Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...

Gangadahra Koviladhikarikal Sri Ravi Varma (1865–1946) was the

Cochin Kochi (), also known as Cochin ( ) ( the official name until 1996) is a major port city on the Malabar Coast of India bordering the Laccadive Sea, which is a part of the Arabian Sea. It is part of the district of Ernakulam in the state of K ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

in 1943–46. Ravi Varma was born on 29 November 1865, in Tripunithura, then part of British India. Maharaja Gangadahra Koviladhikarikal Sri Ravi Varma ruled Cochin from 1943 to 1946. He was the Elaya Raja (crown prince) until his brother

Midukkan Thampuran Kerala Varma VI GCIE (c. 1863 – 13 October 1943) was the ruler of the Kingdom of Cochin from 23 May 1941 to 23 October 1943. Reign Kerala Varma ascended the throne on the death of Rama Varma XVII. He was a younger brother of Rama Varma XVI. ...

died on 13 October 1943. He ascended the throne at the age of 78 years. Although his reign was short, he was very popular with the people of Cochin. He was known for his spirit of equality, and the way he got along with the common people despite the vast economic inequality prevailing in those times. A very well educated man for his time, he was fluent in English, Hindi, Malayalam, Sanskrit and to some extent Urdu. Maharaja Ravi Varma was admired for his painting skills and was very well versed in oil painting. Maharaja Ravi Varma was possibly also a famous player of Polo during his youth. Ravi Varma V was married to Kamakshi Nethiyar. They had four children: Balagopalan, Chandrasekharan, DevakiNandanan and UmaLakshmi Amma. Their daughter UmaLakShmi Amma married Rama Varma Thampuran and gave birth to Valia Thampuran of the Cochin Royal Family SaradaMani Varma. Maharaja Ravi Varma died of natural causes in 1946 at the age of 81 years (Makara 18th, 1121 M.E), in

Tripunithura Thrippunithura or Tripunithura (), is a prominent historical and residential region in the City of Kochi in Kerala, India. Located about 7 km (4 mi) from the city centre, Tripunithura was the capital of the erstwhile Kingdom of Cochin ...

. A 17 gun salute was given to him. His Maternal Cousin, Maharaja Sri Kerala Varma, popularly known as Ikyakeralam Thampuran ascended to the throne after his death.

External links

Rulers of CochinCochin
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ravi Varma 05 1865 births 1946 deaths Rulers of Cochin