Shastrikala Devi

Shastrikala Devi kept a thin brush tucked behind her ear even when she wasn’t painting—she claimed it reminded her that ideas are always perched on the edge of getting away. She turned 1970s Delhi street scenes into lush, layered maps where rickshaws and pipal trees hum in the same ink-blue dusk. Her brushstrokes are so light they feel like the city breathing. Look for her Untitled canvas from 27 November 1973; the way the headlights dissolve into monsoon haze still makes Delhi drivers pause mid-honk.