The paintings of Raja Ravi Varma became very popular. What happened to many of them that made them widely accessible to the public?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → They were copied as oleographs and sold in market.
Option (1) They were copied as oleographs and sold in market. — Correct. Many of his paintings were copied as oleographs and sold in market, and even entered homes as calendar images.
Option (2) They were made into woodcuts for Bengali primers. — Incorrect. Nandalal Bose illustrated primers in Bengali with woodcuts.
Option (3) They were displayed in the colonial art schools. — Incorrect. The best works of this academic style were found away from the art schools, in Ravi Varma’s own work.
Option (4) They were turned into posters for a Congress session. — Incorrect. Nandalal Bose painted the panels shown at the Congress session at Haripura.
NCERT (2026-27): “Raja Ravi Varma …The most successful examples of this type of painting were found away from these art schools. They are best seen in the works produced by self-taught artist, Raja Ravi Varma of the Travancore Court in Kerala. … They became so popular that many of his paintings were copied as oleographs and were sold in market. They even entered people’s homes as calendar images.” |