East’s spirit in the West’s frame
Raja Ravi Varma (29 April, 1848 - 2 October, 1906)
Updated At : 03:31 PM Oct 09, 2025 IST
Raja Ravi Varma. File
Raja Ravi Varma, who gave the world an insight into India with a fusion of European realism and Indian sensibility, remains one of the most celebrated painters of the 19th century. His canvases did not merely depict but narrated. He gave India a vision where naturalism met Indian iconography, where gods and legends stepped off temple walls and entered the homes of ordinary people. Few artists have defined a nation's cultural imagination the way he did.
