Dive into Indian modern art with this painting exhibition in Colaba

In the hierarchy of modern Indian art there are few individuals who embraced the sense of absurd and tragicomic as the late Bhupen Khakhar did The Mumbaiborn Khakhar was a rare selftaught artist whose style transcended popular and critical aesthetics and delved into issues of class gender and sexuality with nuance The exhibition Bhupen Khakhar BodyShrine at Akara Modern this week looks into some rare works that offer some more insight into this key figure of Indian modern artMan With A Pitcher watercolour on paper Pics CourtesyAkara ModernldquoThe exhibition covers a wide range of subjectsrdquo shares Puneet Shah founder Akara Art Khakhar was a Padma Shriawardee and often called lsquoIndiarsquos first pop artistrsquo ldquoThe focus is the male body but it is not just limited to that There is more to his perspective and undertones that humanises his workrdquo he explainsThe collection of 11 artworks stemmed from one central piece mdash Handsome Twins of Tatanagar Shah reveals ldquoIt is a wonderful work and follows an interesting story told by Khakhar It was about two men he came across during a visit to Tatanagar While they were not great to look at their smiles were beautiful he saidrdquoA view of the gallery spaceThis perspective set Khakhar apart Curator Girish Shahane writes ldquoPeople who look like this are not conventionally placed in narratives of passion but that is where Khakhar frequently located them Beginning in the 1980s the artist explored his sexuality with steadily increasing candourrdquoFor Shah the works preceded the story The exhibition is the result of attempts across several years to bring these paintings to Mumbai ldquoFour of these works come from a collector in The Netherlands who was a close friend and often hosted Khakhar and several Indian artists during workshops in the city It was when the decision to host the four works were confirmed that we then built around the themerdquoAmong the works is a painting from the artistrsquos final years made in 2003 It dates back to his trip to Sri Lanka with some friends when his health had begun to fade The painting captures a sleeping Buddha with vignettes of Buddhist rituals and learnings circling him ldquoSteep steps overhanging rocks and flowing curved lines make for a complex painting that oscillates between restfulness and agitation It is difficult not to infer that it reflects the artistrsquos state of mind in his final daysrdquo states ShahaneMan With A Pitcher watercolour on paper Pics CourtesyAkara ModernShah remarks that Khakharrsquos individuality set him apart The selftaught artist went from being an accountant to exploring styles after being influenced by David Hockney and Howard Hodgkin during a visit to the UK ldquoBhupen is not coloured by academic training His works are simple Most of them are literal They have many undertones and connotations that emerge but his art was as you saw itrdquo The exhibit also captures the artist in his element the founder adds ldquoIf you take the works on exhibit at this show they are all from the decade of the 1990s This was a period when Bhupen had already come out of the closet He had been comfortable in his own skin and his own artistic style and rendering of the water colours Those emotions are visible in the worksrdquoPuneet ShahFor all the focus on his sexual identity it was his perception and malleable style that made Khakhar unique in the annals of Indian modern art As the artist had revealed during a speech at The Arts Council of Great Britain in 1983 ldquoI think your own weakness should also be reflected in painting One canrsquot hide oneself behind a paintingrdquo For Mumbaikars it will be a chance to witness these features againFrom July 11 to August 17 11 am to 630 pmAT Akara Modern 32 Mereweather Road Colaba Call 7208488979