India, Nov. 19 -- It was our last day in New York. I wanted to visit The Museum of Modern Art, while my wife wanted to go to a mall to buy souvenirs for friends and family back home. Neither of us was prepared to budge so we decided to go our ways. She and our daughter headed to the mall, while I decided to visit the world-acclaimed museum in the heart of the city. The man at the ticket counter asked, "Where are you from?" "India," I replied. "Good! No need to buy a ticket because today the entry for foreigners is free." I was delighted to get a $30 waiver before entering the Mecca of modern art. Walking through the five-storeyed museum is a surreal experience. Creations of eminent artists from the end of the 19th century to the present day have been displayed on different floors. Though every section is awe-inspiring, I devoted most of my time on the floors showcasing the works of Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet, Pablo Picasso, Paul Gauguin and Paul Cezanne. Watching The Starry Night and The Olive Trees by Van Gogh, Three Puppies by Paul Gauguin, Boy in a Red Vest by Paul Cezanne, Repose and Three Women at the Spring by Pablo Picasso was an amazing experience. I had never imagined in my life that I would be able to lay my eyes on the original masterpieces of the legendary artists. But here I was gawking at their works in awe and wonder. Watching how the masters drew, how they thought, and how they visualised is an ethereal, almost otherworldly experience. After spending about three hours in the realm of maestros, who filled transcendent colours in the mundane with their magical strokes, I stepped into the book shop of the museum from where I bought two illustrated books on the lives and works of Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh. Once back home, it took me just four days to read both the books. I was surprised to learn that both artists almost lived in penury. In fact, Van Gogh, whose paintings fetch millions of dollars in auctions today, could not find a single buyer during his lifetime. It is rumoured that one of his paintings, The Red Vineyard, was bought just before his death, but many art historians disagree with this. When his sketches found no admirers in the art galleries of Paris, he moved to the remote village of Arles. There, he rented a room for 15 francs a month and painted the wheat fields, flowers, night sky, village church, local cafe and peasants. A man, who was dedicated to art all his life, had to depend on the money sent by his brother, Theo Gogh, for his survival. Lonely and desolate, he spent the final years in an asylum. How dedicated and passionate he was towards his work can be gauged from a letter he wrote to his brother, Theo, before his death: "I put my heart and soul into my work, and have half lost my mind in the process." Vincent van Gogh died at the age of 37 in 1890 by shooting himself in the chest....