Udayraj Gadnis

India’s renowned spiritual artist UDAYRAJ A. GADNIS was born on the dusk of March 10, 1966 in Mumbai, India, to the famous classical dancer, a Kathak exponent, Maa Geentanjali Barve Gadnis and to the illustrious Cinematographer Shri Anant V Gadnis, in a Saraswat Brahmin family, which has retained its roots in Kashmir but had bloomed in Goa. Udayraj now lives and paints in London.

By 1993 Udayraj was already a qualified practicing psychologist from University of Bombay, India, who had abruptly woken up to an inner spiritual call at the age of 24 and started oil painting on canvas! In Udayraj’s words: “This is the only twilight zone of my life!” He had received no formal or informal training in painting. It is an inborn skill which is nurtured and developed with intense dedication and devotion. In 2013 he went to England and got his 2nd masters this time in Fine Arts, from University of Middlesex London, UK.

Persistence, patience, philosophy, passion and poetry has seen him deliver 34 high profile one-man shows at the national and international level, with well over 2,000 paintings created in a span of 25+ years. Needless to say, his formative years saw this mystic painter through a storm of controversies, critical acclaims, intellectual provocations and some major recognitions for the outstanding contributions and achievements in the field of fine arts.

On 5th March 2000, Udayraj took “Sadhak Diksha” at the opening of his Adhyatmic Raj Gurukulam, Goa; adorning a spiritual name -“Sadhak Shivananda Saraswati” and for 14 years (ek tap) he lived / travelled and painted as an spiritual seeker after which he the founded “THE SPIRITUAL ART MOVEMENT”. His indepth study and research in ancient manuscripts cover a wide spectrum from Hinduism, Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, Yantra, Mantra, Tantra, Sufism, Buddhism, Zen, Tao, Indian Music Ragas to Jainism. This is considered as an unique dimension in the art world. It is believed that a Mystic Guru is a Master of 64 Arts. From being called “The Prince of Indian Contemporary Art” to “The Sage of Indian Contemporary Art”, he has come a long way. Much can be said about him, but a mystic can be known only through the power of self-realization.