[2][3] Rajan, hailing from Pallikkal - a small village near Cheruthuruthy in the Thrissur district of Kerala - was born as the sixth of seven children of Mandalaparambil Krishnan and Narayani.
He received his early education at the Government High School in Cheruthuruthy, and enrolled for BA Economics at NSS College, Ottapalam.
[4][5][6][7] In 1996, after completing MFA, Rajan returned to his home State, opting to work from there instead of migrating to large metros of India like many of his contemporaries were doing at that time.
[8] For three years, Rajan lived and worked in Thiruvananthapuram - serving as a Guest Lecturer at his alma mater, the College of Fine Arts Trivandrum.
Finally, in 2004, his first solo show was held at Kashi Art Gallery, founded by the late Anoop Skaria and Dorrie Younger in Fort Kochi.