Kali Charan Ghosh was the brother of Nibaran Chandra Gosh: they were two of the most prominent Kalighat painters in the second half of the 19th century. Calcutta was recognised as the capital of British India from 1833-1912. By the 1830s, artists had arrived from rural villages in Bengal and began to produce paintings that reflected local history, mythology, customs and conflicts of a colonised society. As a popular art form, these artists are recognised for their use of brilliant colour, simplified images and swift brush strokes that became the hallmark of Kalighat.