Photo gallery on Travancore royal house opened

"The princes and members of the royal family have set a role model by their honesty, modesty and simplicity," Antony said at the inauguration of a photo gallery on the royal family.

"I am not an advocate of royal rule. I believe in democracy. Still, I have always been amazed by the humble lifestyle of the Travancore princes and princesses," he said of the royal house which ruled south Kerala before integration of the princely state into the Indian Union in 1947.

The photo gallery, set up in the Ranga Vilasam Palace near the famous Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple, would not only bring joy to common visitors but also help those studying history and culture of the former princely state, he said.

The gallery, named after the present head of the royal house Uthradam Tirunal Marthanda Varma, has an immense collection of rare photographs which throw light on the history of the princely state.

Conceived and arranged by noted photo journalist B Jayachandran, the "Chitrayalay" has 220 rare photographs categorised in different sections with footnotes.

Many of the photos belong to the personal collection of Uthradam Tirunal, himself an avid photographer.

An aerial view of Sree Padmanabha Swamy Temple, taken by Uthradam Tirunal from an aircraft in 1939 and the photo of Travancore royal family members on the Kovalam beach in 1940 are some of the rare shots on display.

The pictures are arranged under such sections as "Dynasty Room", "Family Album", "Moments of History", "Peep Into the Past", "Royal Collections", "Sri Chitra Chamber" and "Travancore Down the Ages."

A book titled "Visual History of Travancore," published by Malayala Manorama, was released on the occasion and the Chitralayam's website was also launched.

Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy, former Governor of West Bengal Gopalkrishna Gandhi, Uthradam Tirunal and other members of the royal family and Executive Editor of Malayala Manorama Jacob Mathew attended the event.