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{{Short description|Indian painter (1848–1906)}}
{{Use Indian English|date=October 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Raja Ravi Varma
| image              = Ravivarma1b.jpg
| caption            = Varma in 1890s
| other_names        = Koil Thampuran of Kilimanoor, Ravi Varma Koil Thampuran
| spouse             = Pooruruttathi Thirunal Bhageerthi Thampuratti
| birth_place        = [[Kilimanoor]], [[Travancore]] (present-day [[Thiruvananthapuram]], [[Kerala]])
| birth_name         = 
| birth_date         = {{Birth date|1848|04|29|df=y}}<ref name="Joshi1985">{{cite book|last=Joshi|first=Om Prakash|title=Sociology of Indian art|year=1985|publisher=Rawat Publications|page=40}}</ref><ref name=tt>{{cite news|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/2002/20020428/spectrum/main2.htm|title=A great painter, no doubt, but controversial too|publisher=Spectrum–The Tribune|date=28 April 2002|author=K.R.N. Swamy|access-date=28 October 2014|archive-date=28 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141028002358/http://www.tribuneindia.com/2002/20020428/spectrum/main2.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>
| death_date         = {{death date and age|1906|10|2|1848|4|29|df=yes}}
| death_place        = [[Attingal]], Travancore, [[British Raj]]
| notable_works      = {{unbulleted list
  | [[Shakuntala (Raja Ravi Varma)|Shakuntala]]
  | [[Shakuntala Patra-lekhan]]
  | [[Nair Lady Adorning Her Hair (Varma)|Nair Lady Adorning Her Hair]]
  | [[There Comes Papa]]
  | [[Galaxy of Musicians]]
  }}
| alma_mater         = [[University College Thiruvananthapuram]]
| occupation         = painter, artist
| awards             = [[Kaisar-i-Hind Gold Medal]]
| signature          = Raja Ravi Varma signature.png
}}

'''Raja Ravi Varma''' ({{IPA|ml|rajaː ravi varma(ː)ɐ|lang}}) (29 April 1848 – 2 October 1906<ref>Nagam Aiya, The Travancore State Manual</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Restoring works of art|url=http://www.thehindu.com/2005/07/19/stories/2005071900840200.htm|archive-url=https://archive.today/20150418162418/http://www.thehindu.com/2005/07/19/stories/2005071900840200.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=18 April 2015|work=The Hindu|date=2005-07-19|access-date=18 April 2015}}</ref>) was an Indian painter. His works are one of the best examples of the fusion of European [[academic art]] with a purely Indian sensibility and iconography. He greatly enhanced his reach and influence as a painter and public figure by making affordable [[Lithography|lithographs]] of his paintings available to the public. His lithographs increased the involvement of common people with fine arts and defined artistic tastes. Furthermore, his religious depictions of Hindu deities and works from [[Indian epic poetry]] and [[Purana]]s have received critical acclaim. He was part of the royal family of [[Parappanad]], [[Malappuram district]].

Raja Ravi Varma was closely related to the royal family of [[Travancore]] of present-day [[Kerala]] state in India. Later in his life, two of his granddaughters were adopted into the royal family.<ref>[https://indianculture.gov.in/stories/lord-padmanabha-and-his-dasas Lord Padmanabha and his dasas] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208125023/https://indianculture.gov.in/stories/lord-padmanabha-and-his-dasas |date=8 February 2023 }} ''indianculture.gov.in''. Retrieved 31 July 2021</ref>

== Personal life ==
Varma was born on 29 April 1848, as [[Maha Raja Rajya Shri|M. R. Ry.]] Ravi Varma, [[Koyi Thampuran|Koil Thampuran]] of Kilimanoor at [[Kilimanoor palace]] in the erstwhile [[princely state]] of [[Travancore]] (present-day [[Kerala]])<ref name=pal>{{cite book|last1=PAL|first1=DEEPANJANA|title=THE PAINTER|date=2011|publisher=Random House India|isbn=9788184002614|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BRZ-013-2bQC|access-date=18 April 2015}}</ref> into an aristocratic family that for over 200 years produced consorts for the princesses of the matrilineal Travancore royal family. The title [[Raja]] was conferred as a personal title by the Viceroy and Governor-General of India [[Lord Curzon]].<ref name=pal/>

