Inarguably India’s most flamboyant modernist who invariably had run-ins with controversies, M. F. Husain is also one of the few artists who became a household name across the nation in their lifetime.
Born on September 17, 1913, in Pandharpur, Maharashtra, Maqbool Fida Husain grew up in Indore in present-day Madhya Pradesh. A self-taught artist, he came to then Bombay in 1937, determined to become a painter. Husain found work as a billboard painter for films, and made furniture and wooden toys to earn a living. In 1948, he was invited by F. N. Souza to become a founding member of the Progressive Artists’ Group.
As an artist with a distinctive visual language, Husain attained early success. His rise had as much to do with his style and presentation as with his themes that blended folk, tribal and mythological art to create vibrant living art forms. He depicted the icons of Indian culture—from the characters from the Mahabharata and Ramayana to caricatures of the British Raj, from contemporary figures such as Mother Teresa to film stars such as Madhuri Dixit.
Husain’s modernism reflected not only in his themes but also in the strong primitivist line rooted in traditional art forms. His work followed the path of independence of a new nation—expressed through paintings that were bold, energetic, full of vigour, laid bare in distinctly Indian bright colours. His many eccentricities such as walking barefoot, and painting on canvases spread on the floor, made him a darling of the classes and masses.
His 1967 film, Through the Eyes of a Painter, won him the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival, while Hindi features Gaja Gamini (2000) and Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities (2004), brought nation-wide attention.
The Government of India honoured him with the prestigious Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan awards. But towards the last years of his life, he faced public hostility for his alleged dishonourable depiction of Hindu goddesses, due to which he left India to live between Doha and London. He passed away in London on June 9, 2011.