Collector’s Edition

A series of rural and royal pieces collected by art collector RK Bharany and his son CL Bharany are on display at the National Museum

Exhibits from RK Bharany’s collection

Seated at the entrance of the hall at National Museum, a 10th century stone Ganesha from Central Asia is having an interface with another representation of the elephant god across the room. This comes from 20th century Rajasthan, a pen and ink on paper. In the backdrop are parrots woven on a 19th century Kashmiri shawl, delicately embroidered in intricate patterns. For CL Bharany and his father RK Bharany the medium did not matter. All art was one. “The intention is to highlight the role of one collector and the huge donation made,” says Dr Giles Tillotson.
Having worked on a book on the collection, he is also co-curating an exhibition featuring it at the National Museum along with Pramod Kumar KG and Mrinalini Venkateswaran. “We have juxtaposed the pieces to showcase how RK Bharany had extremely diverse taste. He was not interested in hierarchies and did not distinguish between rural, folk and courtly,” adds Tillotsan.

The over 100 artifacts in the room testify his opinion. Collected over several decades, the pieces speak for the owners and their varied taste. Donated to the museum in 1976, while some pieces from the collection are part of permanent exhibitions, the remaining are usually in storage. “There is no central piece. All are equally important,” notes Tillotson.

There are highlights though. So Tillotson points out that the early 20th century painted Kathakali villain figure in wood is not common. “I know of only two more of them,” he says. Placed at the entrance in one of the inside rooms, the 17th century wooden Dwarapala from Kerala is also magnificent, much like the 18th century temple toran from Nepal.

There are lessons to take back home too. Pichwais might have the deity as the central figure now, but in the past its focus was varied. To present a 20th century Rajasthani pattern in a contemporary manner, the curators have it suspended behind a bronze Vishnu. The corner also has other mythological representations of Vishnu, from Ramgopal Vijayvargiya’s watercolour of Radha and Krishna to Hritkdas’s gouche of Sharada Devi and Ramakrishna goddess Kali.

The energies spent on exhibition design are also evident. For instance, shawls aren’t on the walls in a frame, but hung in corners, acting as backdrops. A 19thcentury phulkari creation is on the roof, above it’s reproduction on a plastic sheet which can be walked over. “The aim is to have an interaction with the collection,” notes Tillotson. So walk in and look for the reproduction of a 19th century embroidered shawl from Kashmir hanging as a canopy at the door. The original is inside the exhibition is believed to be used as one, once upon a time.

The exhibition at National Museum, Janpath, is on till August 14 Contact: 23792775

Vandana Kalra

Vandana Kalra is an art critic and Deputy Associate Editor with The Indian Express. She has spent more than two decades chronicling arts, culture and everyday life, with modern and contemporary art at the heart of her practice. With a sustained engagement in the arts and a deep understanding of India’s cultural ecosystem, she is regarded as a distinctive and authoritative voice in contemporary art journalism in India. Vandana Kalra's career has unfolded in step with the shifting contours of India’s cultural landscape, from the rise of the Indian art market to the growing prominence of global biennales and fairs. Closely tracking its ebbs and surges, she reports from studios, galleries, museums and exhibition spaces and has covered major Indian and international art fairs, museum exhibitions and biennales, including the Venice Biennale, Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Documenta, Islamic Arts Biennale. She has also been invited to cover landmark moments in modern Indian art, including SH Raza’s exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the opening of the MF Husain Museum in Doha, reflecting her long engagement with the legacies of India’s modern masters. Alongside her writing, she applies a keen editorial sensibility, shaping and editing art and cultural coverage into informed, cohesive narratives. Through incisive features, interviews and critical reviews, she brings clarity to complex artistic conversations, foregrounding questions of process, patronage, craft, identity and cultural memory. The Global Art Circuit: She provides extensive coverage of major events like the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Serendipity Arts Festival, and high-profile international auctions. Artist Spotlights: She writes in-depth features on modern masters (like M.F. Husain) and contemporary performance artists (like Marina Abramović). Art and Labor: A recurring theme in her writing is how art reflects the lives of the marginalized, including migrants, farmers, and labourers. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) Her recent portfolio is dominated by the coverage of the 2025 art season in India: 1. Kochi-Muziris Biennale & Serendipity Arts Festival "At Serendipity Arts Festival, a 'Shark Tank' of sorts for art and crafts startups" (Dec 20, 2025): On how a new incubator is helping artisans pitch products to investors. "Artist Birender Yadav's work gives voice to the migrant self" (Dec 17, 2025): A profile of an artist whose decade-long practice focuses on brick kiln workers. "At Kochi-Muziris Biennale, a farmer’s son from Patiala uses his art to draw attention to Delhi’s polluted air" (Dec 16, 2025). "Kochi Biennale showstopper Marina Abramović, a pioneer in performance art" (Dec 7, 2025): An interview with the world-renowned artist on the power of reinvention. 2. M.F. Husain & Modernism "Inside the new MF Husain Museum in Qatar" (Nov 29, 2025): A three-part series on the opening of Lawh Wa Qalam in Doha, exploring how a 2008 sketch became the architectural core of the museum. "Doha opens Lawh Wa Qalam: Celebrating the modernist's global legacy" (Nov 29, 2025). 3. Art Market & Records "Frida Kahlo sets record for the most expensive work by a female artist" (Nov 21, 2025): On Kahlo's canvas The Dream (The Bed) selling for $54.7 million. "All you need to know about Klimt’s canvas that is now the most expensive modern artwork" (Nov 19, 2025). "What’s special about a $12.1 million gold toilet?" (Nov 19, 2025): A quirky look at a flushable 18-karat gold artwork. 4. Art Education & History "Art as play: How process-driven activities are changing the way children learn art in India" (Nov 23, 2025). "A glimpse of Goa's layered history at Serendipity Arts Festival" (Dec 9, 2025): Exploring historical landmarks as venues for contemporary art. Signature Beats Vandana is known for her investigative approach to the art economy, having recently written about "Who funds the Kochi-Muziris Biennale?" (Dec 11, 2025), detailing the role of "Platinum Benefactors." She also explores the spiritual and geometric aspects of art, as seen in her retrospective on artist Akkitham Narayanan and the history of the Cholamandal Artists' Village (Nov 22, 2025). ... Read More

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