[[File:Raja Ravi Varma, There Comes Papa (1893).jpg|right|thumb|[[There Comes Papa|''There comes Papa'']] (1893), depicting Varma's daughter Mahaprabha with one of her sons]]
[[File:Rani Bharani Thirunal Lakshmi Bayi of Travancore (1848–1901).jpg|right|thumb|Varma's sister-in-law, [[Bharani Thirunal Lakshmi Bayi]], Senior Rani of [[Attingal]] (or [[Kingdom of Travancore|Travancore]]), who adopted Varma's granddaughters in 1900]]
Ravi Varma was the son of Ezhumavil Neelakanthan Bhattatiripad and Uma Ambabayi Thampurratti. His mother Uma Ambabayi Thampuratty belonged to the baronial family which ruled the Kilimanoor [[fief|feudal estate]] within the kingdom of [[Travancore]]. She was a poet and writer, and her work ''Parvati Swayamvaram'' was published by Varma after her death. Ravi Varma's father was a scholar of [[Sanskrit]] and [[Ayurveda]] and hailed from the [[Ernakulam]] district in Kerala. Ravi Varma had two siblings, a sister named [[Mangala Bayi]] and a brother named [[C. Raja Raja Varma|Raja Varma]] (born 1860). The last-named was also a painter and worked closely with Ravi Varma all his life.{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}

In 1866, at age 18, Varma was married to 12-year-old Bhageerthi Bayi (known formally as Pooruruttati Nal Bhageerathi Bayi Thampuratty) of the royal house of [[Mavelikkara]], another major [[fief]] of Travancore kingdom. Notably, the house of Mavellikara was a branch of the Royal House of Travancore. Bhageerthi was the youngest of three sisters; her two elder siblings were adopted into the royal family of Travancore in 1857 to perpetuate the lineage. Designated the Senior and Junior Rani of Attingal, their descendants were vested with the succession to the throne of Travancore. Therefore, Ravi Varma's connection to the royal family became very close due to his marriage with Bhageerthi. His children would be royal by birth, since they belonged to their mother's family. The marriage, which was arranged by the parents in the proper Indian manner, was considered successful. The couple had five children, two sons, and three daughters. Their elder son, Kerala Varma (b.1876) was of an excessively spiritual temperament. He never married and eventually renounced the world, leaving home for good in 1912. The younger son, Rama Varma (born 1879), inherited his father's artistic talent and studied at the [[JJ School of Arts]], [[Mumbai]]. He was married to Gowri Kunjamma, sister of [[Dewan]] [[PGN Unnithan]], and became the father of seven children.{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}

The three daughters of Ravi Varma and Bhageerthi Bayi were Mahaprabha Amma (who features in two of Varma's most famous paintings), Uma Amma (named after Varma's mother) and Cheria Kochamma. In 1900 CE, the Royal House of Travancore once again faced a succession crisis. Bhageerthi's two elder sisters, who had been adopted in order to carry forward the lineage, had failed to produce the desired heirs. They had six children between them, but only two of those survived, and both were boys (who also, incidentally, later died childless). According to the [[matrilineal]] Marumakkathayam system, the succession to the throne could only progress through females, and therefore it was necessary to make an adoption. Tradition dictated that two girls belonging to branches of the Royal Family be adopted together. They would be designated the Senior and Junior Rani of Attingal, and the succession to the throne of Travancore would be vested in their progeny, in accordance with the unusual and unique [[Marumakkathayam]] system of succession.{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}

Two of Varma's granddaughters were marked by destiny to receive this honour, the main reason being that they were the nearest matrilineal ([[cognatic]]) kin to the incumbent Rani of Attingal. In August 1900, Mahaprabha's eldest daughter Lakshmi Bayi (aged 5 years) and Uma's eldest daughter Parvati Bayi (aged 4 years) were adopted into the Royal family of Travancore. It was [[Bharani Thirunal Lakshmi Bayi]], their surviving grand-aunt, who formally adopted them. She died within one year of doing this, and the two girls were then installed as the Senior and Junior Ranis of [[Attingal]] respectively. They were married while yet in their early teens to two gentlemen from suitable aristocratic families. It was the Junior Rani, [[Sethu Parvathi Bayi]], who gave birth to the much-awaited heir in 1912, exactly a day after her sixteenth birthday. Incidentally, her husband was a grand-nephew of Raja Ravi Varma and belonged to [[Kilimanoor Palace|Kilimanoor]]. The newborn child was the future Maharaja [[Chithira Thirunal Balarama Varma|Chithira Thirunal]], the last ruling [[Maharaja of Travancore]]. He was followed by a brother (the future Maharaja [[Uthradom Thirunal Marthanda Varma|Marthanda Varma III]]) and a sister [[Karthika Thirunal Lakshmi Bayi|Lakshmi Bayi]], the mother of Maharaja [[Moolam Thirunal Rama Varma|Rama Varma VII]] who is presently on the throne (since 2013). Meanwhile, the Senior Rani ([[Sethu Lakshmi Bayi]], daughter of Mahaprabha Amma, and Regent from 1924 to 1931) also gave birth to two daughters later in life (in 1923 and 1926).{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}

