Keechaka and Sairandhri

Raja Ravi Varma's "Keechaka and Sairandhri" (1890) is yet another scene from the Virata Parva of Vyasa's "Mahabharata", and it is one of those paintings where the discomfort associated with the scene becomes immediately visible even before a person knows the context to it. The woman shown in this painting, the one who is hiding behind the curtain is actually Draupadi, but she is under living under the name "Sairandhri" at the moment. Since this happens during the final year of exile which they had to spend in complete disguise, after they had already finished twelve years of exile in the woods, they simply cannot let themselves be recognized in this final year, because then they would have to start over their exile from the very beginning. Because of this all of the Pandavas and Draupadi had to enter the court of Virat in disguises to hide their real identities. Yudhishthira pretended to be Kanka, a councilor well versed in playing dice; Bhima became the cook Ballava; Arjuna disguised himself as Brihannala; Nakula disguised himself as a horse-keeper and trainer named Granthika; and Sahadeva as a cowherd and cattle-caretaker named Tantipala; while Draupadi becomes Queen Sudeshna's maid-in-waiting. This disguise itself is important because Draupadi, who is actually a queen, is now in such a vulnerable position that she has practically no social protection, which is exploited by Keechaka. Now Keechaka was the commander of King Virata's army, and also the brother of Queen Sudeshna, which of course meant that he already held a lot of political and military power in the palace. And he saw Sairandhri at the court, he immediately develops a very deep attracter towards her, and even though she repeatedly refuses his advances, he continues to pursue her regardless. Draupadi even warns Keechaka numerous times that she is under the protection of her strong Gandharva husbands and that approaching her improperly would destroy him. However, Keechaka ignores all such warnings given by Draupadi. Ultimately, giving in to her brother's demands to send Draupadi to him, Queen Sudeshna asks Draupadi to fetch wine from Keechaka's quarters, despite Draupadi fearing the whole matter, and even openly expressing fear and reluctance regarding the situation. This is the very critical juncture which is portrayed by Ravi Varma in this painting. More precisely, this is the moment right when Draupadi, carrying a golden vessel, is sent to Keechaka's quarters where he tries to assault her. What makes the painting especially effective is the contrast Ravi Varma creates between the two figures. Keechaka is portrayed as leaning forward with outstretched arms and an assured smile on his face, as though inviting Sairandhri into the room. There doesn't seem to be any indication of guilt in his expressions about what he is doing. He might even believe that the refusal of Sairandhri is merely her shyness and not fear at all. On the other hand, Draupadi is portrayed partially hidden behind the curtain as if trying to remain away from the room itself. This very expression on her face becomes the main point of emotional focus of the entire painting. While Keechaka seems confident about what he is doing, Sairandhri seems scared and trapped. The painting portrays the eyes of Draupadi widened out of anxiety. One hand of hers is depicted as outstretched, as if trying to stop him from getting any closer, as she defends herself against the man who is about to molest her. This also applies to the clothing of both characters, which depicts the roles they are playing in the narrative. Keechaka is wearing royal and luxurious clothes with jewelry, decorations, and a feathered crown-like headdress, which immediately shows his status, prosperity, and power. He is comfortable in the palace setting since he owns as well as controls this space. Draupadi, on the other hand, is dressed in a much more subdued manner as Sairandhri. This is because of the dark-colored and simple clothes that depict her role as an attendant and not a queen. Ravi Varma takes advantage of this aspect since even though the viewers know who she is, they are still reminded visually through her clothing and helplessness that she still has to hide for the time being. Even the lighting contributes to this imbalance. While Keechaka is lit more brightly near the center of the composition, Sairandhri is left mostly in shadows in the extreme corner of the painting, that too behind a curtain that almost hides her entirely. The tray with the golden vessel that she was carrying before, even that lies on the floor, which further enhances the intensity of the scene, for she must have dropped it when Keechaka tried to assault her and she had to take a few steps back in fear. Coming to the artist of this painting, the interior of the palace itself, with its carpets, draperies, and textures, very clearly demonstrates the artist's fascination with the European academic realism with its focus on fabrics, textures, anatomy, emotions, and space. This link with European academic realism is crucial for the understanding of the significance of Ravi Varma in the history of Indian art. Indeed, during the nineteenth century, European academic art placed special emphasis on realism in terms of anatomy, perspective, lighting, emotionality, and textures. The artist was quite familiar with all these approaches, which he implemented into his own artistic practice by means of oil painting. While earlier Indian paintings tended to present mythological characters rather schematically or symbolically, Ravi Varma depicted them in realistic terms, making them look like real humans with emotions. Thus, in such paintings as "Keechaka and Sairandhri," characters from the maha-kavya "Mahabharata" start looking like real people rather than divine heroes from stories far and wide with whom real people could never truly connect to. This was one of the major reasons why Ravi Varma became so influential in shaping modern Indian visual imagination. His paintings strongly affected later calendar art, mythological prints, theatre aesthetics, and eventually even Indian cinema. Yet, at the same time, some of the critiques that have been leveled against paintings by Ravi Varma could be mentioned in relation to his works, especially when it comes to idealization of feminine beauty and recurring representation of Draupadi as fair-skinned woman in later visual traditions. However, in "Keechaka and Sairandhri," the focus of the painting remains less on aestheticizing Draupadi and more on the imbalance of power between the two figures. Therefore, the discussions surrounding the "male gaze," while still relevant, may not feel as central here as they do in some of Ravi Varma's other works. Overall, "Keechaka and Sairandhri" (1891) becomes significant not simply because it was part of one of the most important Upa-Parvas (the Keechak-Vadh Parva) from the Virat Parva of the "Mahabharata" painted beautifully on canvas, but rather because it captures the fear, power, and approaching violence very psychologically. And it is also the discomfort it brings that makes this painting so relevant even today.

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