राजा रविवर्मा [Raja Ravi Varma]

by रणजित देसाई, Ranjit Desai

A controversial novel based on the life of India's most celebrated painter, Raja Ravi Varma He was accused of making the gods look like humans and insulting them by portraying them in the nude. He countered that he saw divinity in both gods and humans, and that nudity was the purest form he knew. This is the story of a little boy who grew up making charcoal sketches on freshly whitewashed temple walls and went on to be titled in the court of Thiruvananthapuram as 'Raja' for his artistic prowess. His painting of a Nair woman who worked in his wife's palace brought him wrath and recognition alike. His deep involvement with Sugandha, the Maharastrian lady, who became Menaka, Damayanti and Urvashi in his most acclaimed works caught the fancy of many critics and admirers.

Genres: Marathi, Biography, History

306 pages, Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Ranjit Desai

प्रसिद्ध कादंबरीकार , कथालेखक , नाटककार . रणजित देसाई मूळचे कोल्हापूरच्या कोवाडचे. इंग्रजी शाळेत असतानाच त्यांनी लेखनाला सुरुवात केली. कोल्हापूरच्या ' महाद्वार ' मधून त्यांनी कथालेखन करायला सुरुवात केली.

इंटर नापास असलेल्या देसाई यांनी १९४७ मध्ये प्रसाद मासिकाने आयोजीत केलेल्या कथास्पर्धेत भैरव ही कथा सादर केली. त्यांच्या कथेला पारितोषिक मिळाले. या पारितोषिकामुळे त्यांच्या कथालेखनाला प्रोत्साहन मिळाले. रुपमहाल (१९५२) , कणंव (१९६०) , जाण (१९६२) , कातळ (१९६५) , गंधाली (१९७१) , कमोदिनी (१९७८) , आलेख (१९७९) , मधुमती (१९८२) , मोरपंखी सावल्या (१९८४) असे अनेक लोकप्रिय कथासंग्रह त्यांनी लिहिले.

सामाजिक आशयाच्या , ग्रामीण परिवेशातील त्यांच्या कथांमधून त्यांच्या लेखनाची खास वैशिष्ट्ये जाणवतात. खेडुतांच्या जीवनाचे चांगुलपणा मांडणा-या आकर्षक शैलीतील कथा त्यांनी लिहिल्या. बारी , माझा गाव , या प्रारंभीच्या कादंब-यांनंतर १९६२ मध्ये थोरल्या माधवराव पेशव्यांच्या जीवनावर त्यांनी स्वामी ही कादंबरी लिहिली.

या कादंबरीने त्यांना लोकप्रियतेच्या शिखरावर नेले. त्यानंतरच्या श्रीमानयोगी या शिवाजी महाराजांवर लिहिलेल्या कादंबरीने त्यांची कादंबरीकार म्हणून असलेली लोकप्रियता आधिकच वाढली.

ऐतिहासिक वातावरणाचे वैभव आणि व्यक्तीरेखांना दिलेली भावोत्कट उंची यांमुळे त्यांच्या ऐतिहासिक कादंब-यांनी लोकमानस जिंकले. स्वामीतील माधवराव आणि त्यांची पत्नी रमा तसेच श्रीमानयोगीतील शिवाजी आणि त्यांचे गुरु रामदासस्वामी यांच्या नात्यांना देसाई यांनी वेगळी परिमाणे दिली. लक्ष्यवेध (१९८०) , पावनखिंड (१९८०) , कर्णाच्या जीवनावरील राधेय (१९८६) , राजा रविवर्मा (१९८६) , अशा अनेक ऐतिहासिक पौराणिक कादंब-या लिहून देसाई यांनी या प्रकारच्या कादंब-यांचे युग स्वातंत्र्योत्तर काळात निर्माण केले.

गरुडझेप (१९७३) , रामशास्त्री (१९८३) , स्वरसम्राट तानसेन , हे बंध रेशमाचे , कांचनमृग , धन अपुरे , वारसा , स्वामी , आदी नाटकेही त्यांनी लिहिली. नागीण , रंगल्या रात्री अशा , सवाल माझा ऐका या चित्रपटांचे पटकथालेखन , स्नेहधारा , मी एक प्रेक्षक असे लेखसंग्रहही त्यांनी लिहिले.

Reviews

[Ashish Iyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very well written biography on the celebrated artist. Finally got to know the life of Raja Ravi Verma. It is originally written in marathi By Ranjit Desai and translated in english by Vikrant Pande. I have read author's previous work Shreeman Yogi or Shivaji : The great Maratha which was amazing.

The book covers his early life, training, relationship with the royal family of Travancore, his unsuccessful marriage, his involvement with other women, his fondness for his own people, his contacts with well known personalities, and the law suit he faced over showing goddesses semi-clad. The novel portrays effectively his early struggle, later success, his mode of working which included long preparation, his philosophy behind his work. A salient feature of the work is the light it throws on the life in a matriarchal family. He received several medals or rewards from Vienna, Chicago and Madras. His painting were very famous. He was notable for making affordable lithographs of his paintings available to the public, which greatly enhanced his reach and influence as a painter and public figure. Indeed, his lithographs increased the involvement of common people with fine arts and defined artistic tastes among common people for several decades. In particular, his depictions of Hindu deities and episodes from the epics and Puranas have received profound acceptance from the public and are found, often as objects of worship, across the length and breadth of India

Overall it was a good read. I enjoyed it.

