Sotheby's India debut gets lukewarm response, misses sales estimate

The auction was watched closely by sector experts as it comes at a time when other major names such as Christie's have pulled out of the country

Sotheby’s inaugural auction in the country, Boundless India, held at Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in Mumbai, got a lukewarm response from art lovers, with paintings and other works selling for a total of Rs 554 million. The pre-sale upper estimate was Rs 627 million.

The stars of the evening were Tyeb Mehta and Amrita Sher-Gil, whose paintings Durga Mahisasura Mardini and The Little Girl in Blue, respectively, fetched $2.9 million (Rs 204 million) and $2.6 million (Rs 186 million). The auction house commission was about 20 per cent.

Mehta’s painting, commissioned in 1993, depicts Hindu goddess Durga killing Mahisasura, the