The Deccan region during the medieval period saw the development of a new, syncretic culture. This development was brought on by the arrival of Central Asians and Persians to the region around the 13^th century AD. The blending of the indigenous culture with that of the Perso-Central Asian culture, gave rise to a distinctive Deccani culture. The fact that various ruling dynasties of the region like the Bahmanis, followed by the Adil Shahis, the Qutb Shahis, and the Nizam Shahis traced their roots to Persian or Central Asian sovereigns played a crucial role in facilitating the growth of this syncretic culture. The impact of the Perso-Central Asian culture was seen on areas such as architecture, language and literature, art, polity and religion. This paper aims at briefly studying the body of paintings and literature produced in the Deccan between the 14^th and 17^th centuries, and the various foreign influences that shaped them.

The Deccan region was witness to the influx of Persians and Central Asians from the 13^th century AD onwards. These newcomers to the region brought their sociocultural baggage along with them, which, over a period of time got fused with the indigenous culture, giving rise to a distinct Deccani culture. The growth of Persian and Central Asian cultural traits in the region was buttressed by the patronage provided to them by the Sultans who controlled the region at different points of time beginning with the Bahmani dynasty in the 14^th century. A crucial bond between the Deccani sultans and the Perso-Central Asians was their common faith—Shi'ism. Interestingly Alauddin Hasan Bahman Shah, the founder of the Bahmani dynasty, and the three powerful dynasties that succeeded the Bahmanis, viz., the Adil Shahis, the Qutb Shahis and the Nizam Shahis, traced their lineage to Persian or Central Asian sovereigns. They therefore looked towards these regions for intellectual and administrative support.

Under normal circumstances this support would have readily come from the nearest Muslim empire, in this case, the Delhi Sultanate. However, this was not to be. The reason being that the Bahmanis had established their rule after rebelling against the Delhi Sultanate and hence, to expect intellectual and administrative reinforcement from Delhi would have been naïve on the part of the Bahmani Sultans. Thus, the Sultans invited scholars, intellectuals, religious leaders, artisans, etc., from Persia and Central Asia to their capitals with the idea of building a strong kingdom. With such a favorable environment as a backdrop, influences from Persia and Central Asia penetrated and blended into the art, architecture, literature, religion, polity, etc., of the region.

History and Culture Journal, Central Asian Culture, Medieval Deccan, Sociocultural Baggage, Deccan Sultans, Bahmani Dynasty, Bahmani Sultans, Golconda Schools, Vijayanagara Army, Calligraphic Elegance, Turkoman Warrior, Deccani paintings, Dakhni Language, Persian Painting, Perso-Central Asian Culture, Bahmani Empire, Islamic Traditions, Persian Epistolography, Central Asian Cultures.