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M.V. Dhurandhar

(1867 – 1944)

• Watercolour on paper
  1894
  26 x 19 cms
  Signed & dated lower right

Mahadev Vishwanath Dhurandhar is a noted Indian painter He was a popular painter during British rule in India. His illustrations of women in their daily life are especially popular.

He was born in Kolhapur, Maharashtra. He went to Rajaram High School, Kolhapur, and from 1890–95, studied under John Griffiths, at the J.J. School of Art, Bombay.

M. V. Dhurandhar taught art at J. J. School of Art from 1896. In 1910, he became the Head Master and from 1918 - 31 Inspector of Drawing and Craft. He was the Vice-Principal for two years and then retired.
His popular works include documenting the city of Bombay and its people, as well as painting scenes from Hindu mythology and Omar Khayyam series.

A prolific artist, Dhurandhar is said to have made some thousands of paintings and illustrations, including some that were turned into lithographic prints, such as his illustrations for the book Women of India by Otto Rothfield (1920).

Dhurandhar also designed postcards, provided the illustrations for the S. M. Edwardes By-Ways of Bombay (1912) and C. A. Kincaid's Deccan Nursery Tales, besides drawing cartoons for the Gujarati periodicals Aram and Bhoot.

He also made religious illustrations published by the Ravi Varma Press. He wrote an autobiography in Marathi about his years at the J.J. School.