Yamini Telkar at an exhibition at Punjab Kala Bhawan in Sector 16, Chandigarh, on Thursday. Express
It’s a rare chance to get up, close and personal with the most significant art of the landmark Indian modernists, who have come to define Indian modernism as part of the exhibition, India Modern: Narratives from 20th Century Indian Art. Because of the efforts of the Punjab Lalit Kala Akademi, in collaboration with Delhi Art Gallery (DAG), the exhibition has on view 57 original works by 41 masters from the collection of DAG.
The exhibition opened on Thursday with Yamini Telkar of DAG taking art lovers through the many dimensions and nuances of the collection presented here, curated by Kishore Singh. “We believe that the need is to go beyond an exhibition and so DAG, in its many efforts, reaches out to audiences across the country by taking works to people in not just the metros, but smaller cities like Chandigarh. The idea is to get people closer to art, view, interpret and appreciate it in their own way and feel free to ask questions and hopefully be interested in coming back again, reading about the artists, their style, techniques or simply soaking in the experience,” said Telkar.
Telkar, who teaches art history and has been associated with the world of art for over two decades, as part of an audio-visual presentation, took the audience through a fascinating journey, talking about the pioneering works of the various artist collectives and art movements that have made Indian modern art into the diverse stream it is today.
As part of the exhibition, the effort is to get students of art, schoolchildren and people who love art, closer to the works, with curated walks, with experts talking about the styles, techniques, mediums, history of an art work and also sharing the artists’ philosophy and the contexts of the subject of the works.
The understanding of modernism in art predicates on the definition of the term modern itself. In the West, the term was heralded with the French Revolution that ushered, in its radical breaking from a feudal past and placing the individual as the vital centre of a new social order, the new, guiding, humanist values of liberty, equality and fraternity — qualities seen as modern — and arrived on the cusp of industrialisation and the art produced from here on echoed this spirit of modernity.
In India, such assertions of modernism in art came far later, yoked as it was in colonial imperialism for two centuries. The Indian ‘modern’ art moment is broadly seen to begin in late 19th-early 20th century, with Western style academic art practised at colonial art schools and urban salons and the hybrids of Indo-Western colonial art it inspired.
It is in the extraordinary strains of art movements that came after this, each in opposition to the previous and drawing kinship with contemporary Western art trends, that the complex, many-limbed shape of Indian modern art lies. The architects of these movements wished to create a new, modern art that took cognizance of their unique Indian reality, traditional art forms and their place in a new world order.
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Bombay Progressives, modernists from Bengal, mavericks from the art centres of Vadodara, Mumbai, New Delhi and the South. “These are works which represent the times that these men and women were surrounded with, the movement for freedom, the social and political ideologies, and then the new experience of a free country, a new young nation, looking at the past and the future and creating works that talked about life around us, at that moment, each artist with a distinct language, approach, styles and trajectories of modern art practices in India. What will amaze you are the so many varied layers each artist represents in a work,” said Telkar, talking about the works of F N Souza, Ram Kumar, M F Husain, K H Ara, Krishen Khanna, S H Raza and Group 1890 of Jyoti Bhatt, Jeram Patel, Eric Bowen, Ambadas, J Swaminathan, Himmat Shah.
From the tantra imagery of Sohan Qadri, Dhanraj Bhagat’s sculpture, a work by Jamini Roy inspired by folk art — the exhibition promises to be a rare treat. “We hope people from across the region will soak in the unique experience,” reflected Diwan Manna, chairperson of the Akademi.
India Modern: Narratives from 20th Century Indian Art is on at Galleries of Punjab Kala Bhawan till October 7.
Parul is a Principal Correspondent at The Indian Express in Chandigarh. She is a seasoned journalist with over 25 years of experience specializing in public health, higher education, and the architectural heritage of Northern India.
Professional Profile
Education: Graduate in Humanities with a specialized focus on Journalism and Mass Communication from Panjab University, Chandigarh.
Career Path: She began her career covering local city beats and human interest stories before joining The Indian Express in 2009. Over the last decade and a half, she has risen to the rank of Principal Correspondent, becoming the publication’s primary voice on Chandigarh’s premier medical and academic institutions.
Expertise: Her reporting is deeply rooted in the institutional dynamics of PGIMER (Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research) and Panjab University. She is highly regarded for her ability to navigate complex administrative bureaucracies to deliver student-centric and patient-centric news.
Recent Notable Articles (Late 2024 - 2025)
Her recent work highlights critical reporting on healthcare infrastructure, academic governance, and urban culture:
1. Public Health & PGIMER
"PGIMER expands digital registry: Centralized patient records to reduce wait times by 40%" (Nov 20, 2025): A detailed look at the digital transformation of one of India's busiest medical institutes to tackle patient influx.
"Robotic Surgery at PGI: Why the new urology wing is a game-changer for North India" (Oct 12, 2025): Reporting on the acquisition of state-of-the-art medical technology and its impact on affordable healthcare.
"Shortage of life-saving drugs: Inside the supply chain crisis at government pharmacies" (Dec 5, 2025): An investigative piece on the logistical hurdles affecting chronic patients in the tri-city area.
2. Education & Institutional Governance
"Panjab University Senate Election: The battle for institutional autonomy" (Dec 18, 2025): In-depth coverage of the high-stakes internal elections and the friction between traditional governance and central reforms.
"Research funding dip: How PU’s science departments are navigating the 2025 budget cuts" (Nov 5, 2025): An analysis of the fiscal challenges facing researchers and the impact on India's global academic ranking.
3. Art, Culture & Heritage
"Le Corbusier’s legacy in peril: The struggle to preserve Chandigarh’s Capitol Complex" (Dec 22, 2025): A feature on the conservation efforts and the tension between urban modernization and UNESCO heritage status.
"Chandigarh Art District: How street murals are reclaiming the city’s grey walls" (Oct 30, 2025): A cultural profile of the local artists transforming the aesthetic of the "City Beautiful."
Signature Style
Parul is known for her empathetic lens, often centering her stories on the individuals affected by policy—whether it is a student navigating university red tape or a patient seeking care. She possesses a unique ability to translate dense administrative notifications into actionable information for the public. Her long-standing beat experience makes her a trusted source for "inside-track" developments within Chandigarh’s most guarded institutions.
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Yamini Telkar at an exhibition at Punjab Kala Bhawan in Sector 16, Chandigarh, on Thursday. Express
