The auction brought together leading names in Modern Indian art, with several works achieving standout prices
10 Highlights from AstaGuru’s ‘Iconic Masters’ Auction
The auction brought together leading names in Modern Indian art, with several works achieving standout prices
AstaGuru’s ‘Iconic Masters’ auction, held on August 11-12, 2026, brought together works by some of the most influential names in Indian Modern art. The sale realised a total of ₹117.87 crore, with established masters commanding the strongest results and demonstrating the continued appetite for significant works from the Modern Indian canon.
At the top of the sale was Akbar Padamsee’s Untitled (Metascape), which sold for £850,349 through AstaGuru UK. The work led a selection that brought together artists whose practices have played a defining role in shaping Indian Modernism, from abstraction and landscape to figurative and expressionist traditions.
F.N. Souza also made a strong showing, with Head Of A Women selling for ₹9,98,25,000. The result places Souza among the highest-valued works of the auction, reflecting the sustained interest in one of the most recognisable figures of the Indian Modernist movement.
Close behind was S.H. Raza’s Jala Bindu, which realised £773,045, reinforcing the enduring demand for the artist’s works.
M.F. Husain’s Untitled followed at ₹7,08,62,440. The artist appeared twice among the leading lots, with another Untitled work sold through AstaGuru UK for £351,384.
The sale also highlighted the continued strength of artists beyond the most established Modernist names. Arpita Singh’s Untitled achieved ₹5,89,92,981, adding a significant result for a later generation of Indian artists to an auction otherwise led by major Modernist figures.
Another important result came from S.H. Raza’s Origin, which sold for ₹4,71,58,954. The work further demonstrated the sustained demand for Raza’s oeuvre at auction.
Ram Kumar’s Untitled also realised ₹4,71,58,954, adding to the auction’s strong showing for artists associated with the evolution of abstraction and modernist visual language in India.
Manjit Bawa’s Untitled sold for £377,272, while J. Swaminathan’s Untitled (Bird, Tree And Mountain Series) achieved £354,312 through AstaGuru UK. Both results underline the continued collector interest in artists who developed distinctive visual vocabularies within Indian Modernism.
Rounding out the leading results was a second work by M.F. Husain, with Untitled selling for £351,384. Together, the ten leading lots reflected the breadth of the auction, spanning established masters, different generations and varied approaches to modern Indian art.
Taken together, the results of Iconic Masters point to the continued strength of the Indian Modern art market. With 50 lots sold and a total sale value of ₹117.87 crore, the auction demonstrated how works by historically significant artists continue to attract substantial collector attention, while the presence of names such as Arpita Singh and Manjit Bawa shows the market’s broader appetite for important works across generations.
Read More
India's art market has grown nearly 200-fold in 25 years, fuelled by record-breaking auctions and rising collector confidence
While India's iconic Progressives continue to dominate the market, a new wave of artists is rewriting auction records
Art historian, curator, and director of The Al Thani Collection, Dr. Amin Jaffer believes great collections are built on stories that connect cultures across time
Ornamentation in Indian art tells stories of power, identity and cultural memory
From Mughal jewels to ancient sculptures, 'Animalia' explores humanity's enduring fascination with the animal kingdom through rare works from The Al Thani Collection