this little detail makes it even more adorable that even the Lord stands in patience in front of the mother. (All images from: ravi_varma_heritage_foundation/Instagram)