Portrait of an art collector at 100 Premium

The Hindu In Focus: Portrait of an art collector at 100

Jagdish Mittal no longer sits on the traditional ‘chowki’ at his Gaganmahal home, guiding artists, museologists, collectors, and researchers like he once did for generations. Instead, he now sits in a chair, carefully choosing his words to bring items from his vast private collection to life. Reflecting on one such item, he says, “That painting of Jogini? It became part of my collection in an interesting way. I had some line drawings, and a gentleman offered to trade something worthwhile for them. That’s how I acquired the painting. To this day, I haven’t been able to identify the person who made the trade or how he obtained the drawings.”

In 2015, when the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York planned an exhibition titled “Sultans of Deccan India, 1500–1700: Opulence and Fantasy,” it reached out to Mr. Mittal. Among the items loaned for display was a spherical container with spiraling radials, which had been crafted in Warangal around the 14th century and later became a part of Mr. Mittal’s collection.

Now in his 100th year — he was born on September 16, 1925 — Mr. Mittal, an artist, collector, and patron of the arts, retains his humour and detailed knowledge about the artefacts he has collected over the past 90 years. He fondly recalls his first art acquisition as a 10-year-old.

“In 1935, I found an intriguing painting of two ducks in a history textbook. I appealed to me and I bought a copy of the book for one anna (a former monetary unit equal to 1/16 of a rupee). I still have that print,” Mr. Mittal says with pride. “Upon studying Indian art, I found that this print is from an album presented by Dara Shikoh to his wife, with the original housed in the British Museum,” he reminisces.

Mr. Mittal, along with his late wife Kamala Mittal, has assembled and meticulously catalogued one of the largest private art collections. “I met her in Dehradun through a friend with whom I used to paint. Kamala was the widow of my friend’s brother. I encouraged her to continue her education in painting, and she joined Shantiniketan. There was a sense of responsibility and we got married,” Mr. Mittal recalls.

After their marriage, they moved to Hyderabad, where they actively participated in the local art scene and society. Today, a trust has been entrusted to care for the collection and to create a public space for showcasing the treasured art objects.

“For any art lover, memory is the key. Any art object becomes a memory, and we mentally compare it with what we see in front of us, like a painting on paper,” says Mr. Mittal. Even as his sight dims, his memory remains sharp, with just a word capable of triggering vivid recollections of paintings.