Amrita Sher-Gil’s ‘The Story Teller’ Becomes Most Expensive Indian Artwork; Sold At Rs 61.8 Crore

The Story Teller, a painting by Amrita Sher-Gil, became the most expensive artwork from India after it sold at Rs 61.8 crore. The story broke the previous record of Rs 51.75 crore held by Sayed Haider Raza’s Gestation, which was set just 10 days earlier. The painting, which depicts a group of women in an open space, was sold at a SaffronArt auction in New Delhi on Monday. 

Amrita Sher-Gil, who is considered one of India’s national art treasures, is the only successful woman artist in India and the first Asian artist to win a gold medal in painting at Paris’ elite Ecole des Beaux Arts.

According to experts, ‘The Story Teller’ is an example of Sher-Gil’s distinctive artistic language, which merges both Pahari and Parisian influences. It shows her empathy and honesty towards her female subjects, who are not pushed to the periphery of the canvas. 

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They stated that Sher-Gil’s paintings also reflect her confidence and ease with her skillset, as she used her sister and even herself as models for nudes.

The SaffronArt auction, where ‘The Story Teller’ was sold, generated over Rs 181 crore in total. An official of the auction house said that the sale of this particular work was an important milestone in the market and that the work itself was an exceptional painting from a pivotal time in Sher-Gil’s brief oeuvre. 

Amrita Sher-Gil was born in 1913 to a Sikh father and a Hungarian mother and spent her earlier days in Europe and later moved to India. She died at the age of 28 in 1941.