Ram Kumar, like few other painters dabbled into other streams before finally taking a plunge in the beautiful world of Indian art. He did have the interest in art but it was not before he completed his Masters degree in Economics from Delhi University that he decided to take the plunge. Once he completed his Masters, he moved to art goldmine world of Paris to study painting. He learned the nuances from famous Andre Lhote and Fernand Leger. He made rapid strides and soon he was awarded with prestigious Rockefeller Fellowship in 1970. That says about the man’s passion and talent.
Ram Kumar’s Paintings always had a touch of reality. He has wonderfully depicted alienation of urban population. Talk about sad conditions of humans and you have this painter who captured all these emotions on his canvas. Whether you talk about hostile conditions and lonely humans in the city, Ram Kumar has simply mesmerized the world with his depiction of hopelessness. He has greatly covered the holy city of Varanasi.
Ram Kumar’s Varanasi has earned great acclaim and critical fame. His Varanasi is without any hopes and dilapidated with mass covered houses. His abstract paintings wonderfully represent artist’s sordid interpretation of the city. He does not magnify quaint ghats of Varanasi and neither has he boasted about erstwhile purity of the city. He showcases what Varanasi has become; the urban nightmare. He portrays the greed of the human inhabitants of the place. It’s truly heart-wrenching. Ram Kumar has won several awards including Padmashree by the Govt. of India in 1972 and Kalidas Samman by the Madhya Pradesh State Govt. he has also earned acclaim as Hindi Short storywriter.
