India’s renowned spiritual artist was born on the dusk of 10th March, 1966 in Mumbai, India . Udayraj, a qualified, practicing psychologist who abruptly woke up to a spiritual call at the age 24, started oil painting on canvas overnight without having any previous training. It is an innate skill which is developed with intense dedication and devotion. Persistence, patience, philosophy, passion, and poetry have followed him through thirty high profile, one man shows uncovering over 1500 paintings in just 11 years. Needless to say these formative years have lead this mystic painter through a storm of controversies, critical acclaims, intellectual provocations and major recognitions for outstanding contributions and achievements in the field of fine arts.

On March 5th, 2000, Udayraj took “Sadhak Diksha” at the opening of his Shiv Shakti Pithum Raj Gurukulam, Goa, adorning the spiritual name - “Sadhak Shivaanand Saraswati”. Today, he is acknowledged as the founder of “THE SPIRITUAL ART MOVEMENT”. His in-depth study of ancient manuscripts cover a wide spectrum from the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, Tantra, Yantra, Mantra, Hinduism, Sufism, Buddhism, Zen to Jainism. This is considered as an unique dimension in the art world.

“Painting is ‘Tapasya’ - a meditative process” Says The Sage of Indian contemporary Art, Sadhak Shivaanand Saraswati.

P. C. Patel

Born in 1925 in Gondal, India. Praful Patel came to Mumbai in 1945 as a 20 year old when the country was in the momentous throes of the "QUIT INDIA" movement, he began by documenting every event before, on and after India's first Independence Day. At the early age of 27, he was appointed chief photographer for the FORD FOUNDATION pilot project on rural INDIA and held notable assignments in the Bhabha Research Center in Trombay, India.

One of his more celebrated works has been an elaborate photo essay on Shiva for the late Dr. Stella Kramrisch, one of the most distinguished art historians of our time and curator of Indian Art at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in 1976 and then later "Manifestations of Shiva" a traveling show in museums in America in 1981. The large scale photo mural at the International Exhibition Pavilion in LONDON was soon followed in 1983 by an assignment to photograph and document the heritage buildings at Alkhobar, Saudi Arabia.

All are examples of an intense involvement that is ubiquitous in all of his work. His works have earned him many International Awards. A book called 'VIEWFINDER'S JOURNEY' documenting his lifetime's work was released at the occasion to commemorate his achievements on his 75th birthday in December 2000.

As for the viewfinder of the camera, in Praful's words it is like a "Third Eye" for anyone who can use that instrument and see through it. It can be like a window to see and explore the unknown, or like the invisible eye of the mind that enables us to reflect upon images from within. This little optical "Trilochan" has immense potential and even an entire lifetime devoted to the "viewfinder". Journey is not enough to bring into focus many splendid forms from the exterior and interior worlds. But every single moment spent in that quest is one of inexpressible joy.