It is easy to confuse any of Bageshree Dutta’s works with those of Ramananda Bandapadhyay, so steeped she is in her mentor’s signature style. Dutta’s recently concluded solo exhibition at Galerie Karma (December 14-20) displayed coy women, frolicking deities, lascivious babus, familiar village scenes and dim landscapes that recalled not only Bandapadhyay but also the crème de la crème of the Bengal school.

The interplay of light and shade in Rabindranath, Abanindranath’s feel for composition and the spindly-eyed beauties of Jamini Roy are all-pervasive in Dutta’s pristine vision of rustic and urban lives. Her technique is accomplished, and it is evident that she has internalized the visual language of a bygone era with great deliberation. In a brief note to the exhibition, Ramananda Bandapadhyay warmly praises Dutta’s true understanding, and skilful adaptation, of the traditional patachitra.

However, Dutta’s self-conscious attempt to perpetuate a particular tradition may restrict the ambit of her creativity. After all, traditions are meant to be explored, departed from and even overturned. To do full justice to her own talents, Dutta should step beyond the line that she has chosen not to cross so far.