In the tradition of visual representations of royal hunts, several photographs of Maharanis posing with their kill exist to provide ample proof of their participation and skill. Seen here is Maharani Tara Devi of Kashmir (formerly of Bijapur), nattily dressed in a pantsuit with tie and hat, posing seated on her prize. The Maharani, also photographed with the partridges, may have preferred western suits while hunting – but the existence of several photographs prove that this was not at always the case, with Maharanis also hunting in saris and Indian garments. This image is part of the Google Arts & Culture online exhibit, Maharanis: Women of Royal India.
Functioning as documented history, photographs can point us towards the ways in which these women circumvented and reinvented the traditional,or embraced and reinvented the modern. For instance, photographs of Maharanis dressed in riding clothes, or western hunting safari suits, versus those in purdah, enable an understanding of the varying lines of acceptable social behaviour for royal women and how they were negotiated. This is further particularly highlighted by numerous photographs, that in an era of Anglophilic and Francophilic tendencies, feature royal Indian women in complete Western toilettes including tiaras and silk gloves.
