This is a Pahari painting, showing an illustration to a well-known Ragamala series, produced in the last decade of the seventeenth century. The word Pahari stands for an Aryan ethnic group of the Himalayas who lived in the Himalayan regions of India, (Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand), and the name Pahari in fact derives from Pahar, meaning hill and corresponds to the hills in the Himalayan region. This style of painting flourished from the 17^th – 19^th centuries under the patronage of Rajput and Sikh rulers. 

Although attributed on occasions in past decades to Basohli, Bilaspur and Mankot, it is now firmly attributed to Chamba, a town located in the state of Himachal Pradesh, situated on the banks of the Ravi River. The Chamba style of Pahari painting is characterised by its distinct features, including bold colours and meticulous detailing, as witnessed in this miniature painting. The colour palette is vibrant and rich, with the use of bold hues.

The artists of the Chamba style paid great attention to detail, particularly in the rendering of facial expressions, jewellery, costumes and facial expressions, all of which are witnessed in this miniature painting. 

The unifying subject of Ragamala is love, seen here as a warrior is bidding farewell to a lady. Although it might look as if the warrior here is arriving at the lady's abode and greeting her, he is in fact leaving her.  In the Pahari tradition of Ragamala illustrations the iconography of Vardhan Raga Putra of Raga Hindol is that of a warrior leaving his lady's abode with a horse and groom nearby. For a related image and explanation see Ebeling, op.cit., p.277, no.314.