In this way, the entire present (existing) royal family of [[Travancore]] is descended from Raja Ravi Varma. Well known among his royal descendants are the writers [[Aswathi Thirunal Gowri Lakshmi Bayi]] and [[Shreekumar Varma]], the artist [[Rukmini Varma]] and the classical musician [[Aswathi Thirunal Rama Varma]].{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}

Around Ravi Varma's 57th birthday he announced his decision to accept Sanyasa, and retire from all worldly life when he turned 60. In his final years he suffered from grief for the death of Raja Raja Varma, and also from diabetes, which contributed to his death on 2 October 1906.{{citation needed|date=October 2024}}

==Art career==
Varma was patronised by [[Ayilyam Thirunal]], the next [[Maharaja of Travancore]] and began formal training thereafter.<ref name="The Diary of C. Rajaraja Varma">"The Diary of C. Rajaraja Varma"</ref> He learned the basics of painting in [[Madurai]]. Later, he was trained in water painting by Rama Swami Naidu and rather reluctantly in [[oil painting]] by British portraitist Theodore Jenson.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tribuneindia.com/2002/20020428/spectrum/main2.htm|title=The Sunday Tribune – Spectrum – Article|access-date=28 July 2021|archive-date=7 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207075427/https://www.tribuneindia.com/2002/20020428/spectrum/main2.htm|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Raja Ravi Verma Studio Vadodara.jpg|thumb|left|The studio used by Varma during his stay at the [[Laxmi Vilas Palace]]]]

The British administrator, [[Edgar Thurston]] was significant in promoting the careers of Varma and his brother.<ref>{{cite book |title=Art and Nationalism in Colonial India, 1850-1922: Occidental Orientations |first=Partha |last=Mitter |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-52144-354-8 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9mRTtkri8E0C&pg=PA69 |pages=69, 193, 208}}</ref> Varma received widespread acclaim after he won an award for an exhibition of his paintings at Vienna in 1873. Varma's paintings were also sent to the [[World's Columbian Exposition]] held in Chicago in 1893 and he was awarded three gold medals.<ref>Kilimanoor Chandran, ''Ravi Varmayum Chitrakalayum''(in Malayalam), Department of Culture, Kerala, 1998.</ref> He travelled throughout India in search of subjects. He often modelled Hindu [[Goddess]]es on [[South India|India]]n women, whom he considered beautiful. Ravi Varma is particularly noted for his paintings depicting episodes from the story of [[Dushyanta]] and [[Shakuntala]], and [[Nala]] and [[Damayanti]], from the [[Mahabharata]]. Ravi Varma's representation of [[Hindu]] characters has become a part of the Indian imagination of the epics. He is often criticized for being too showy and sentimental in his style but his work remains very popular in India. Many of his fabulous paintings are housed at [[Laxmi Vilas Palace, Vadodara]].<ref>{{cite web|last1=Vadodara|first1=Lakshmi Vilas Palace|title=Raja Ravi Varma Paintings, Vadodara|url=http://www.historyofvadodara.in/2008/05/Raja-Ravi-Varma-Paintings-Vadodara.html|website=historyofvadodara.in|access-date=24 January 2015|archive-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924030504/http://www.historyofvadodara.in/2008/05/Raja-Ravi-Varma-Paintings-Vadodara.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Raja Ravi Varma Press==
[[File:Raja Ravi Varma, Mrs. Ramanadha Rao.jpg|thumb|''Mrs. Ramanadha Rao and son'']]
Apparently on the advice of the then Dewan (Prime Minister) of [[Travancore]], [[T. Madhava Rao]], Ravi Varma started a lithographic printing press in [[Ghatkopar]], Mumbai in 1894 and later shifted it to Malavli near [[Lonavala]], Maharashtra in 1899. The [[oleographs]] produced by the press were mostly of Hindu gods and goddesses in scenes adapted mainly from the ''[[Mahabharata]]'', the ''[[Ramayana]]'' and the ''[[Puranas]]''. These oleographs were very popular and continued to be printed in thousands for many years, even after the 1906 death of Ravi Varma.{{citation needed|date=October 2016}}

