New Delhi, Aug. 24 -- In 2002, Tyeb Mehta's triptych Celebration, which drew inspiration from the Charak festival of the Santhals, sold for Rs.1.5 crore at Christie's. This set the highest price for an Indian painting for the auction house at the time. Girish Shahane, who was the editor of ART India magazine back in 1998, remembers visiting Mehta's home in Andheri, Mumbai, for a cover story on the artist. It was then that Mehta revealed an interesting story behind Celebration.

The artist, who began his creative journey as a film editor at Famous Studios in Mumbai before graduating from Sir J.J. School of Art in 1952, later became a member of the Progressive Artists' Group. He was commissioned by Times Bank (which later merged with HDFC B...