In fact, it is the survivors that are reflected in the cactus-like forms that will never stop reminding the viewer that the creative survive against the odds.It is also to the credit of Das Gupta that he steers clear of religious symbolism in his art. In India, we have an old tradition of ritual symbolism that artists-a whole school of neo-tantrics in fact - have latched on to, to make their abstracts palatable to people who find it easier to relate to caste marks, ritual signs and tantric yantras than to non-representational abstraction. And this has been the main reason that abstract art remains underdeveloped here.The Das Gupta brothers were able to free themselves from the clutches of conventional ritual signs and yet allow people to relate to pictorial space in the form of abstract landscapes.

When they started on this journey, not too many artists had managed to settle into the abstract expressionist genre. In fact, such art developed much more consistently in Bangladesh and Pakistan, where abstractswere found to be more appealing, as figuration is restricted by the tenets of Islam. To do this in India, where figurative art sells best, required a certain sense of purpose and the Das Gupta brothers have shown it all their lives.This seriousness is reflected in the pricing of the works as well. The range is from Rs 3,000 to Rs 21,000, obviously to ensure that young collectors and those looking for serious works to invest in get at least a one-time bargain. Not to be missed.