The Ravi Varma press was the largest and most innovative press in India at that time. The press was managed by Varma's brother, Raja Varma, but under their management, it was a commercial failure. By 1899 the press was deeply in debt and in 1901, the press was sold to his printing technician from Germany, Fritz Schleicher. Schleicher continued to print Ravi Varma's prints but later employed other artists to create new designs. Schleicher also broadened the product of press to include commercial and advertisement labels. Under the management of Schleicher and his successors, the press continued successfully until a devastating fire destroyed the whole factory in 1972. Many of Ravi Varma's original lithographic prints were also lost in the fire.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Davis|first1=Richard|title=Gods in Print: Masterpiece of India's Mythological Art|date=2012|publisher=Mandala Publishing|location=San Rafael, California|isbn=9781608871094|page=83}}</ref>

==Honours==
[[File:Raja Ravi Varma 1971 stamp of India.jpg|thumb|Raja Ravi Varma on a 1971 stamp of India]]
In 1904, [[Viceroy of India|Viceroy]] [[Lord Curzon]], on behalf of the British King Emperor, bestowed upon Varma the [[Kaisar-i-Hind Gold Medal]]. A college dedicated to [[fine art]]s was also constituted in his honour at [[Mavelikara]], [[Kerala]]. Raja Ravi Varma High at [[Kilimanoor]] was named after him and there are many cultural organizations throughout India bearing his name. In 2013, the crater Varma on [[Mercury (planet)|Mercury]] was named in his honor.<ref>{{cite web|title=Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature|url=https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/15146|website=Planetarynames.we.ugs.gov|access-date=14 March 2014|archive-date=7 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207073952/https://planetarynames.wr.usgs.gov/Feature/15146|url-status=live}}</ref> Considering his vast contribution to [[Indian art]], the Government of Kerala has instituted an award called [[Raja Ravi Varma Puraskaram]], which is awarded every year to people who show excellence in the field of art and culture.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/raja-ravi-varma-award/article8221352.ece|title=Raja Ravi Varma Award|date=11 February 2016|access-date=4 August 2018|newspaper=The Hindu|archive-date=7 February 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207073950/https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Thiruvananthapuram/raja-ravi-varma-award/article8221352.ece|url-status=live}}</ref>
* On his 65th death anniversary, India Post issued a commemorative postal stamp depicting Ravi Varma and his famous painting 'Damayanti and Swan'

==Legacy==

Raja Ravi Varma is sometimes regarded as the first modern Indian artist due to his ability to reconcile Western aesthetics with Indian iconography. The Indian art historian and critic [[Geeta Kapur]] wrote, {{Blockquote|text=Ravi Varma is the indisputable father figure of modern Indian art. Naive and ambitious at the same time, he opens up the debate for his later compatriots in the specific matter of defining individual genius through professional acumen, of testing modes of cultural adaptation with idiosyncratic effect, of attempting pictorial narration with its historic scope.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kapur |first1=Geeta |title=What Was Modernism: Essays on Contemporary Cultural Practice in India |date=2000 |publisher=Tulika |location=New Delhi |isbn=81-89487-24-8 |page=147 |url=https://cdn.aaa.org.hk/_source/digital_collection/fedora_extracted/10349.pdf |access-date=22 August 2019 |archive-date=22 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190822222555/https://cdn.aaa.org.hk/_source/digital_collection/fedora_extracted/10349.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>}}

Similarly, Baroda School artist [[Gulam Mohammed Sheikh]] also wrote about Ravi Varma as a modern artist. In his essay "Ravi Varma in Baroda", Sheikh asserted that Varma was a key figure in the establishment of Indian modern art, claiming that "the story of contemporary Indian art was never the same after Ravi Varma had entered it. He left his imprint on almost every aspect of it." Like Kapur, Sheikh praised Ravi Varma's integration of Indian and Western aesthetics and techniques, comparing him favorably to Indian modernist [[Nandalal Bose]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Sheikh |first1=Gulam Mohammed |title=Ravi Varma in Baroda |url=https://cdn.aaa.org.hk/_source/gms-ms-ravivarma.pdf |website=Asia Art Archive |access-date=22 August 2019 |archive-date=7 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207073951/https://cdn.aaa.org.hk/_source/gms-ms-ravivarma.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

