The Painter: A Life of Ravi Varma

By Deepanjana Pal

Random House India,

256 pages, Rs 395

Using the realism and sensuality of the European oil painters to depict gods and men, Raja Ravi Varma, the artist-prince, became India’s first celebrity painter. The work of this pioneering artist is increasingly the subject of scholarly study, but his life has not attracted as much attention. Blending fact with imagination, Deepanjana Pal tells you the unique story of an extraordinary man.