A photo of a re-creation shared as the original painting of Raja Ravi Varma - FACTLY
Sai Krishna Muthyanolla
July 12, 2021
A couple of photos are being shared on the internet with a claim that they show the paintings of Raja Ravi Varma (on the left) and Leonardo da Vinci (on the right). The author of the post complains that most of the people might have never seen Raja Ravi Varma’s painting but must have seen Leonardo da Vinci’s painting multiple times because of the marketing and propaganda lobbies. Let’s fact-check the claim made in the post.
Claim: Photo of Raja Ravi Varma’s painting.
Fact: The posted image is not a painting. It is a photograph taken as part of the re-creation of Raja Ravi Varma’s painting – ‘Radha in the Moonlight’. The woman in the photo is an actress. Hence, the claim made in the post is MISLEADING.
When the left image was cropped and run through Google Reverse Image Search, the same image was found to be posted on an Instagram page. In the description, it is written – “Raja Ravi Varma recreation series with @swati194 😍 | wonderful captures by the team @sruvamstudios”. Also, on the posted photo, it can be noticed that the name of ‘Sruvam Studios’ is written. So, when we searched for the photo on the Instagram profile of ‘Sruvam Studios’, the photo was found to be uploaded by them on 16 June 2019. Other similar photos and a making video can be seen on their profile.
The woman in the photo is Swathi; she is a well-known actress who has acted in several South Indian films. The same photo has been also uploaded on her official page. The original painting (‘Radha in the Moonlight’) can be seen here.
The details regarding Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa painting can be read here.
To sum it up, a photo of a re-creation is shared as the original painting of Raja Ravi Varma.