However, Ravi Varma's legacy is controversial. Fellow Baroda School artist and art historian [[Ratan Parimoo]] saw Ravi Varma in a less favorable light, derogatorily referring to him as kitsch and claiming Varma's work was less spiritually authentic than folk art and tribal art. He argued that Ravi Varma was responsible for the "vulgarity" of popular art, comparing Varma's work to the lurid colors and sexuality of popular images in calendar art and films.<ref>{{cite news |last=Parimoo |first=Ratan |date=16 November 1975 |title=Kitsch: The Vulgarisation of Art |url=https://aaa.org.hk/en/collection/search/archive/ratan-parimoo-archive-newspaper-articles-5571/object/kitsch-the-vulgarisation-of-art |work=The Times of India |access-date=22 August 2019 |archive-date=22 August 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190822222556/https://aaa.org.hk/en/collection/search/archive/ratan-parimoo-archive-newspaper-articles-5571/object/kitsch-the-vulgarisation-of-art |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Parimoo |first1=Ratan |title=Pop Art with Religious Motifs |url=https://cdn.aaa.org.hk/_source/digital_collection/fedora_extracted/40635.pdf |website=Asia Art Archive |access-date=22 August 2019 |archive-date=3 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303084503/https://cdn.aaa.org.hk/_source/digital_collection/fedora_extracted/40635.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

Despite his controversial legacy, Ravi Varma continues to be an important figure for modern and contemporary Indian artists. For example, modern artist [[Nalini Malani]] recreated Ravi Varma's ''[[Galaxy of Musicians]]'' in her video installation ''Unity in Diversity'' to interrogate Ravi Varma's idealistic nationalism.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Asian Art Department |title=Unity in Diversity |url=https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/collection/works/60.2012.a-r/ |website=Art Gallery of New South Wales |access-date=22 August 2019 |archive-date=7 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207073928/https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/collection/works/60.2012.a-r/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Similarly, contemporary artist [[Pushpamala N.]] recreated several Ravi Varma paintings with herself as the subject to deconstruct Ravi Varma's idealized depictions of goddesses and Indian women.

Many organizations do programs in his memory and give awards in his name. A two days festival of The Maharaja Ranjitsinh Gaekwad Festival of Arts is annually organized, in his memory at the Durbar Hall in [[Laxmi Vilas Palace]], [[Vadodara]], [[Gujarat]].<ref>{{cite news |title=Gaekwads' Two-day Arts Festival in Ranjitsinh's Memory {{!}} Vadodara News – Times of India |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/vadodara/gaekwads-two-day-arts-festival-in-ranjitsinhs-memory/articleshow/89980356.cms |website=The Times of India |date=4 March 2022 |language=en |access-date=25 March 2023 |archive-date=25 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221125121019/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/vadodara/gaekwads-two-day-arts-festival-in-ranjitsinhs-memory/articleshow/89980356.cms |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Sandesh2022">{{cite web |title=Event mentioned in Gujarati Language News Paper. |url=https://esandesh.gumlet.io/epaper/2022/03/11/374-1646956775-7.jpg?w=800 |access-date=25 March 2023 |archive-date=8 February 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230208091318/https://esandesh.gumlet.io/epaper/2022/03/11/374-1646956775-7.jpg?w=800 |url-status=live }}</ref>
The Raja Ravi Varma Award for Excellence in the Field of Visual Arts is presented during this festival. [[Jayant Parikh]] was the first recipient.<ref>{{cite web |title=Jayant Parikh got Raja Ravi Varma Award Ref. by Mctears |url=https://www.mctears.co.uk/auction/lot/lot-122---jayant-parikh-indian-b-1940/?lot=281867&so=0&st=&sto=0&au=1534&ef=&et=&ic=False&sd=0&pp=96&pn=2&g=1#:~:text=Raja%20Ravi%20Varma%20Award |website=mctears.co.uk |language=en |access-date=25 March 2023 |archive-date=5 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230405225839/https://www.mctears.co.uk/auction/lot/lot-122---jayant-parikh-indian-b-1940/?lot=281867&so=0&st=&sto=0&au=1534&ef=&et=&ic=False&sd=0&pp=96&pn=2&g=1#:~:text=Raja%20Ravi%20Varma%20Award |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Jayant Parikh – Awards |url=http://www.jayantparikh.com/Awards9.html#RaviVerma |website=jayantparikh.com |access-date=25 March 2023 |archive-date=25 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221125121014/http://www.jayantparikh.com/Awards9.html#RaviVerma |url-status=live }}</ref>

