Alka Pande’s Latest Collection, published with Speaking Tiger Books, is a testament to the rich history of Eroticism in the Indian sub-continent
Alka Pande’s newly launched Kama Quartet is a bold and timely exploration of Indian erotic traditions, rooted in the philosophy and visual culture of the Kama Sutra. This four-volume series—Al Fresco Kama: Love Under the Open Sky, Yoga and Kama: The Acrobatics of Love, The Nayika and Kama: She Takes Her Pleasure, and The Adulterer and Kama: The Seduction of Illicit Love—dives deep into the ancient connection between the sacred and the sensual in Indian art.
A celebrated art historian and curator, Pande draws on a rich archive of artworks from museums and private collections to show how Indian culture once embraced eroticism as a key element of human experience. Framed around the idea of kama—one of the four goals of life in Hindu philosophy—this series invites readers to rethink modern taboos around love, pleasure, and sexuality.
Rich Roots of Kama Sutra Traditions of Indian Art History
The roots of this tradition trace back to the Kama Sutra, a foundational text attributed to the ancient Indian philosopher Vātsyāyana. Written between the 2nd and 3rd centuries CE in the cultural heartlands of northern India, the Kama Sutra is far more than a manual on sexual techniques. It’s a philosophical treatise on living well, encompassing love, relationships, courtship, and pleasure, aligned with the Hindu purusharthas of dharma (duty), artha (prosperity), kama (desire), and moksha (liberation).
Vātsyāyana, the enigmatic author, described himself as a celibate student devoted to spiritual life. In the final verses of the text, he mentions writing it in Benares (Varanasi) while engaged in religious contemplation. This paradox—a celibate man writing a guide on erotic life—has fascinated scholars for centuries. Some accounts suggest he observed the lives of courtesans and lovers to inform his insights, but there’s little historical evidence to confirm this. What is certain is that Vātsyāyana synthesised older works on kama shastra to create a comprehensive guide that blends physical intimacy with emotional and ethical nuance.
Indian Art and the Relationship of Erotic in Alka Pande’s Quartet
Historically, India has had a deeply aesthetic and philosophical approach to the erotic. From the temples of Khajuraho to classical Sanskrit poetry, eroticism was seen as a sacred force, celebrated rather than suppressed. But over time, especially under colonial influence and conservative reform movements in the 19th and 20th centuries, public attitudes toward sexuality hardened. What was once considered spiritual and artistic came to be viewed as immoral or taboo.
In modern India, the erotic occupies a strange duality: widely visible in pop culture but often censored, shamed, or intellectualised out of context. It’s in this complex environment that Alka Pande’s Kama Quartet becomes especially relevant. By bringing historical erotic art and ideas back into the public eye, Pande helps challenge the current moral discomfort surrounding sexuality in India. Her books are not only beautifully produced, with rare images and thoughtful commentary, but also serve as an educational tool, making ancient wisdom accessible to contemporary readers.
In reviving these visual and textual traditions, Pande restores dignity and depth to a subject that has long been misunderstood. The Kama Quartet is more than an art history project—it’s a cultural intervention that reframes eroticism as an essential, enlightened part of Indian heritage. Each volume is anchored in a specific aspect of erotic love, ranging from outdoor passion and yogic intimacy to the empowered female lover and the allure of forbidden relationships. Through these visuals, she decodes gestures, expressions, and settings, revealing how classical art captured complex emotional and erotic narratives.
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