Indian art is having its breakout moment. Here’s who’s driving it

In a matter of weeks, a trio of blockbuster art auctions across New York and Mumbai raked in more than ₹220 crore, with modern masters like M.F. Husain and Tyeb Mehta smashing records once reserved for Western icons.

The biggest headline came from Christie’s in New York, where Husain’s monumental Gram Yatra sold for ₹118 crore—the highest price ever paid for an Indian artwork. Not far behind, Mehta’s Trussed Bull fetched ₹61.8 crore at Saffronart’s Mumbai sale, nearly nine times its high estimate. At Sotheby’s in New York, Jagdish Swaminathan’s Homage to Solzhenitsyn crossed ₹39 crore.

After years of quiet momentum, India’s art market has entered a new phase of global relevance—driven not just by wealth, but by strategic repositioning, institutional power, and a swelling wave of collectors who view art not just as culture, but as capital.

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“The surge in demand is being driven by the onset of a new crop of collectors, not just the older well-heeled ones but even a younger lot who have equal love for the masters as well as the globally renowned lot of mid-career masters,” said Delhi-based independent critic and curator Uma Nair. While Husain, Raza and Mehta remain anchors of the market, contemporary names like Jitish Kallat, Atul Dodiya and Bharti Kher are also drawing attention.

A new kind of buyer

Veteran buyers like Kiran Nadar still dominate, but younger, digital-savvy collectors are entering the fray—fuelling record prices and a broader appetite for both modern masters and contemporary stars.

While Nadar placed the winning bid for Husain’s Gram Yatra, emerging names like Shankh Mitra are stepping into the spotlight too. Mitra was among the final contenders for the historic Husain sale, and reflects what Nair calls an example of “the desire for accumulating art as an asset.”

Jaiveer Johal, a logistics business owner in Chennai, began collecting modern and contemporary Indian art about a decade ago, when he was 28. He soon widened his collection—moving swiftly from modern to contemporary to classicals.

Now 36, Johal calls his collection “aesthetically focused.” It includes paintings by S.H. Raza and F.N. Souza, as well as sculptures and miniatures from classical traditions, such as Gandhara and Vijayanagara-period pieces.

“The most notable is the emergence of young collectors, looking specifically at contemporary art and the average collector is between 40-50 years, the younger collectors have begun to collect as early as 30,” AstaGuru’s CEO, Tushar Sethi had told Mint in an earlier conversation.

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With major galleries and a wave of new collectors driving art events across the country, Nair said, “Great artworks reflect the market dynamics, and are positioned with a clear sense of how they stand out among the many styles that appeal to today’s new generation of collectors.”

This boom isn’t just about deeper pockets. It’s being powered by a wider, younger base—many of them digital-first, collecting well beyond traditional names.

“There is a confidence in the market that cannot be denied,” said Minal Vazirani, co-founder of auction house Saffronart. “Since the pandemic, we’ve seen increasing wealth and interest, and now there’s a new segment of younger, digital-native collectors alongside seasoned ones.” She added that the Indian art market has doubled since 2020—from ₹700 crore to over ₹1,400 crore.

According to Nair, the art boom mirrors India’s economic story.

“The Indian economy and its many facets of meteoric momentum in addition to wealth, have all added to the records that have fuelled strong market dynamics,” Nair told Mint. Record-breaking sales, she added, “tell us of the rites of passage in the hands of a group of collectors.”

The market gets hotter

The numbers tell the story.

March alone brought in ₹470 crore in global sales—nearly a fourth of FY25’s full-year total, according to Asign Data Sciences. Analysts say this surge, years in the making, is likely to carry well into 2025.

And if Saffronart’s April auction is any sign, the rally is just getting started. That sale alone topped ₹245 crore, setting a new global benchmark for South Asian art with a 100% sell-through rate. Highlights included Amrita Sher-Gil’s Still Life with Green Bottles and Apples ( ₹24 crore), F.N. Souza’s Supper at Emmaus ( ₹15.3 crore), and Edwin Lord Weeks’ Lake at Oodeypore ( ₹12 crore).

Seven artists set new global price benchmarks, including Nalini Malani’s Nursery Tales at ₹3.36 crore—over five times its estimate.

AstaGuru and Pundole’s also reported strong demand for both marquee names and rarer historical pieces. A 1903 Riddhisiddhi Ganpati—once part of the Fritz Schleicher collection—fetched ₹16 crore at Pundole’s, doubling its high estimate.

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At AstaGuru, Jehangir Sabavala’s In The Ambush Of A Calm sold for ₹3.8 crore in February, while a 1980 J. Swaminathan canvas, Bird Tree Mountain, fetched ₹2.56 crore—underscoring a growing collector appetite beyond the usual trio of Husain, Mehta and Raza.

“Culture is a logical extension of financial prosperity. The momentum for the Indian art market began during the pandemic and it is continuing,” said Dadiba Pundole, whose gallery has watched the build-up since the pandemic.

“By and large, Indians are buying the blue-chip works, and rare or special works have recently come to the market and broken barriers like crossing $10 million, demonstrating that the market is becoming more discerning. But as the prices of some big names go out of hand, buyers are also considering works that are not very expensive,” Pundole said.

Asign’s data backs that up. In FY25, the highest volume of sales came from the sub- ₹5 lakh price range, suggesting a widening base. At the same time, the ₹5 crore-and-above segment generated 40% of overall turnover, with 244 artworks sold above that level—up 17% from FY24. In the ₹5–10 crore bracket alone, 35 works sold, a 34% jump from the year before.

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“What we’re seeing at the upper end is that older collectors are still buying, but younger collectors are also entering steadily,” added Pundole. “Current trends suggest this upward cycle will continue. While there may be short-term disruptions from stock or macroeconomic shifts, the long-term trajectory is positive. We expect to see more important works entering the market.”

With major auctions lined up in Delhi, London and New York, the story of Indian art’s ascent is still being written. But one thing is clear: it’s no longer waiting in the wings.