He first began by hand-painting Bollywood film posters and later joined the Bombay Progressive Artists' Group in the late 1940s after Indian independence from Britain. They tried to create a new art for a new country, combining Indian traditions with modern Western avant-garde styles.
He was not trained anywhere . . . he learnt on his own . . .
Famous for walking barefoot and carrying a large paintbrush like a riding crop, Husain grew from a struggling commercial painter creating cinema hoardings in the late 1930s to one of India's leading artists.
Born in 1915m he was 32 years old at the time of independence and it was his conscious decision as many to stay back in India and not to go to Pakistan.
Famous for walking barefoot he had written that he left his shoes at the cremation ground of the Hindi poet Muktibodh who had died an un-noticed man in 1964.
He has been awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1973 and was nominated to the Rajya Sabha in 1986. He was awarded the Padma Vibhushan in 1991.
He never maintained a studio but he spread his canvases out on the floor of whatever hotel room he happened to be staying in and paying for damages when he checked out.
The famous nude paintings were created in 1970s, but did not become an issue until 1996, when they were printed in Vichar Mimansa, a Hindi monthly magazine, which published them in an article headlined "M.F. Husain: A Painter or Butcher".
Husain's film Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities was pulled out of cinemas a day after some Muslim organisations raised objections to one of the songs in it. The All-India Ulema Council complained that the Qawwali song Noor-un-Ala-Noor was blasphemous. It argued that the song contained words directly taken from the Quran. The council was supported by Muslim organisations like the Milli Council, All-India Muslim Council, Raza Academy, Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Hind and Jamat-e-Islami. The film was well received by the critics, however, and went on to win various awards.
Husain left the country stating that "matters are so legally complicated that I have been advised not to return home". Krishan Khanna, one of Husain's contemporaries, stated that "It's not just Husain's but the entire artist community's lives which are at stake. Anybody and everybody can file a case against us now. Anyone can infringe upon our lives".
Satish Gujral went on record to ask Husain whether he will be bold enough to treat icons of Islam in the same manner. However Gujral says he deeply regrets the way Husain was treated and forced into an exile because of what he terms "the mob culture".
Writing in The Pioneer, Chandan Mitra wrote, "As long as such a law exists in the statutes, nobody can be faulted for approaching the courts against Hussain's objectionable paintings, nor can the judiciary be pilloried for ordering action against the artist for his persistent and deliberate refusal to appear before the court.”
In response to the controversy, Husain's admirers petitioned the government to grant Husain the Bharat Ratna, India's highest award.
On his part Husain stated that Hindu leaders have not spoken a word against his paintings, and they should have been the first ones to have raised their voice.
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray said “He only slipped up on the depiction of Hindu gods and goddesses. Otherwise, he was happy and content in his field. If his demise is a loss for modern art, then so be it. May his Allah give him peace!"
But the question is why something raked the society after 26 years of its origin?
He never maintained a studio but he spread his canvases out on the floor of whatever hotel room he happened to be staying in and paying for damages when he checked out.
The famous nude paintings were created in 1970s, but did not become an issue until 1996, when they were printed in Vichar Mimansa, a Hindi monthly magazine, which published them in an article headlined "M.F. Husain: A Painter or Butcher".
Husain's film Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities was pulled out of cinemas a day after some Muslim organisations raised objections to one of the songs in it. The All-India Ulema Council complained that the Qawwali song Noor-un-Ala-Noor was blasphemous. It argued that the song contained words directly taken from the Quran. The council was supported by Muslim organisations like the Milli Council, All-India Muslim Council, Raza Academy, Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Hind and Jamat-e-Islami. The film was well received by the critics, however, and went on to win various awards.
Husain left the country stating that "matters are so legally complicated that I have been advised not to return home". Krishan Khanna, one of Husain's contemporaries, stated that "It's not just Husain's but the entire artist community's lives which are at stake. Anybody and everybody can file a case against us now. Anyone can infringe upon our lives".
Satish Gujral went on record to ask Husain whether he will be bold enough to treat icons of Islam in the same manner. However Gujral says he deeply regrets the way Husain was treated and forced into an exile because of what he terms "the mob culture".
Writing in The Pioneer, Chandan Mitra wrote, "As long as such a law exists in the statutes, nobody can be faulted for approaching the courts against Hussain's objectionable paintings, nor can the judiciary be pilloried for ordering action against the artist for his persistent and deliberate refusal to appear before the court.”
In response to the controversy, Husain's admirers petitioned the government to grant Husain the Bharat Ratna, India's highest award.
On his part Husain stated that Hindu leaders have not spoken a word against his paintings, and they should have been the first ones to have raised their voice.
Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray said “He only slipped up on the depiction of Hindu gods and goddesses. Otherwise, he was happy and content in his field. If his demise is a loss for modern art, then so be it. May his Allah give him peace!"
But the question is why something raked the society after 26 years of its origin?
MF Husain was a great soul. Starting his life from a modest family he struggled his way to the stardom!
Salutations to him. May Allah give peace to his soul!
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