Maharani portrait style: your pet as an Indian queen

The Maharani portrait style is Purrealism's Indian queen look. Your cat or dog sits in a long green and gold anarkali dress, with an odhni draped over the head, a jewelled maang tikka at the forehead, and pearl strings at the neck. The gallery cover for this style, a white and ginger cat in the full costume, is the clearest example on the site. This page covers what the style borrows from real maharani portraits, which pets it suits, and how it differs from the Maharaja and the other Indian styles.

The courts behind the Maharani style

A maharani was the queen or chief consort of an Indian princely state. The title is Sanskrit, from maha meaning great and rani meaning queen. Encyclopaedia Britannica describes the maharani as the female counterpart of the maharaja, and the title was used across Hindu India. The maharani of a major princely state was a public figure. She appeared in formal portraits, she held her own court, and in some states she governed on behalf of a minor son.

The formal portrait of a maharani followed a different set of conventions from the portrait of her husband. A maharaja portrait centred on the regalia of rule: a sarpech on the turban, a scabbard across the lap, and a gold throne. A maharani portrait centred on the regalia of the court consort: a maang tikka at the forehead, pearl strings at the neck, an anarkali dress in silk, and an odhni, a long embroidered veil, draped over the head and across one shoulder. The throne or seat in a maharani portrait was often lower and softer than the maharaja's, cushioned in silk.

The Victoria and Albert Museum in London holds Indian court portraits from this period, including paintings and drawings of Rajput royal women. These paintings show the costume conventions that Purrealism draws from: the odhni in a fine silk or cotton with a woven gold border, the maang tikka in emerald and gold, and the background in warm painted tones. The museum also holds Indian court jewellery of the type worn in these portraits, including forehead ornaments from the 19th century.

The Rajput schools of painting, which reached their peak between the 17th and 19th centuries, produced both male and female court portraits. The women's portraits tended to use lighter colour palettes than the men's, with rose, pale green and ivory. The Mughal influence on Rajput courts also brought the use of pearl strings at the neck and the high-collared, fitted bodice. The Maharani costume on Purrealism draws from both conventions: the Rajput warmth of colour and the Mughal precision of jewellery.

What the Maharani style looks like

A Purrealism Maharani portrait keeps the elements of the court portrait and puts the pet in the queen's place. The costume reads from the head down. At the top is the odhni: a long veil in deep green silk, with a gold embroidered border, draped over the head so that the pet's ears remain visible on either side. A maang tikka sits at the forehead, pendant down, with a green stone at the centre.

At the neck are three rows of pearl strings, close to the chin, and a gold collar with a central emerald below them. The dress is an anarkali, a fitted long dress with a flared lower half, in deep green silk with gold thread work along the hem and the cuffs. The arms are bare from the elbow down, with gold bracelets at the wrist. The background is a soft warm wash in rose and ochre, painted in the flat manner of Rajput court portraits.

The light in the portrait falls from the sitter's left, with gentle shadows on the right side of the face. The painting is not photographic. The shadows are flat and the lines are clean, which is the manner of the court painters who worked for the Rajput and Mughal rulers of the 18th and 19th centuries. The palette is warm throughout: green silk, gold thread, rose background and pearl white.

The gallery cover portrait shows a white and ginger cat in this costume. The cat's face is framed by the odhni on either side, the ears point upward between the veil's folds, and the maang tikka rests at the centre of the forehead above the eyes. The pearl strings reach from under the chin to the collar. The seated pose uses both forepaws resting forward on a low cushioned platform.

Which pets suit the Maharani style

The style suits a cat or dog whose ears frame well under the odhni. The veil falls on either side of the head, so upright ears stay visible and add to the portrait. A cat with large, upright ears, such as a tabby, a Siamese, an Abyssinian or an Ocicat, carries the costume without losing the ears in the fabric. A white, cream or ginger coat sits well against the green and rose palette.

Long-haired cats also suit the style. The soft green and rose background does not compete with long fur the way a dark background would. A Persian, a Ragdoll, a Maine Coon or a Norwegian Forest cat all work in this style. The gallery example is a short-haired white and ginger cat, and its face is clean and clear at every print size.

A dog can wear the Maharani style as well. A golden retriever, a Cavalier King Charles spaniel, a shih tzu, a Bichon Frise and a Pomeranian all carry the odhni and the anarkali well. The round or broad-headed breeds work best because the veil falls more naturally around a wide head than a narrow one. A long-nosed sighthound such as a greyhound or a Borzoi reads better in the Rajput Warrior style, where the narrow head sits in an armoured frame against a landscape.

For a male dog, the Maharaja style is worth comparing. The Maharaja uses a tall red turban and a gold throne, which suits the same broad-headed breeds. The Maharani style may read better for a female dog or for an owner who prefers the warm green and rose over the formal red and gold.

Choosing Maharani against the other Indian styles

The Maharani is one of six Indian royal styles on Purrealism. The table below shows how it differs from the others.

The practical guide: choose Maharani when the pet is a cat with upright ears, when the owner prefers a warm green and rose palette over a red and gold one, or when the portrait is for a female pet. Choose Maharaja when the pet is a broad-headed dog and the room has a formal, dark-toned wall. Choose Mughal Emperor when the painting's flat miniature border is the main appeal.

Writing the room around a Maharani portrait

A Maharani portrait uses a warm palette, so it suits a room with a warm wall. Terracotta, sage green, deep cream and warm grey all work. A cold white wall flattens the rose and gold in the background. The framing and hanging guide at /guides/framing-and-hanging covers the frame choice. A dark wood frame or a thin gold frame reads well beside the green and gold in the costume. A white or silver frame reads too modern against the embroidered veil.

The portrait works in a sitting room, a bedroom, a hallway or a dining room. It is a quieter formal piece than the Maharaja, which uses stronger reds and a gold throne. In a bedroom, the rose background reads as a warm accent against most wall colours. In a hallway, the portrait gives a visitor something to read as they move past.

From photo to Maharani portrait

The photo gives the studio the pet's face, the shape of the ears and the direction of the eyes. A Maharani portrait needs to see the forehead clearly, because the maang tikka sits there. A photo of the cat or dog looking forward or at a slight angle, seated, at eye level, with good light on the face and no flash, gives the painter the most to work with. A photo in soft daylight from a window, with the camera held low, is the standard starting point. The pet photo guide at /guides/pet-photo-guide covers the full checklist.

Once the photo is uploaded at /create, the studio returns the portrait in the Maharani style. The result comes as a digital download or as an art print on matte or glossy paper. The art prints and paper guide at /guides/art-prints-and-paper covers the paper choice. For the Maharani style, a matte paper reads the flat painted quality of the court portrait most faithfully. A glossy paper lifts the green silk and the pearl strings, which suits a room with good natural light.

The Royal portrait styles hub at /guides/royal-portrait-styles collects the full list of styles side by side, and the gallery at /gallery shows finished portraits. The Maharani style also works as a gift for Diwali, a birthday, or for any occasion where a formal portrait in a warm Indian palette would be welcome. The gift guide at /guides/pet-portrait-gifts lists the occasions where this style fits best.