Serum Institute’s Cyrus Poonawalla Buys Raja Ravi Varma Painting For Record Rs 167 Crore

Mumbai: Raja Ravi Varma’s iconic painting Yashoda and Krishna was sold for a record Rs 167.20 crore at Saffronart’s Spring Live Auction in Mumbai, when industrialist Dr Cyrus S. Poonawalla acquired the work, marking the highest-value sale of modern Indian art at auction.

Managing director of the Serum Institute of India, Dr Cyrus S. Poonawalla has acquired Raja Ravi Varma’s iconic painting Yashoda and Krishna, setting a new record for the highest price ever paid for a work of modern Indian art at auction.

News agency PTI shared details of the sale. The painting was sold for Rs 167.20 crore (around USD 18 million) at Saffronart’s Spring Live Auction in Mumbai, following competitive bidding. The sale set a new benchmark, surpassing the previous auction record of more than Rs 118 crore, achieved by MF Husain’s Untitled (Gram Yatra) last year.

Painted in the 1890s at the height of Raja Ravi Varma’s career, Yashoda and Krishna was estimated at Rs 80-120 crore. Reacting to the acquisition, Poonawalla said, as reported by PTI, “I am privileged to have the opportunity to acquire, preserve, and care for the iconic Raja Ravi Varma painting Yashoda and Krishna. This national treasure deserves to be made available for public viewing periodically, and it will be my endeavour to facilitate this going forward.”

The oil painting offers a detailed portrayal of maternal affection through the mythological figures of Lord Krishna and Yashoda. It shows Yashoda milking a cow while Krishna reaches for a goblet of milk from behind. The composition has long been regarded as one of Raja Ravi Varma’s most important and expressive works.

Saffronart co-founder and president Minal Vazirani described the sale as a historic moment for the Indian art market.