The Sword and the Flute

A documentary composed entirely of shots of Indian miniature paintings illustrating the history of the Mogul and Rajput schools. James Ivory, who became his own photographer when his original cameraman was conscripted, was later to return directly to the subject in Hullabaloo Over Georgie and Bonnie’s Pictures, and indirectly in a number of his theatrical feature films, in which the appreciation of fine art is regarded, in a sense, as an index of civilisation (and also of greed and vanity).