Raja Ravi Varma’s
twilight years 1890-1904, at Bombay
Everybody has a favorite Ravi Varma painting or water color.
My favorite is the ‘Milkmaid’ watercolor, and I had written about it earlier.
Every time I see it, I think of the girl behind the painting, and many a time,
I had stopped to wonder who it was and what her story was. So I started out on a
literary search for her, and was initially under the impression that this was
one Suguna or Sugandha bai as others had alluded. But as I checked deeper and
harder I felt that Sugandha was perhaps a fictional character and then again, the
Milkmaid, in comparison was not one of the well rounded buxom girls as was
common in other Ravi Varma pictures.  |
| Rajibai Moolgavkar |
As I studied Varma’s life over a period of time, I read that
he did meet a number of girls as he travelled around India, always trying to
find the right face for his paintings, some from high society and some from the
lowest of societies. And thus the face of a girl bathing at a bathing ghat became
the coy modern girl in a painting while a Muslim prostitute’s face could end up
in a calendar picture depicting a Hindu goddess. Sugandha bai turned out to be
a fictitious character from Ranjit Desai’s novel on Varma and she went on to
become the central character in a Malayalam and later a Hindi film. As I
perused the topic, I meandered through the side lanes of Girgoan and Walkeshwar
at Malabar hill and the turbulent South Bombay of the late 1890’s and early
1900’s.
And that is how I got to studying the story of three of his muses, two of them turning out to be fascinating people on their own. One became a fine exponent of Hindustani music (you can still hear her recordings) and the other turned out to be a socialite in Madras. The third remained elusive and perhaps was the face behind the milkmaid. But to hear their stories, I have to take you to the Bombay as it was at the turn of the 20th century, home to those in rags, home to the rich, home to those with dreams and home to depravity.
By 1890, Bombay was a teeming city, housing some 900,000
people and many of the new immigrants lived in poverty and unsanitary
conditions (not that it is any different now!). Stagnant air and filth added to
the woes of the crowded masses. But it was still so different from sleepy South
Indian towns and boasted of electricity, gas as well as horse driven tram ways
(electric trams came by only in 1907). Since 1877, ice (Iced Sherbet was
something Ravi Varma enjoyed) was available locally and was no longer imported
from Boston USA. The Victoria terminus station had been inaugurated in 1887.
The motor car came in 1898 and Ravi Varma was one of the first to paint it.
Movies were not yet shown until 1908 and it was a Ravi Varma associate, the
famous Dadasaheb Phalke who brought the silent Indian movie to Bombay in 1913,
7 years after Varma’s death. Cigarettes, telephones, horse races and
phonographs were popular, and many games including cricket were catching up,
with Parsees and wealthy Seth’s being the local representation among the
British gentry. People went to watch plays, photography was popular, with
newspapers being the medium to disseminate information to the upper class.
That was the Bombay Ravi Varma and his brother came to like,
visit and spend stretches of time between 1881 and 1904. Life was not always
benign or calm, for there were the Parsee-Muslim riots in 1893 and then the
second wave of plague hit the city in 1896-97. The bubonic plague of 1896 was
to decimate the population at the rate of 22 per 1000. The efforts of Dr Viegas
and J Tata to reduce its impact were no match for the destructive power of
plague, cholera and TB all of which were endemic in South Bombay and the city’s
mood, nothing better than desultory, and it was a time when Bombay was termed
the Morgue of India. Shops, schools and colleges were closed, bazaars were
abandoned and infected people forcefully moved away. But at the same time, the
rich enjoyed life as usual, theaters and dance halls full. Singers, painters
and other purveyors of art feverishly sought wealthy patrons. Ravi Varma was
one among them, albeit a better known and popular artist.
While Malabar hill and Breach candy were frequented by the upper
class, the middle class teemed the vicinity of Girgaon. Predominantly Maharashtrian,
the place also had a number of dadas and mawalis and virtually all males chewed
pan with tobacco, a habit Varma was to soon pick up. Goan immigrants and among
them many representing the fields of music and dance as well as the flesh trade
lived there. That was the area where the Varma brothers Ravi and Raja were
headed to. Their visits became frequent, but off and on between 1881 and 1894.
