With sharp strokes and vivid colours that have been the visual narrative of a nation's evolution, legendary Indian painter Maqbool Fida Husain's canvas was a mirror reflecting the societal, cultural, and spiritual currents of his time.
Born on 17 September 1915, his artistic journey, marked by both accolades and controversies, solidified his status as a controversial yet celebrated figure in the world of art.
Commonly known as MF Husain, he emerged as the face of Indian modernism, a painter whose canvases radiated with the vibrancy and contradictions of the subcontinent.
Yet, his work did more than just depict India; it provoked, unsettled, and invited dialogue, frequently standing at the intersection of art, religion, and politics.
From footpaths to fame
Born in Pandharpur, Maharashtra, Husain's early life was marked by struggle and a profound connection to his roots.
After losing his mother at a young age, he grew up in the care of his extended family, where his early exposure to traditional Indian art forms and Islamic calligraphy shaped his artistic sensibilities.
In the 1930s, he enrolled at the JJ School of Art in Mumbai, where he immersed himself in the classical techniques of painting, but it was the footpaths of Bombay that truly shaped his artistic identity.
To earn a living, Husain initially painted cinema hoardings—an experience that cultivated in him a love for large-scale formats and bold strokes.
He also explored the streets of the city, capturing its energy and chaos, often painting at breakneck speed to capture fleeting moments.
In these early years, Husain developed his distinctive style—bold, unrestrained brushstrokes that conveyed movement and emotion in a vivid palette of colours. His thematic preoccupations, including horses, women, and Indian mythology, began to emerge.
MF Husain’s fame skyrocketed in the 1940s when he became associated with the Progressive Artists’ Group, a collective of painters that sought to create an Indian avant-garde movement by synthesising European modernist techniques with indigenous subject matter.
His work was dynamic, blending Cubist influences with the rich iconography of Indian temple art. His paintings were steeped in the mythological and cultural history of India but were rendered with a modernist’s abstraction, presenting these motifs through a new visual vocabulary.
An artistic odyssey
At the core of Husain's oeuvre was his fascination with India's vast cultural diversity.
He drew inspiration from the epics of the Mahabharata and Ramayana, the movements of horses—a recurring motif in his paintings—and the divine femininity embodied in goddesses such as Saraswati and Durga.
These themes were interpreted not in the traditional, reverent style of Indian miniature painting but in his inimitable modernist fashion.
The horses in Husain’s works, for instance, were not mere animals but symbolised raw, untamed energy, freedom, and the surge of life—a powerful metaphor for the aspirations and struggles of post-independence India.
His portrayal of women, often in classical forms such as Mother Teresa or as nameless figures in his mythological paintings, was equally profound, embodying both divinity and sensuality.
Yet, these depictions, especially his representation of Hindu goddesses in the nude, would later embroil him in controversy.
For Husain, the female form was symbolic of both creation and destruction—two forces central to his understanding of Indian spirituality.
His paintings, however, were often misunderstood by those who interpreted them as sacrilegious rather than celebratory of the divine feminine.
Colours of controversy
Husain’s provocative approach to religion and mythology brought him face-to-face with the fraught communal politics of India.
By the 1990s, his paintings of Hindu deities in the nude sparked the ire of right-wing groups, who accused him of blasphemy.
What had begun as a debate on artistic freedom soon morphed into a national uproar.
Lawsuits were filed, death threats were made, and Husain, despite his immense contributions to Indian art, was vilified by conservative factions.
Faced with relentless harassment, Husain chose self-imposed exile in 2006.
He lived in Dubai and London, where he continued to paint, although the separation from his homeland weighed heavily on him.
For a man whose art was so inextricably linked to the spirit of India, this exile was both ironic and tragic.
His works, which sought to celebrate the syncretism and plurality of Indian culture, became a flashpoint in the divisive politics of identity.
Beyond the canvas: A renaissance man
Husain’s creative genius extended beyond the boundaries of canvas and paint.
A filmmaker, writer, and connoisseur of cinema, Husain had a lifelong love affair with the silver screen. His cinematic ventures, such as "Through the Eyes of a Painter" (1967), won critical acclaim, including the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival.
His fascination with Bollywood stars, especially Madhuri Dixit, found expression in both his art and his films, showing that for Husain, the line between popular culture and high art was always blurred.
In many ways, Husain was a Renaissance man—a polymath who saw art as inseparable from life itself.
His art was a reflection of the times he lived in, and his life was a testament to the challenges that come with pushing the boundaries of expression.
Ten decades of a life dedicated to expression
When Husain passed away in 2011, he left behind a rich and contentious legacy.
He was celebrated globally as one of the pioneers of Indian modernism, a man who had single-handedly elevated Indian art to an international platform.
Yet in his homeland, the debates surrounding his work continue to echo, raising questions about artistic freedom, cultural sensitivity, and the role of the artist in a deeply pluralistic society.
MF Husain remains a symbol of creative audacity.
His legacy is one of relentless pursuit - one of beauty, of meaning, and of the soul of India. His canvases are not just visual experiences but intellectual provocations, forcing viewers to engage with their own beliefs and prejudices. In the world of art, Husain's name will forever stand as a beacon of the modernist movement, but more importantly, as a reminder that great art often comes at the price of controversy.
And so MF Husain remains an iconoclast, a visionary, and a creator whose brushstrokes will continue to stir the collective conscience for generations to come.
