Click to play videoKolkata: The Bengal School of Art has always been respected for being one of the earliest art movements in the country. But now, it's getting it's due recognition in the art market as well. Prices of paintings from the old Bengal school have multiplied almost four times from last year.
The colours of old Bengal paintings in Kolkata's art galleries are beginning to show. It's a boom in prices of works which are more than 50-years-old and a phenomenon that is being observed over the last few months.
A Jamini Roy painting valued at Rs 10 lakh just a year ago was recently sold under the hammer by a prominent auction house at a price of eight times that figure.
In the past few months, works of Rabindranath Tagore have fetched over Rs 30 lakh compared to their previous price of just Rs 15 lakh . And a Raja Ravi Verma masterpiece drew rupees five crore over its previous value of one-fifth that amount.
Owner of Chitrakoot Art Gallery, Prakash Kejriwal says, "They are now getting their true worth. Since Bengal school was the primary school for development of Indian art in India, it is quite legitimate, quite logical that they will get their worth."
It's estimated that not more than 20,000 such paintings are presently available with royal families and art houses of the country. It is this limited availability that has made the Bengal art market stronger.
The proverb 'old is gold' stands true for the paintings which have suddenly become dearer than gold. And experts say that the upswing in these prices is here to stay, at least for the coming two years.
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