Ravi Varma had decided to try his fortunes in Bombay after
enjoying a fruitful period at Baroda where he had found patronage thanks to Madhava
Rao who was previously the Dewan of Travancore.
Some of his finest paintings were created during the period when Sayajirao
Gaekwad III was his patron. He had done well at the Baroda palace and Gaekwad
allowed some of the paintings to be exhibited in nearby Bombay around 1891
where Varma’s mythological series quickly became a sensation. Demand for his
paintings were high and Sayajirao suggested that he order oleograph copies of
some of his paintings from Germany. Varma instead decided to set up his own
press and also take on painting commissions from the wealthy. He commanded high
rates (Rs 1500 or thereabouts per portrait) and planned to start a studio and a
lithographic press at Kalbadevi. Ravi did wish to go to Europe from what I read,
but the fear of losing caste (ocean taboo) made him drop that idea.
It was finally in 1892 that the by now famous 46 year old
painter and member of the Kilimanoor Kovilakom took the plunge and moved to live
at the Setna lodge (they purchased their own house in Gangadevi road only in
1903) at Girgaon. In those days salons in Bombay imported nude pictures from
Germany as lithographs and these were commonplace. This was the business Ravi
Varma decided to concentrate in, replacing those pictures with Indian faces (and
for that reason he is termed a nationalist painter) and his other reasoning was
that he desired his art to be seen by thousands, not just the few visitors to
the palaces where his originals were housed. And so the two brothers decided to
become entrepreneurs and start a lithographic press. Ravi spoke many Indian
languages, but Raja was the one adept in English.
Varma decided that he would put the faces of people and gods
in color on these lithograph prints and price them to be affordable to the
public. The machinery was imported from Germany and the money he had earned at
Baroda, was part of the investment. Remember the Khatau group? Well as it
transpires, he consulted some of his friends like Dadabhai Naoroji and Justice
Ranade and on their advice took in as a partner the Bombay industrialist, Govardhandas
Khatau Makhanji. Soon the machinery arrived and he employed a German named Schleizer
to handle the work.
Calendar art soon became a part and parcel of marketing
advertisements and Varma’s press created the images with DadaSaheb (Dhendiraj
Gobind) Phalke (Strange are the fingers of fate, for Phalke had originally been
sent by a rival German group to check out the workings of the successful Ravi
Varma press) taking care of the large scale printing at his Laxmi (Phalke’s
engraving and printing) printing depot. Soon Varma’s images adorned the walls
of houses and shops and were seen on everything, be it matchbox labels,
tobacco, liquor, gripe water or Diwali crackers. Readers must note here that
even though we mention Ravi Varma, the entire affair was a joint effort by the
two brothers working in tandem, Raja and Ravi Varma.
Bal Gangadhar Tilak then leading a revolt against the
British had himself painted by Varma (did you know that Tilak was one of the
persons behind popularizing the Ganesh festival in Bombay?) and Tilak’s Kesari
newspaper promoted Varma’s work. Though Varma made a lot of money, the revenues
dropped due to pirate activities and the effects f plague in Bombay. Ravi Varma
quickly started losing business and racking up expenses and debts. Bombay and
Poona were in turmoil with the plague and Girgaon was badly hit.
Ravi Varma was never a keen businessman and did not take his
finances seriously and soon the brothers had arguments with Khatau. Govardhan’s
split with the brothers was apparently due to his siphoning off of some of the
printed stock and the revenues surreptitiously and this gave the brothers
sleepless nights. With the plague, the brothers had to move frequently and were
subjected to inspections and the problems of quarantining. Later in 1901 they
transferred the studio and press to cooler Ghatakopar, commuting between
Girgaon and Ghtakopar by train. But that was also of little use and since Varma
had to go back to Travancore (as his uncle had passed away in Travancore) business
faltered badly. The brothers had to borrow
Rs. 33,000/- from a friend, Dr. Balachandra Krishna, to buy out Makhanji’s shares
and eventually shifted the press to Karla - Malavli, near Lonavla. Schleizer
and team moved with the press. By 1901, the German purchased the press from
Varma who had lost interest in the enterprise, together with copyright for 89
of the original paintings. Very soon Ravi lost his sheet anchor, travel partner
and friend, his own brother Raja Varma. Though he returned to Bombay, the zest
was gone and soon Ravi Varma went back to Travancore and sadly succumbed to
Diabetes.
