Offering a vivid portrait of one of India’s most celebrated filmmakers, this vast and valuable photographic archive, now housed at DAG and built over a lifetime of work by Nemai Ghosh, reveals a window into the life and art of ‘The Jewel of Bengal’—Manik da or director par excellence to the world. Presenting photographer Nemai Ghosh’s decades-long documentation of the quintessential Satyajit Ray, these never-displayed-before photographs are as much about Ray’s cinema as about the acute understanding between Ghosh and Ray that allowed him to position his camera squarely but unobtrusively where the action was.
Opening on 8 May 2026 at #DAGDelhi, 𝙁𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙩𝙨: 𝙎𝙖𝙩𝙮𝙖𝙟𝙞𝙩 𝙍𝙖𝙮 𝙞𝙣 𝘾𝙤𝙡𝙤𝙪𝙧 highlights the power of Nemaida’s photographs as a witness to his extraordinary life while recording and telling stories through his lens.
From her early drawings and paintings of the 1960s, where the influence of Paul Klee’s abstraction is discernible, to her most recent body of work exhibited by DAG in 2025, 𝙈𝙖𝙙𝙝𝙫𝙞 𝙋𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙠𝙝: 𝘼 𝙇𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙇𝙞𝙣𝙚, 𝙈𝙚𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙈𝙮𝙩𝙝 traces a practice anchored in memory and imagination while also marking her return to Kolkata—the city where her artistic journey began.
Opening in collaboration with the iconic Alipore Museum on 15 May 2026. Swipe right for invitation details and hit the #linkinbio for RSVP.
Shown here:
𝘚𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳, Oil on canvas, 1990, 48.0 x 36.0 in.
𝘎𝘰𝘥𝘥𝘦𝘴𝘴, Oil on canvas, 1992, 20.0 x 16.0 in.
𝘒𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘵, Oil on canvas, 1980, 36.0 x 33.0 in.
𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥, Oil on canvas, 36.0 x 24.0 in.
#DeadlineExtended DAG continues to invite doctoral and postdoctoral scholars, along with experienced researchers, to contribute to an upcoming project and volume on Indian modern art. The initiative aims to expand established narratives and encourage fresh, interdisciplinary perspectives across fields such as history, literature, and cultural studies.
Hit the link in bio to apply now through 30 May 2026.
The works shown here, as part of our ongoing exhibition 𝙀𝙥𝙤𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙡, reflect what it meant for artists to imagine the nation, before and after Independence, amid uneven transformations in the afterlife of colonial rule. These decades were marked by sharp economic disparities, unbalanced urbanisation, migrations and displacements, shifting caste and gender relations, and the rise of new nationalisms within the social and political fabric. Artists actively reworked pre‑modern and colonial visual legacies in light of contemporary local and global shifts, mobilising their own formal and material concerns to think through shifting ideas of identity, personhood and belonging.
These paintings foreground artistic practices that remain close to expressionist figures, fractured bodies, charged landscapes and reimagined religious iconography, revealing the multiple pathways through which the social and the political increasingly entered the image.
Showing at DAG, Mumbai, and Chatterjee & Lal, 𝙀𝙥𝙤𝙘𝙝𝙖𝙡 remains on view until 11 June 2026. Shown here:
NIRODE MAZUMDAR, 𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘷𝘢 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘜𝘮𝘢 𝘛𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢𝘷 𝘓𝘢𝘴𝘩𝘺𝘢 – 2, Oil on canvas, late 1970s, 35.0 x 24.0 in.
RAMKINKAR BAIJ, 𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥 (Farmers in a Field), Oil on fabric, c. 1950, 33.5 x 27.0 in.
P. T. REDDY, 𝘝𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘋𝘦𝘪𝘵𝘺, Oil on canvas, 1966, 47.5 x 36.0 in.
SATISH GUJRAL, 𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥, Burnt wood and mixed media on plywood, 1970s, 30.0 x 19.7 x 6.5 in.
