The art of appreciation: Akbar Padamsee's painting bought for Rs 1,000, sold at Rs 19 cr!

A widely accepted barometer of an artist’s success is the number of zeros added to the prices of his works at the end of an auction. But even the heavyweights staggered as the hammer went down on Akbar Padamsee’s ‘ Greek Landscape’ — bought by artist Krishen Khanna for Rs 1,000 in 1960 — for Rs 19.19 crore ($2.9mn) at Saffronart’s auction on September 8.

The 4.3x12 foot artwork, estimated to sell for Rs 7-9 crore, not only surpassed its bidding expectation, but also the likes of VS Gaitonde, whose 1970 untitled oil painting priced at Rs 10-15 crore was the highest priced art piece in the auction. This was the highest price paid for a work by Padamsee, with the previous record of $1.4 million set in 2011 for ‘Reclining Nude’. Khanna had purchased the painting from art collector Bal Chhabda after a phone conversation in 1960. He had seen the painting on the invitation for an exhibition at Chhabda’s gallery.

Khanna also wrote to Padamsee saying he was “terribly envious”. “My dear Akbar, I might as well be frank – I was terribly envious that you had painted such a magnificent painting... when I saw the painting I sat up. I had received a shock… You see I had thought that this was the work of someone quite unknown to us, and I remarked to Renu [wife] at that stage that there was a terrific painter somewhere whose existence we had not known about... It will be a privilege to have this painting with us,” recalled Khanna in Saffronart’s catalogue.