After completing his graduation in Malayalam literature, Mr Ramamchandran joined Shantiniketan to study Fine Arts and needless to say he was deeply influenced by all his teachers at this University, particularly Ramkinkar Baij and Nanadalal Bose -

"I am indebted to Nandalal Bose for my development as an artist and a painter. I believe he was the greatest intellectual ever to be born in India. His contribution to philosophy, art and particularly painting has never been surpassed by any other artist".
Ramchandran, like his spiritual and art guru Bose, makes a strong case for Indian aesthetics and for the use of classical Indian images to articulate an ideological position. The painter converted to using archetypal Indian imagery only after years of painting in the modernist vein.
He says that he has been inspired by and extensively used Kerala murals, Nathdwara paintings and Ajanata murals in his works. "There is a certain primacy of line and a decorative element or alankarik in Indian paintings and you can see their use in my works” he contends.
Yet, Ramchandran says, he cateogrises himself as a modern Indian painter. "I don’t use religious images which are such a huge part of Indian art. In fact, I introduce my own iconic images, like any other modernist would do. Only, my figures are more in line with Indian imagery which you find in old caves and temples."

The ITC Maurya collection began with a definitive agenda: to reflect the events and the ethos of the great Mauryan Empire and the main figure undoubtedly was the great ruler King Ashoka.

Ashoka was a man dedicated to peace, and the only emperor in history to forsake warfare after victory in the Kalinga war, devoting the balance of his lifetime serving not only his people, but mankind, with magnanimity and benevolence seldom seen in history. Thus he was able to build the Golden Period of Indian history.

When Mr Ramachandran was invited and commissioned to do some work for ITC Maurya his brief was typically the Mauryan theme. And when he reflected on King Ashoka and the Kalinga war, he thought "No war is a single war. All war is the same. Human suffering is same."

He went on to do two major works for us – one is the most striking sculpture in brass and zinc of Ashoka which is placed at the main lobby and the other one is oil on canvas in three panels "The Vision of War" which is placed on the 12th floor lift lobby.

When we asked him to describe the sculpture and his thought process behind this work he said, “I have used Ashoka’s own inscription against the war and converted these inscription into his body. It’s a well thought out mural. I did the actual work in Garhi studio. I was much younger then and I used various elements in this sculpture”

This is a very important sculpture. Very different elements have gone into making it. What he used in making this zinc and brass work are elements he used in paintings. Ashoka’s hands, head and feet are golden. This element has reference to temple deities and it clearly shows that the artist was influenced by them.

Vision of War

“War is not a single war. All war is the same, Human suffering is the same. So I thought of not only the Kalinga War, but the World War I & II, of the recent Vietnam War and the horse symbolized the raging war. I had images of Hitler, Napoleon and the famous photograph of the young girl running naked on the street after being severely burned on her back by a napalm attack in the Vietnam War. . .”

This work was done in three panels and the canvas was placed on board. The gaiety of the charging horse and the background of the raging fire clearly symbolise the violence and war and yet, an element of subtle colours of the rainbow in front of the horse let us think of peace and optimism . . . and hope.