Saffronart Auction: Raja Ravi Varma Sets Record

New Delhi, Apr 3 (PTI) Auction house Saffronart on Friday announced that it registered two consecutive white glove sales worth Rs 301.45 crore, a large portion of which was made through the record-breaking sale of Raja Ravi Varma's 'Yashoda and Krishna' that sold for Rs 167.20 crore.

A white glove sale is when 100 per cent of the lots are sold.

The Mumbai-based auction house organised its Spring Live and Online Auctions on April 1-2.

"Both the Live and Online Auctions saw 100 per cent of lots sold, realising Rs 286.26 crore (USD 30.78 million) and Rs 15.17 crore (USD 1.63 million) respectively, concluding as two exceptional white glove sales," it said in a statement.

The auction was led by Raja Ravi Varma's iconic "Yashoda and Krishna", surpassing its higher estimate of Rs 120 crore and setting a new world auction record as the highest price achieved for a work of South Asian art.


"We are thrilled to have opened our 2026 auction calendar on an exceptionally strong note, with a historical new benchmark value for Raja Ravi Varma. It is particularly fitting that the record for the highest value work of Indian art sold at auction is now held by the father of modern Indian art.

"This landmark result closely follows our 25th anniversary year, which was marked by outstanding record-breaking auctions, and continues the remarkable upward trajectory of the Indian art market," Dinesh Vazirani, ceo and co-founder, Saffronart, said.

According to Saffronart, the auctions collectively featured a catalogue of 145 lots. In the Live Auction, 69 per cent exceeded their higher estimates, and included four new artist records alongside strong performances by leading modernists. Of the additional 75 lots featured in the Spring Online Auction, 72 per cent exceeded their higher estimates.

Also part of the Live Auction, M F Husain' Untitled (Benares) sold for Rs 15.60 crore, S H Raza's "Kundalini" fetched Rs 14.40 crore, and V S Gaitonde's Untitled, Circa 1950s, sold for Rs 5.16 crore, which was over two times its higher estimate.

In the Online Auction, Husain's Untitled work sold for Rs 2.64 crore, Sadanand Bakre's Untitled painting from 2002 went for Rs 66 lakh, and H A Gade's "Confluence" fetched Rs 54 lakh.

The auctions also witnessed global artist records for Shanti Dave, whose "The Group" sold for Rs 1.02 crore; Latika Katt's "Fence" that went for Rs 45.60 lakh; Prokash Karmakar's "Conflict Series" was sold for Rs 44.64 lakh; and Haku Shah's "Family" fetched Rs 26.40 lakh.