| Neville Tuli, chairman of Osian's, promises this to every investor in the to-be launched The Osian's Art Fund. This is the first time globally that an auction house has come out with an investment fund. |
| "Within five years, the Indian art market's turnover has expanded manifold from Rs 5 crore to Rs 2,000 crore. Along with China and Russia, India has the biggest art market in the developing world. If you get anything less than 35-40 per cent returns from the fund, it will be a failure for us," he says. |
| The Rs 80-100 crore art fund will invest in contemperory work of top 250 artists from the Indian subcontinent and has a three-year lock-in period. Though "everybody is welcome," the close-ended fund will initially focus on the 650 well-heeled clients of Osian's. |
| With a minimum Rs 10 lakh investment, one can buy units of Rs 100 each and the profits will be shared 70:30 between the investors and the fund manager. |
| The management fee will be three per cent. "Within five years, we will have anything from Rs 2,500 crore to Rs 3,000 crore under our management," states Tuli. |
| He reinforces that this is not a mutual fund and does not come under the purview of Securities and Exchange Board of India. |
| The Art Fund will open by the end of April and close after a month. The hurdle rate is 15 per cent and the net asset value will be issued at quarterly basis. |
| "Our artistic heritage of 5,500 years has remained in the black economy. The fund will change the patronage and financial structure of the Indian art," says Tuli. |
| Among its long-term plans, the auction house will also launch an off-shore fund open to international clients. It will invest in varied art forms including film memorabilia, books photographs, posters and maps. |
| "Within three years, the 200 million middle-class will invest in the cultural artefacts of the country for as less than Rs 1,000. Imagine holding a stake in the first ever poster of Mughal-e-Azam!" exclaims Tuli. |
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