A 2002 acrylic on canvas by modernist Tyeb Mehta was sold at auction for ₹ 69.1 crore, setting a record for the artist. The sum surpassed the ₹ 61.80 crore achieved for Trussed Bull at a Saffronart auction in Mumbai in April 2025.
“A Tyeb Mehta at ₹ 69.1 crore is a world record for the artist, and among the highest Indian artworks sold at auction. Jiwarajka showed the works to collectors in Mumbai, New Delhi, New York, Dubai and London before opening the bidding on October 11 for a 12-hour window. The bidding started at ₹ 33 crore, Jiwarajka said. The sum includes a buyer’s premium of 15%. It was a monochromatic work and sold at a Christie’s sale in 2004.
It shows what Indian modernism is worth when a museum-grade work meets serious buyers. The solitary figure was a symbol of labour as well as alienation. Tyeb never let us forget that what we are looking at is a sign of bondage. Tyeb believed that human struggle deserved to be at the core of his practise.
“Wealthy Indians are finally realising that art is a serious asset class, and store of value,” said Tushar Jiwarajka, the auctioneer who made the sale. “One of the earliest Rickshaw Pullers that he made,” said art critic Uma Nair, “was in 1961. This sensitivity of the artist resonates even today.”