This however is not an account of Varma’s fortunes and
misfortunes, but about three lovely ladies who cast an influence on him in those
final years of his life, cut short at the age of 58. These ladies and their
countenances or likeliness’s can be seen in so many of Varma’s paintings today.
One of them is usually the demure beauty representing many a mythological
character or personifying homeliness, another is the face of a more modern
Indian while the third is the common girl.
Foremost among them is Anjanibai Malpekar, today remembered
as an outstanding exponent of
 |
| Anjanibai Malpekar |
She talked about Varma and that first meeting many years
later, at the age of 89, in 1972 remembering those six years of their
relationship vividly, and her interview to a Marathi newspaper provides an
insight into Varma’s character. The close to 35 years separating them was never
an issue. Was the relationship platonic, physical or just so, stimulating as a
muse? We do not know, but we do know that she cast a spell on him and Varma
enjoyed it for she figured in many a painting of his. While some of her
biographers mention that Anjanibai never posed formally for Varma, it is a fact
that she did often. After Varma left back for Travancore, he never painted a
goddess again, and Anjanibai aged just 21 became a mistress of the Gujarati businessman
Ved Vasanji Bhagawandas in 1903. Apparently
she had a big Ravi Varma painting in her home to keep her company and remind
her of the old times. Sometime in 1923 she lost her voice after drinking a
laced drink but was eventually cured by a sadhu named Narayan, though she never
sang in public ever again. Mannadey, Begum Akhtar, Suman Kalyanpur, Pankaj
Udhas, Mahendar Kapoor, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Mangeshkar were other
luminaries who trained under the Bhendi Bazar Gharana Ustads.
Chawla’s book provides further details - Anjanabai remembered
his lovely smile, fondness for tobacco laced paan, for coffee, tea and sweets.
She mentions that Varma found her broad forehead similar to one that Saraswati,
the goddess of knowledge would have had, and was entranced by her music and
sparkling eyes. His eyes became teary often, when she sang, and if it was Shyam
kalyan or Gunakali, he would rest his hands on her forehead and murmur his
favorite shlokas. He laughed easily, smelled of the khus perfume, had an
evocative voice and sparkling eyes, liked dressing in a white kurta or sherwani
and sometimes wore socks with slippers. That was Anajanibai’s Ravi Varma.
 |
| Rajibai |
While at Bombay, and elsewhere, the Varma brothers were
always abreast of the happenings in the art scene in Europe and subscribed to
papers, books and magazines. It was this thirst for knowledge that led to a friendship
with the English painter Frank Brooks who was briefly employed as a tutor for
Raja Varma. The Moolgavkar sisters (the ‘lady with a fan’ painting was Brook’s
portrait of Rajibai and was commissioned by Ravi Varma himself) were also
Kalavants from Goa and one of them Rajibai was a regular at his studio. The
brothers continued the relationship with her for a number of years, for Rajibai’s
father’s portrait was made by Ravi Varma before raji became a model for him. We
see mentions of Raja varnishing the portrait three years later and hear of the
death of Raji’s mother and of her infant son. Her sisters were also to figure
in some of Varma’s paintings. Rajibai herself can be seen in many of his paintings
including the milkmaid, but we see a pointer in Raja’s diary that she probably
had a relationship with Varma’s friend Bapuji later on. The round faced woman
in many of his paintings is either the pretty and homely Anjanibai or Rajibai
in a sari.
From the diary it appears that the brothers were not too
forward and even took to boating to gaze at the bathing bodies on the ghats in Walkeshwar.