K. G. SUBRAMANYAN, 𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥, Oil on Masonite board, 23.7 x 23.7 in.
#Last5Days With a wide spectrum of artistic practices, from the large-format aquatints of Henry Salt and James Baillie Fraser — inspired by the commercial success of the Daniells—to the intimate rural landscapes of George Chinnery, whose influence extended to numerous amateur artists across Bengal, 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙄𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝙋𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙦𝙪𝙚 examines the rise of illustrated travelogues and print culture, which expanded the reach of picturesque imagery and shaped public imagination about India both within and beyond the subcontinent.
By presenting British and Indian works in dialogue, the exhibition offers a nuanced understanding of artistic exchange, aesthetic transformation and the enduring appeal of picturesque imagery shaped by history and memory.
#Planyourvisit now through 2 May 2026 at DAG, Delhi, 11am - 7pm
(art exhibition, British artists, Indian artists, picturesque, art and history, art and culture, landscapes)
Raghu Rai (1942–2026)
A master of light, shadow and human moments. Rest in peace.
Raghu Rai, 𝘈 𝘗𝘪𝘭𝘨𝘳𝘪𝘮, 𝘝𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘴𝘪, inkjet print on archival paper, 1974, 30.0 x 20.0 in.
#OpeningSoon DAG’s sustained engagement with the visual archive of Nemai Ghosh extends through Faces and Facets: Satyajit Ray in Colour—an exhibition showcasing Nemai Ghosh’s colour photographs that present Satyajit Ray and his cinematic practice in vivid detail.
Please join us for its opening on Friday, 8 May 2026, 7-9 pm, at #DAGDelhi. Swipe right for more details.
RSVP: [email protected]
(Art and photography, art and cinema, history of cinema, exhibition, DAG, archives)
In 𝘍𝘭𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘰𝘷𝘦, M. A. R. Chughtai presents a moment suspended between longing and devotion. The female figure, shown in profile, lifts her loosened hair as though to bind it to the jaali—an act that recalls a votive offering for the return of her lover. The geometry of the screen finds an echo in the patterning of her garment, while the surrounding architecture draws from an Indo-Islamic vocabulary. A solitary lamp glows within the interior, suggesting not only illumination, but انتظار (intizār)—a state of waiting, charged with hope.
This sensibility is carried forward through the works that follow, unified by the use of the wash technique—a defining method of the Bengal School and its extended circle. In this approach, layers of diluted pigment are built up gradually, allowing colour to remain translucent and forms to emerge softly rather than through sharp definition.
Ramgopal Vijaivargiya and Amalnath Chakladar similarly employ this technique to create images that are less descriptive than suggestive—where narrative unfolds through tonal shifts, softened contours, and carefully modulated colour. In Kshitindranath Mazumdar’s Chaitanya Series, the wash lends itself to a devotional atmosphere, where figures dissolve gently into their surroundings.
Across these works, the wash becomes more than a technique; it shapes a way of seeing. Figures are not fixed, but fluid—held within spaces that are both architectural and emotional. The emphasis lies on evocation rather than detail, allowing themes of love, devotion, and contemplation to surface gradually.
Experience them in person at #DAGDelhi
Details in comment section.
How were moments of empire made visible—and remembered?
This scene, recorded by Henry Martens in 1853, depicts the ceremonial presentation of medals to the Bombay Fusiliers at Poona. At its centre is not a battlefield, but a carefully staged act of recognition—presided over by the commanding officer’s wife, Mrs Mignon.
The image exists in two forms: as an oil painting and as a print (after a composition associated with Thomas Stothard). This duality is significant. While the painting records the event, the print enables its circulation—transforming a local ceremony into a widely shared visual narrative.
What emerges is not just documentation, but construction. The ordered ranks and the choreography of figures in authority reflect how colonial authority was performed and reinforced through image-making.