==List of major works==
The following is a list of the prominent works of Ravi Varma. On the anniversary of what would be his 150th birthday, Google Arts and Culture released over 300 of his works online for everyone to view.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://artsandculture.google.com/entity/raja-ravi-varma/m03p0s9|title=Raja Ravi Varma|website=Google Arts & Culture|language=en|access-date=2020-04-28|archive-date=6 April 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230406173025/https://artsandculture.google.com/entity/raja-ravi-varma/m03p0s9|url-status=live}}</ref>
{{Div col|colwidth=22em}}
* ''Mohini playing with a ball''
* ''Yashoda and Krishna''
* ''Village Belle''
* ''Lady Lost in Thought''
* ''[[Damayanti]] Talking to a [[Swan]]''
* ''The Orchestra''
* ''[[Arjuna]] and [[Subhadra]]''
* ''The heartbroken''
* ''[[Swarbat]] Player''
* ''[[Shakuntala, Raja Ravi Varma|Shakuntala]]''
* ''Lord [[Krishna]] as Ambassador''
* ''[[Jatayu (Ramayana)|Jatayu]], a bird devotee of [[Lord Rama]] is mauled by [[Ravana]]''
* ''Victory of [[Indrajit]]''
* ''The gypsies''{{Attribution needed|date=August 2014}} <!-- title was changed by a new editor - please verify title -->
* ''A Lady Playing [[Swarbat]]''
* ''Lady Giving Alms at the Temple''
* ''Lord Rama Conquers [[Varuna]]''
* '' Victory of [[Meghanada]]''
* ''[[Nair]] Woman''
* ''Romancing Couple''
* ''[[Draupadi]] Dreading to Meet [[Kichaka]]''
* ''[[Shantanu]] and [[Matsyagandha]]''
* ''Shakuntala Composing a Love Letter to King [[Dushyanta]]''
* ''Girl in Sage Kanwa's Hermitage (Rishi-Kanya)''
* [[Bharani Thirunal Lakshmi Bayi]] of [[Kingdom of Travancore|Travancore]]
* ''Sri Shanmukha Subramania Swami''
* ''Woman holding a fan''
* ''3D painting of the Mysore king on a horse (now on display at the [[Mysore Palace]])''

