While painters and art teachers showered praises on his 25-year-old son’s creativity, Sen remained quietly seated in a corner and hardly spoke. He was flanked by Sabyasanchi Sen, the state industries secretary and leading industrialists like Harsh Neotia and Sanjay Budhhia.

Sen who is mostly seen in the public batting for industrialisation in the state turned out to be a silent art admirer.

The proud father accompanied Left Front chairman Biman Bose along the passages of the gallery as both went on observing each exhibit. Even Bose tried to figure out the meaning of the painting and explain it to the visitors about Atri’s art.

“This is an unbelievable feeling. He is the backbone of the family and everyone loves him. We expect that he goes on painting like this,” said Sreya Sen, Atri’s sister.

“The best part about his art is that the images are very common to us. As far I remember, he has painted hundreds of cars and number of houses and kites,” said Sreya.

The artist, however, remained away from the shutterbugs and the crowd. The 72 exhibits in water colours and crayons delve into subjects like Flower Nectar, Fencing In field, Kashful at Night and are filled with child like innocence. Yet the confident brush strokes give a reflection of the budding artist’s talent.