Raja Ravi Varma's impact on Indian cinema continues to be significant, even one hundred years later, through his influence on how movies are made. The relationship has existed for more than one hundred years and recently had an international representation in 2026 at the Met Gala, where filmmaker Karan Johar wore a design created by the designer based on Raja's paintings.
The impact of Raja Ravi Varma on Indian art was due to his incorporation of mythical themes with Western painting skills. He depicted gods and goddesses and other members of royalty with an aura of regality and approachability. His paintings were distributed extensively through reproductions.
Raja Ravi Varma and Indian cinema have a direct link via Dadasaheb Phalke, the father of Indian cinema. Phalke worked at the printing press owned by Varma in Mumbai before entering the film industry.
There, he realized the process by which mythological tales were depicted in commercial imagery. This memory stayed with him during the production of his two earliest films, Raja Harishchandra and Mohini Bhasmasur, both of which incorporated the painter’s legacy in terms of costumes, postures, and composition.
Filmmakers have been influenced by Raja Ravi Varma's style for many years since he lived. Sanjay Leela Bhansali has made movies that use bright colour, strong lighting, and framing that look like a painting. Devdas, Bajirao Mastani, and Padmaavat are all good examples of this.
The Baahubali series by SS Rajamouli is another example of the same. The regal figures, the elaborate settings, and the mythological narration all remind one of his art. Figures such as that of Princess Shivagami enacted by actress Ramya Krishnan and Princess Avanthika enacted by actress Tamannaah Bhatia are an apt demonstration of the same.
The legacy of influence was further brought into the spotlight on an international level at the Met Gala 2026, where Karan Johar was seen wearing designs from Manish Malhotra that were inspired directly by Varma’s paintings such as Hamsa Damayanti, Kadambari, Arjuna and Subhadra, and There Comes Papa.
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