Husains deny rift, money squabbles

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It’s barely been three months since the Picasso of India, M.F. Husain passed away, and a fresh set of rumours about his art are already doing the rounds. According to a news report, his children are squabbling over his wealth and have quietly put his finest work from 1960s, the “Maria collection”, on the market for sale.

His sons Shamshad and Owais outrightly quash the report. Shamshad, Husain’s eldest son, calls it baseless. “It’s rubbish, there is no truth in the report. I have asked my brothers and sisters to look into this matter. I don’t understand why the media is concocting such stories. We are not fighting over anything. And as far as the Maria collection is concerned, it’s already been sold when Husain saab was alive, so there is no question of it being put up for sale.”
Owais Husain adds that it’s an attempt to malign his father’s name. “It’s not even been 15 weeks, the family is still mourning his death, and people have started talking bad things. All arrangements about division of property were made long before my father’s death. So, there’s no question of any differences among us. Besides, we are in the process of creating a trust which will look after his works,” he reveals.
A city-based artist shares, on the condition of anonymity, that there may be some truth to the squabbe rumours after all. “In the last year of his life, Husain was closer to his younger children. Owais and Raisa were managing his affairs. It’s natural for others to feel left out. His dependence on Raisa was growing by the day and I heard that she had started managing the estate and nobody knew what was going on. A lot of transaction in art happens in cash, so nobody has a clue how much cash came in and how much was revealed to the family.”
Artist Ram Rahman, who’s close to the family, was shocked to hear the allegations. “As far as I know there’s no issue within the family. Everything was sorted out when Husain was alive. They all came to an agreement that the younger siblings will manage the estate and it will be shared. As for the Maria collection, Husain wanted it to be showcased in India. He discussed this with me four years ago in Dubai. He was keen to set up a museum, but due to attacks on his paintings, it wouldn’t have been possible to bring them to Delhi or Kolkata (his second preference). I don’t know if Maria collection has been sold or not, but I am aware that it had many buyers as it is Husain’s best work and is no less than a treasure trove.”
Seconds Renu Modi, director, Gallery Espace, and adds, “Husain called me personally a year ago and informed me that he had sold off all the 75 paintings in the Maria collection to somebody in London. I was trying to find a buyer for it here. Unless the deal didn’t come through, the paintings aren’t in the market.”
A prominent art curator who doesn’t wish to be named says, “The stakes are really high, so there will be problems aplenty in distributing his wealth. Husain was one of the most expensive Indian artists and it’s not just the Maria collection, there are many such paintings which Husain gave away to people. He was working on several projects, which he never finished. And those who had commissioned those works had paid him huge amounts. Now, they want their money back, but the family doesn’t have enough works left to pay them.”

With inputs from Hassan M. Kamal