MF Husain misses India, despite Qatari nationality: Gurudas Shenoy

Artist Gurudas Shenoy has known MF Husain for a long time. The two have in fact watched Hum Aapke Hain Kaun 44 times in the city. He tells DNA that Husain’s decision to accept Qatari nationality was not a betrayal of India, and that the painter immensely loves the country, its culture and traditions.

How have you and the city of Bangalore been associated with Husain?
I know him and understand him well. I stay with him when I go to Dubai or London. He usually stays with us when he comes to Bangalore. He was a great friend of my father, artist GS Shenoy. He used to say that Ramakrishna Hegde and my father were the two people responsible for his association with Karnataka. He is sponsoring and also writing for a coffee table book about my father.

We, at our studio, had many of his works, which have been shifted to various places after the studio closed down two years back. He loved dosa, sambar, rasam and karela chips at our house. He also loved to eat dosa at Airlines Hotel and follow it up with a Rajkumar film. He loved walking around the city. We have together watched Hum Aapke Hain Kaun 44 times in Bangalore.

Is Husain’s adoption of Qatari nationality a loss to India?
An artist lives in his works. Husain is wherever his works are. He cannot be limited to one country. But, it (his decision) is sad for the country. I wish people had realised what his presence meant. But, he is Husain. He is unpredictable. He cannot stay at a place for more than six days.

Many say Husain showed a lack of faith in India and betrayed India. People go to the US for jobs and take up American nationality. Do we call it betrayal? An Indian scientist goes to another country, wins a Nobel Prize. We still call him an Indian.

How can one term Husain’s decision to adopt Qatari nationality a betrayal?
Whatever was said about the efforts being made to bring him back seemed just superficial talk. Was there any concrete effort made? No. But he has nothing against anybody. He says all Indians are his countrymen and that he loves them.
His heart is here. He is missing India, Indian cinema theatres and all the action here. He loves India, its culture and traditions. Husain is, in fact, currently working on a series of paintings based on India.

Will Qatar be more tolerant to Husain’s ideas and works than India?
You must see what is happening in Qatar now. They are spending millions of dollars to set up art museums.

What is Husain doing right now?
He is 95 and is working tirelessly. Husain is working on a series of 100 paintings on Arab civilisation since the time of the Babylonians.