Satish Gujral | |
|---|---|
 Gujral in December 2017 | |
| Born | Satish Gujral (1925-12-25)25 December 1925 |
| Died | 26 March 2020(2020-03-26) (aged 94) New Delhi, India |
| Education | Mumbai |
| Known for | Indian art,sculpture,mural andliterature |
| Spouse | Kiran Gujral |
| Children | 3 |
| Father | Avtar Narain Gujral |
| Relatives | Inder Kumar Gujral (brother) Naresh Gujral (nephew) Sheila Gujral (sister-in-law) Feroze Gujral (daughter-in-law) |
| Awards | Padma Vibhushan (1999) |
Satish Gujral (25 December 1925 – 26 March 2020)[1] was an Indian painter, sculptor, muralist and writer of the post-independent era.[2] He was awarded thePadma Vibhushan, the second-highestcivilian award of theRepublic of India, in 1999. His elder brother,Inder Kumar Gujral, was thePrime Minister of India between 1997 and 1998.
Gujral was born inJhelum in thePunjab Province ofBritish India (now inPunjab, Pakistan) into aPunjabi HinduKhatri family.[3] He was the son of Indian politicianAvtar Narain Gujral and the brother ofI. K. Gujral, the 12th Prime Minister of India; his sister in law,Sheila Gujral, was a noted Hindi poet. His nephewNaresh Gujral is also a politician.[4]
Because of his hearing problem, many schools refused admission to Gujral. One day he saw a bird sitting on a tree branch and drew a picture of it. It was an early indication of his interest in painting and later in 1939, he joined theMayo School of Arts inLahore, to study applied arts. He moved toBombay in 1944 and enrolled inthe Sir JJ School of Art. In 1947, due to a recurring sickness, he was forced to drop out of school and leave Bombay.
In 1952, Gujral received a scholarship to study at thePalacio de Bellas Artes inMexico City, where he was apprenticed to the renowned artistsDiego Rivera andDavid Alfaro Siqueiros.[5]
.jpg)
ThePartition of India and the associated agony of the immigrants impacted a young Satish and manifested itself in the artworks he created. From 1952 to 1974, Gujral organised shows of his sculptures, paintings and graphics in many cities across the world such asNew York City,New Delhi,Montreal,Berlin andTokyo, among others.[6]
Gujral was also an architect and his design of theBelgium Embassy in New Delhi was selected by the international forum of architects as one of the finest buildings built in the 20th century.
Gujral lived with his wife Kiran (1937-2024) in New Delhi. Their son Mohit Gujral, who is an architect, is married to former model,Feroze Gujral. They also have 2 daughters, Alpana, a jewellery designer, andRaseel Gujral Ansal, an interior designer and owner of Casa Paradox & Casa Pop and is married to Navin Ansal.[7]
Dozens of documentaries have been made recording Gujral's work. TheFilms Division of India produced ashortdocumentary film on his life, titledSatish Gujral, directed byBalwant Gargi it provides an overview of his life and works.[8]
He was also part of the 2007BBCtelevision film,Partition: The Day India Burned. A 24-minute documentary called "A Brush with Life" was released on 15 February 2012 which was based on his own book with the same name. Four books of his work have been published, including an autobiography.[9]
Along with his brotherInder Kumar Gujral, he was one of the signatories of the agreement to convene a convention for drafting aworld constitution.[10][11] As a result, for the first time in human history, aWorld Constituent Assembly convened to draft and adopt theConstitution for the Federation of Earth.[12]
Gujral was awarded India's second-highest civilian honourPadma Vibhushan in 1999. In April 2014, he was honoured withNDTV Indian of the Year Award.[13]
