Since the turn of the century, Indian art has 'appreciated 10 per cent faster annually than the stock market,' according to a recent article.

When Tyeb Mehta's painting Mahishasura brought down the hammer at Christie's in New York a few years back for $1.58 million, it took the international art mart by surprise. It was the first time a work by a contemporary Indian artist had broken the million-dollar barrier.

An unidentified non-resident Indian, who purchased the painting reinstated the fact that there has been an immense increase in art collectors' interest towards buying contemporary Indian art.

NRIs mostly comprise the international buyers of Indian art and most galleries abroad promote Indian artists.

With the profile of art collectors changing, more and more industrialists are taking interest in Indian art as an investment option. This has led to a significant rise in the prices of works by Indian contemporary artists, said reputed painter Ramananda Bandyopadhyay.

"Thanks to them, a F N Souza painting can now earn a price tag as high as Rs 2 crores (Rs 20 million)," he added. However, Bandyopadhyay also stated that "it is improper to evaluate a work of art according to the money it fetches as many factors contribute to price generation." While too many simultaneous auctions at different places can adversely impact the prices, sheer run of bad luck can also deprive an artist from getting proper value for his or her work.
Image: Entrepreneurs and young professionals, biggest beneficiaries of India's economic prosperity, are buying works of art both to signal they have arrived in life and as a safe-haven investment.