Regrettably, for the animal involved that is, the principle ingredient of the brush used by miniature painters are hairs taken from the tail of a squirrel. Preferably a young one, but given the speed and agility of all such animals any caught squirrel would probably have to do.
And here is the problem: how to catch a guleri.
One of the students offered to try with gun and bait [small arms and poison being comfortingly easy to acquire in Lahore] but had no luck. The squirrels took the baits and ran, and it is difficult to casually take aim while walking in the local botanic gardens.
We visited the second option on Wednesday night. Tolinton Market is the local pet and live poultry market and the overpowering stench of cats, dogs, pigeons, chickens, quail and African parrots in small wire cages quickly drove the girls I was with back to our car. They also concluded, correctly, that the presence of women and Gora [white people] would inflate prices. A guleri could be arranged, it was said, for between 600 and 1500 rupees, depending on who was asking.
Saad offered to try one last option. Malee [gardeners] in the Lawrence Garden, located behind the Bagh-al-Jinnah and possibly part of the Lahore Zoo, will trap one for a few hundred rupees.
It is our last hope. Mahreen has threatened to cancel the rest of the miniature painting classes if a guleri is not found.
Of course squirrel hair brushes can be easily and cheaply bought in Jaipur, India, but it is enough that we are using clutch pencils for our line work. There are parts of the tradition that are non-negotiable.
***Stop Press***
Saad caught a squirrel late Sunday afternoon. Hamdilallah!