As critics explain, the face, shape and color for a god or goddess in the
popular Indian mind was created by Varma. And believe it or not, those very
paintings popularized the wearing of a Sari all over India and the clothing of
the actors and actresses of early Bollywood.
 |
| Alloo Khareghat |
Was there a Sugandhabai in Varma’s life as alluded by Ranjit
Desai in his novel? Doubtful for Raja Varma has not mentioned her at all, but
then again, he did not even mention Anjanabai in the diary. Nevertheless,
though these three women influenced the paintings of Varma and his life, you
can also come across faces of models like Kashi Bai, yet another Kalavant from
Goa.
Ravi left the city of Bombay, a city he loved, finally in
1904 and was a shattered man after the death of his brother though he did
produce the puranic masterpieces at the Mysore palace during that time. His
stays away from Travancore and tiffs with his royal relatives (and Varma’s
threat of being excommunicated for his life in Bombay) are all interesting
stories, but when he came back, he even renovated the Kilimanoor palace. You
get snippets from the diary, that of his visit to the Malayali club in Bombay, and
of the brother’s habit of weighing themselves at the railway station often.
They were also sick with increasing regularity during the later years and we
see that Ravi was intent on retiring at 60, which some say is in line with
Hindu practice. Many think that he was a one man factory, but Raja, his brother
had a hand in many of those famous paintings, touching them up, doing
backgrounds or completing them. Many a famous portrait had even more input from
Raja Varma than Ravi. The hustle and bustle of Bombay kept the brothers on
their toes with many a sitting going on in parallel as they studied photographs
and books from Europe, while at the same time enjoying a lavish life.
Like always Varma had his detractors, some like Vivekanda
and Coomaraswamy who mention that Ravi Varma produced trash. Great as they are,
I disagree, for after all art appreciation is purely from the eyes of the
beholder.
Today you see Ravi Varma copies everywhere, and if you go to
Kerala, these prints are so commonplace. Perhaps that was what Ravi wanted, to
get his art into as many homes as possible but he also hated the plagiarism. Ravi Varma despaired at a time when copyright
was absent, worrying how good art could be protected, and it was finally his
friend Gopal Krishna Gokhale who brought out a promulgation protecting art. But
all that is gone and you can get Ravi Varma print copies at every gulley around
Guruvayoor temple, or the internet for example.
Varma’s studios in Bombay did not survive the ravages of
time, but the unit in Malvali, the one which was sold to Schleicher, was passed
on to his progeny and recently got sold - lock stock and barrel to one Vijayanath
Shenoy who has housed all of it in a museum in Manipal. The trust at Manipal
now has nearly 100 litho stones with the impression of Ravi Varma’s paintings.
Ravi Varma’s art and Anjanibai’s music live on……
References
Art and Nationalism in Colonial India, 1850-1922: Occidental
Orientations - Partha Mitter
Arts of Transitional India Twentieth Century, Volume 1 - Vinayak
Purohit
Raja Ravi Varma, Portrait of an artist – edited Erwin
Neumayer, Christine Schelberger
Raja Ravi Varma – Rupika Chawla
Raja Ravi Varma – the painter prince – Parsram Mangharam
The Sketch: A Journal of Art and Actuality, Volume 40
The Cloister's Pale: A Biography of the University of Mumbai
- Aruṇa Ṭikekara
Parsi portraits from the studio of RR Varma – Priya Maholay
Jaradi
Before the brush dropped – Documentary on RRV by Vinod
Mankara
Photos – from google images and The Raja diaries by
Neumayer/Scelberger – acknowledged with many thanks
Note
Varma also had a wooden model which was a base for many of
his paintings. He not only painted Hindu subjects but also Islamic and
Christian themes. It was Vinod Mankara the person behind a fine documentary,
who directed me to the fact that Rajibai was perhaps the Milkmaid. He also mentioned
in a newspaper interview - “Ravi Varma would have been known as a prodigious
poet, if he had failed as a painter,” states Mankara, who located 500 poems
written by the artist. According to him, each painting was followed by a poem
that is vouched by the works ‘Ragamalika’ and ‘Manasa yathra.’
The story of how one Ramaswamy Naidu, a court painter of
Travancore, became an influence to him will be told another day, and if you observe
the paintings done by Naidu, you will also notice the likeness in style.