{{div col end}}

==Gallery==
More at [[commons:Category:Raja Ravi Varma|Category:Raja Ravi Varma]]<gallery mode="packed" heights="187">
File:Raja Ravi Varma - Mahabharata - Shakuntala.jpg|''[[Shakuntala (Raja Ravi Varma)|Shakuntala looking for Dushyanta]]''
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Galaxy of Musicians.jpg|''[[Galaxy of Musicians]]''
File:Sakunthala-pathralekhanam.jpg|[[Shakuntala Patra-lekhan]]
File:Nair Lady Adorning Her Hair.jpg|[[Nair Lady Adorning Her Hair (Varma)|''Nair Lady Adorning Her Hair'']]
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Expectation.jpg|''Expectation''
File:Radha in the Moonlight.jpg|''Radha in the Moonlight''
File:Ravi Varma-Princess Damayanthi talking with Royal Swan about Nala.jpg|''Hamsa [[Damayanti]]''
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Gypsies (1893).jpg|''Gypsies''
File:Raja Ravi Varma - Woman Holding a Fruit - Google Art Project.jpg|''Woman Holding a Fruit''
File:Murugan by Raja Ravi Varma.jpg|[[Kartikeya|''Sri Shanmukha Subramania Swami'']]
File:Saraswati.jpg|''[[Saraswati]]''
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Gheevarghese Mar Gregorios of Parumala (1905).jpg|[[Geevarghese Mar Gregorios of Parumala]]
File:Ravi Varma-Descent of Ganga.jpg|Descent of [[Ganga (goddess)|Ganga]]
File:Sri Krishna as Envoy.jpg|''Sri Krishna as Envoy''
File:Ravi Varma-Ravana Sita Jathayu.jpg|[[Jatayu]] fights [[Ravana]]
File:Ravi Varma-Lady Giving Alms at the Temple.jpg|Lady giving alms in a temple
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Stolen Interview.jpg|''Stolen Interview''
File:Raja Ravi Varma, The Maharashtrian Lady.jpg|''The Maharashtrian Lady''
File:Rama-Varuna.jpg|[[Rama]] vanquishing the ocean
File:Mohini on a swing.jpg|[[Mohini]] on a swing
File:Draupadi Vastraharan, Raja Ravi Varma.jpg|Disrobing of Draupadi
File:Sita Bhum Pravesh.jpg|''Sita Bhumi Pravesh''
File:Draupadi humiliated RRV.jpg|[[Draupadi]] being humiliated in the court of [[Virata]]
File:Yashoda with Krishna, Raja Ravi Varma.jpg|[[Krishna]] with [[Yashoda]]
File:Village Belle, by Raja Ravi Varma.jpg|''Village Belle''
File:Victory of Meghanada by RRV.jpg|''Victory of [[Meghanada]]''
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Malabar Lady.jpg|''Malabar Lady'' or ''Swarbat Player''
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Keechaka and Sairandhri, 1890.jpg|Keechaka and Sairandhri
File:Ravi Varma-Shantanu and Satyavati.jpg|''[[Satyavati|Shantanu and Matsyagandha]]''
File:Ravi Varma-Arjuna and Subhadra.jpg|''[[Arjuna]] and [[Subhadra]]''
File:Woman holading a fan by Raja Ravi Varma.jpg|''Woman holding a fan''
File:Ladies in the moonlight by RRV.jpg|Damayanti and her maid in the moonlight
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Shakuntala lost in thoughts (1901).jpg|''Shakuntala lost in thoughts''
File:Raja Ravi Varma, Disappointing News.jpg|''Disappointing News''
File:The Fatal Garland from The Modern Review Vol 01 (Jan.-June 1907) (page 7 crop).jpg|''The Fatal Garland'' 
</gallery>

==In popular culture==
[[J. Sasikumar]] made ''Raja Ravi Varma'', an Indian documentary television film on the artist in 1997. It was produced by the [[Government of India]]'s [[Films Division of India|Films Division]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Raja Ravi Verma {{!}} Films Division |url=https://filmsdivision.org/shop/raja-ravi-verma |website=filmsdivision.org |access-date=12 June 2021 |archive-date=7 April 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407014725/https://filmsdivision.org/shop/raja-ravi-verma |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Rajadhyaksha|first1=Ashish|last2=Willemen|first2=Paul|title=Encyclopaedia of Indian cinema|url=https://archive.org/details/encyclopaediaofi0000raja|url-access=registration|year=1999|publisher=British Film Institute|isbn=9780851706696}}</ref>

''[[Makaramanju]]'' (English: ''The Mist of Capricorn'') is a 2011 Indian [[Malayalam]]-language romantic drama film by [[Lenin Rajendran]] starring [[Santosh Sivan]] as Varma, the film focuses on Varma's painting "Urvashi Pururavas".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.thehindu.com/arts/cinema/article837968.ece|title=Malayalam film makers plan alternative screening outside IFFI venues|author=Soyesh H. Rawther|date=19 October 2010|newspaper=The Hindu|access-date=17 February 2011|archive-date=21 October 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121021095654/http://www.thehindu.com/arts/cinema/article837968.ece|url-status=live}}</ref> The 2014 Indian Hindi-language film, ''[[Rang Rasiya]]'' (English title: ''Colours of Passion'') explores Varma's inspiration behind his paintings with [[Randeep Hooda]] in the role of the painter.<ref name="hooda_paint">{{cite news|title=Portrait of an artist |url=http://www.hindu.com/mp/2007/09/29/stories/2007092950850100.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121108031535/http://www.hindu.com/mp/2007/09/29/stories/2007092950850100.htm |url-status=dead |archive-date=8 November 2012 |last=Nagarajan |first=Saraswathy |newspaper=The Hindu|date=29 September 2007|access-date=22 August 2008}}</ref>

