At a Christie’s auction in New York’s Rockefeller Center, an untitled work (Gram Yatra) by MF Husain sold for over Rs 118.7 crore ($13.8 million), becoming the most expensive modern Indian painting ever sold. The buyer is reportedly collector and philanthropist Kiran Nadar. Other record-tying sales include Amrita Sher-Gil’s The Story Teller and Tyeb Mehta’s Trussed Bull, each fetching Rs 61.8 crore at SaffronArt auctions, while a Jagdish Swaminathan painting exceeded estimates at Sotheby’s. These results come amid a 19% rise in the top 50 Indian artists’ sales to $36.2 million, per the 2024 Hurun India Art List.
These record-breaking sales mark a watershed moment for Indian art, signaling its growing global market value. However, Indian art still lags far behind Western benchmarks—Husain’s $13.8 million pales next to Klimt’s $108.4 million or Picasso’s $179.4 million. Experts like critic Uma Nair and gallerist Uday Jain call for more originality, better public education, and proactive government support to elevate Indian art internationally. Christie’s specialist Nishad Avari notes the market’s youth, with professional galleries only emerging in the 1950s-60s, suggesting significant room for growth.