[Ananya Mandal · Rating 2 out of 5]

My rating sums it up...it was OK. I wanted more details into the life of the great artist that an essay type 2D narrative where after each two pages there are tears in some or the other character's eyes...overall were it not for Raja Ravi Varma who I think was an unparallel, I would give it a single star. waiting for better books to read on the artist and his life.

[Ajay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Its a good biography on Raja Ravi Varma.

[Saraswathi Sambasivan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A prince among the painters and a painter amongst the princes! This book is a beautiful journey of Raja Ravi Varma. From drawing charcoal sketches on temple walls to making the finest works in oil, it is a treat . He was self-taught but had a lot of support and encouragement to hone his skills . It also talks about his muse, Sugandha who was the beautiful lady in so many of his paintings. It is a complete page-turner . If the English translation is so good I wonder how good the Marathi original must be! People who appreciate art will love this book.

[Sarath Krishnan · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is really informative to read this book. Though I have heard about Raja Ravi Varma, it is the first time I come across with the details of his life. Before some months, I have heard a 'kathaprasangam' based on the life of Raja Ravi Varma, named 'Sugandha'. I think maybe after that performance my curiosity to know about this great personality increases. The life of Raja Ravi Varma is an inspiring one.

[Pravinreading · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just completed reading book. Desai sir has shown life of Ravi Verma very elegantly. Thought and mind transitions Ravi varma with changing time , and passing closed once touches mind. It also clearly underlines the dilemma of human being while following ambitions of our life.

[Swagatika Mohapatra · Rating 5 out of 5]

A heart touching life story of a true Raja. Best versed by Ranjit Desai. A worth reading by all the readers. Don't go by the movie Rang Rasiya to sketch the character of Raja Ravi verma. A worth treasure for your library.

[Vinayak Surve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic writing. Its a masterpiece. Read it if you wish to know about Raja Ravi Varma and his beautiful world.

[Sandeep · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it... "Even after achieving everything.. you can be alone in the end."

[Prachia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent!

Excellent! An inspiring story of an immortal artist. I could not stop reading until the end. Yet another masterpiece by Ranjeet Desai

[Soham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read... not because the book is perfect.

I think it could have been written in a much better way. But the book definitely makes you think deeply about art, religion, culture, love and physical attraction.

I especially liked the second half of the book starting from the court case where Ravi Verma was accused of portraying vulgarity in his paintings.

Why is it that the same intimate scenes that are present in some of the greatest literature ever written, when portrayed in paintings, are considered unsavoury? If gods and goddesses are completely sublime in all the other aspects, and the scriptures have dedicated entire pages to write about the incomparable beauty of a god or a goddess, why is it considered as popularizing unrealistic beauty standards when they are portrayed as being incredibly beautiful?

Is vulgarity in the eyes of the viewer? Are some paintings vulgar just because there is some nudity present? If somehow the private parts of the subjects in the painting are hidden, does that make it not vulgar? Why is there so much taboo around nudity anyway? How did society change so quickly? In the southern states of India, till the late 1800s, women didn't wear anything to cover their chest. That was the norm. In just 200 years, how did it become totally taboo and unacceptable for women to walk around without covering their chest? Could we go back? Will the taboo around nudity go away at some point if nudity gets normalised?

Just because some people might focus on the nudity instead of the message that the artist intends to share, should we ban the artwork? Also, should we just believe the artist when he or she says that they have no vulgar intent? Can anything be taken in the wrong way? How do we decide what is okay and what is not okay? Reading this book has led me to have all these questions in my mind. I think most of these questions have no "right" answer. But it's good to at least be aware of them.

[Jeet Shah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally a book that describes the life of acclaimed painter Raja Ravi verma.

There are few points to be noted.
- It's a fictionalised description of the painter.
- The book is not in detailed format.
- The book mainly focuses on life journey of Raja Ravi Verma, the people he meets along.
- Even if you don't understand painting and are not interested in art, still you would enjoy reading the book.

If you are okay with above points, you would enjoy reading the book.
Ranjit Desai as written it wonderfully and Vikrant Pande has also done a equally great job with the translation.

[Ramya Viswanathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very average. Lot of editing errors in this one.

[Girish Bahirat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Got to know about the great Indian Painter. Well written.

[Suman Ghosh · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book beautifully illustrates a lustrous and epic lifetime of Raja Ravi Varma, the journey of a young boy from Kilimanoor with a passion for painting to becoming one of the greatest painters in the history of Indian art.
While I have thoroughly enjoyed reading this book for its gripping enticement, I have also felt deeply attached with the painter himself in his different phases of life, in his love, devotion, grief and solitude.
Only, it could have been a remarkable memoir of him had it also mentioned the time period of his different life stages and his milestones. But instead, his entire life has been depicted at a continual pace without any epoch.
Nonetheless, I would highly recommend this book to all my booklover friends, especially to the artist ones!

[Alka · Rating 3 out of 5]

i picked up the book as a movie based on the book was released recently, personally prefer to read books. It is good but not outstanding, most likely the flavour and nuances got lost in translation, because I surely didnt find nuances. It is blandly written, recounting episodes of the life of someone who is a painter of high calibre in those times. it doesnt bring alive the characters, atleast to me. But yet I give credit to the author for choosing the painter to write about.

[Ansab Fazal]

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