==Bibliography==

===English===
* Raja Ravi Varma: An Everlasting Imprint; Volume 3- A Divine Omnipresence by Ganesh V. Shivaswamy, Pub: White Falcon, Chandigarh, March 2024 {{ISBN|9781636409344}}
* Raja Ravi Varma: An Everlasting Imprint; Volume 2- A Resonant Impression by Ganesh V. Shivaswamy, Pub: White Falcon, Chandigarh, Nov 2023 {{ISBN|9781636409085}}
* Raja Ravi Varma: An Everlasting Imprint; Volume 1- The Shaping of an Artist by Ganesh V. Shivaswamy, Pub: White Falcon, Chandigarh, March 2023 {{ISBN|9781636408460}}
* Raja Ravi Varma: Painter of Colonial Indian by Rupika Chawla, Pub: Mapin Publishing, Ahmedabad, March 2010.
* Raja Ravi Varma – Oleographs Catalogue by D.Jegat Ishwari, Pub: ShriParasuraman, Chennai, 2010, {{ISBN|9788191002614}}
* Ravi Varma Classic: 2008, Genesis Art Foundation, Cochin-18;45 colour plate with text by [[Vijayakumar Menon]].
* The Painter: A life of Ravi Varma by Deepanjana Pal Random House India, 2011 {{ISBN|9788184002614}}
* Raja Ravi Varma – The Most Celebrated Painter of India: 1848–1906, Parsram Mangharam, Bangalore, 2007
* Raja Ravi Varma – The Painter Prince: 1848–1906, Parsram Mangharam, Bangalore, 2003
* Raja Ravi Varma and the Printed Gods of India, Erwin Neumayer & Christine Schelberger, New Delhi, [[Oxford University Press]], 2003
* Raja Ravi Varma: The Most Celebrated Painter of India : 1848 – 1906, Classic Collection, Vol I & II. Bangalore, Parsram Mangharam, 2005
* Raja Ravi Varma: Portrait of an Artist, The Diary of C. Raja Raja Varma/edited by Erwin Neumayer and Christine Schelberger. New Delhi, Oxford University Press, 2005
* Divine Lithography, Enrico Castelli and Giovanni Aprile, New Delhi, Il Tamburo Parlante Documentation Centre and Ethnographic Museum, 2005
* Photos of the Gods: The Printed Image and Political Struggle in India by Christopher Pinney. London, Reaktion Book, 2004
* Raja Ravi Varma:Raja Ravi Varma:E.M Joseph Venniyur, former director of AIR
* Raja Ravi Varma: A Novel, Ranjit Desai -Translated by Vikrant Pande, Pub: Harper Perennial (2013), {{ISBN|9789350296615}}
* Pages of a Mind: Life and Expressions, Raja Ravi Varma, Pub: Piramal Art Foundation (2016), {{ISBN|9788193066805}}

===Malayalam===
* Ravi Varma – A critical study by Vijayakumar Menon, Pub: Kerala Lalitha Kala Akademy, Trissur, 2002
* Raja Ravi Varmayum chitrkalayum, [[Kilimanoor Chandran]], Department of Cultural Publications, Kerala Government, 1999.
* Chithramezhuthu Koyithampuran, P. N. Narayana Pillai.
* Raja Ravi Varma, N. Balakrishnan Nair.

===Marathi===
* "Raja Ravi Varma", a novel by [[Marathi language]] novelist [[Ranjit Desai]] translated into English by Vikrant Pande.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
<!--NO COMMERCIAL LINKS PLEASE-->
{{Commons and category|Raja Ravi Varma}}
* [https://artsandculture.google.com/partner/the-ganesh-shivaswamy-foundation The largest collection of chromolithographs from the Ravi Varma Press which may be viewed in Hi-resolution]

* [https://www.ravivarmaoleographs.com/ The oldest website exclusively for Raja Ravi Varma’s Oleographs]
<!--NO COMMERCIAL LINKS PLEASE-->

{{Painters from Kerala}}
{{Raja Ravi Varma}}
{{Kingdom of Travancore}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Varma, Raja Ravi}}
[[Category:Raja Ravi Varma| ]]
[[Category:1848 births]]
[[Category:1906 deaths]]
[[Category:Sibling artists]]
[[Category:Indian painters]]
[[Category:Mythological painters]]
[[Category:Religious painters]]
[[Category:Artists from Kerala]]
[[Category:19th-century Indian painters]]