While revisiting such works today, one must consider how visual culture shaped historical memory—what was emphasised, what was omitted, and how power was staged for its audience.
Shown here:
1. Henry Martens, 𝘉𝘰𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘺 𝘍𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘙𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘖𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘞𝘪𝘧𝘦, 𝘔𝘳𝘴 𝘔𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘰𝘯 𝘢𝘵 𝘗𝘰𝘰𝘯𝘢, oil on canvas, c. 1853, 21.0 x 30.0 in.
2. Henry Martens (After Thomas Stothard), 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘔𝘦𝘥𝘢𝘭𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘊𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘱𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘰𝘮𝘣𝘢𝘺 𝘍𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘳𝘴, etching and aquatint, tinted with watercolour on paper, 1853, Print size: 22.7 x 29.7 in.
3. Installation image
{Henry Martens, Colonial Art, Bombay Fusiliers, Art and Empire, 19th Century Art, Oil painting, Printmaking, Art, History}
Revisiting the years following 1947, Epochal foregrounds a broad and dynamic network of artists negotiating the relationship between tradition and modernity moving beyond narratives centred on a few dominant artist groups. Highlighting how artists across generations inherited, reworked and redefined visual languages to articulate the aspirations of a young nation, the exhibition brings into focus a wider ecosystem of practitioners working across regions, institutions and artistic contexts.
Now open and on view at DAG, Mumbai, and Chatterjee & Lal.
Jamini Roy, 𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥, Tempera on board, 59.7 x 25.7 in.
Kshitindranath Mazumdar, 𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥 (Shiva and Parvati), Tempera and watercolour wash highlighted with gold pigment on paper, c. 1920, 12.0 x 5.5 in.
Nandalal Bose, 𝘒𝘢𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘺𝘪 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘔𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘢, Japanese woodblock print highlighted with gold pigment on paper pasted on paper, 1910s, 12.7 x 6.7 in.
B. Prabha, 𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥, Waterproof ink on paper, 1969, 10.0 x 6.5 in.
S. H. Raza, 𝘗𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯, Acrylic on Masonite board, 1971, 19.5 x 8.0 in.
What you’re seeing isn’t just beautiful pottery—it’s the story of an industrial revolution in clay. In 18th-century Staffordshire, steam power, canal networks, and massive kilns transformed ceramics into globally traded designs.
Suddenly, intricate landscapes, architecture, and faraway scenes could be reproduced again and again—affordable, durable, and endlessly detailed in that iconic cobalt blue. Inspired by printed artworks and travel imagery, these pieces often blended multiple scenes into one—turning everyday tableware into windows to distant worlds.
By 1850, over 180 India-inspired designs were in production… proof that even before Instagram, people were collecting glimpses of places they dreamed of. Find them on view at #DAGDelhi as part of 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝙄𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙖𝙣 𝙋𝙞𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙦𝙪𝙚.
Which detail unsettles you the most in these paintings?
In the practice of Bikash Bhattacharjee, surrealism takes on a distinctly local and psychological form. We witness an edgy, uneasy sense of the surreal to his technique of photo-realism—an uncanny ability to create hypnotic imagery by juxtaposing the real with the surreal. Since the 1960s, Bhattacharjee has made the lives of average middle-class Bengalis, their aspirations, superstitions, hypocrisy and corruption, and even the violence that is endemic to Calcutta, the main focus of his paintings.
The ominous edge these paintings enjoy is a reflection of societal anxieties, opening up the mind to unknown terrains where the familiar merely shields the unfamiliar—exactly what the Surrealists had in mind with their suspension of belief in disbelief.
Shown here:
𝘜𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘥 (Ceremony), oil on canvas, 1976, 34.0 x 34.0 in.
𝘉𝘰𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘚𝘩𝘪𝘮𝘭𝘢, oil on canvas pasted on masonite board, 1982, 32.7 x 32.7 in.
𝘍𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘍𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘥, oil on canvas, 1982, 39.0 x 41.0 in.
