New Delhi, A diplomat’s life largely involves holding bilateral engagements and signing agreements, but Ambassador Jayant Khobragade, India’s envoy to Spain, works his pen and painting brush with equal ease.
The 1995-batch IFS officer is currently hosting an exhibition of his artworks created over the last nearly 30 years, including many he painted while abroad during his various diplomatic stints, at the Travancore House here.
Titled ‘Journey with the Divine Flow’, the exhibition displays 45 artworks, portraying nature in different hues, trees, Lord Ram’s battle with Ravan on a “monumental” canvas, Lord Krishna playing Holi with Radha and ‘gopis’, as well as artworks inspired by flamenco dance and Spanish music.
The oldest painting on display is ‘Buddha Must Laugh’, an oil on canvas created in 1997, which the diplomat-artist calls his “only political work” on display at the exhibition.
“Art is very close to my heart. Diplomacy is my profession, music is my passion, but painting is just a way of life. I have been painting for three-and-a-half decades. This is my 15th exhibition and the second in Delhi,” Khobragade told PTI in an interview on Friday.
The diplomat, who was appointed India’s envoy to Spain last year, had served as the country’s ambassador to ASEAN headquartered in Jakarta, and Kyrgyzstan, besides on diplomatic assignments at Indian embassies in Moscow, Madrid, Almaty and Bishkek.
Asked how his journey in diplomacy and art converged, Khobragade said he didn’t see them as a contradiction.
The diplomat, who also has a passion for music and photography and dabbles in poetry too , shared how many of his artworks drew inspiration from the surroundings and cultures of the host country where he was posted.
“Any artist perceives the surroundings. When I was in Spain, I got some ideas for painting. In Moscow, I held an exhibition titled ‘The Russian Soul’, which was about Russian poetry.
“As the Indian ambassador to ASEAN, I had the opportunity to visit the greatest temples of the region, such as Angkor Wat and the Borobudur temple, which left a deep imprint on my mind and heart,” Khobragade said.
One of the key aspects of diplomacy is fostering people-to-people ties between two countries, and Khibragade said art helped him establish those connections.
“Diplomacy itself is an art. For a diplomat, it is very important to reach out to people, to connect with people,” he said.
One artwork, ‘Leela: A Duel in Mind’, stands out at the exhibition owing to its sheer scale – 2 m x 1.5 m – and vibrant use of colours.
Khobragade said he painted it two years ago when he was posted in Jakarta, and it took him almost nine months to complete the work.
“I wanted to depict the connection between India and Southeast Asia, the cultural and civilisational connection between the two sides.
“While I portrayed the more standard image of Lord Ram from our culture, I took the form of Ravan from Southeast Asia. Sometimes, they don’t depict Ravan with 10 heads in one row, but in a 5-3-2 tiered fashion,” he said.
The vivid canvas also depicts in the background a battlefield and the fire in Lanka, Ravan’s kingdom.
Asked about his work based on the culture of Spain, Khobragade said he did it from 2008 to 2011, when he was posted as a counsellor in Madrid.
These works are titled ‘Flamenco’, ‘Daughters of Spring’, ‘Daughters of Autumn’, ‘Dance’, and ‘Knot in the Threads’.
“I picked up not only from flamenco dancing, but also visited different museums and saw classical European paintings. One needs visual literacy, as I call it, for art,” he said.
On his second stint in Spain, Khobragade said, “As soon as I reached Madrid, I purchased a canvas and paint and started painting. Some of those works are on display, such as ‘Octo-Ganesha’ and ‘Holi’, portraying Lord Krishna and Radha.
“We are celebrating 2026 as India-Spain Year of Culture, Tourism and Artificial Intelligence. So, as part of culture, this exhibition becomes my personal contribution,” the ambassador said.
Sharing the story behind the theme and caption for his 1997 artwork ‘Buddha Must Laugh’, Khobragade said, “When India conducted its first nuclear test in 1974, the prime minister had described it as ‘Buddha Smiled’. In the 1990s, the negotiations on the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty were not going anywhere.
“So, I thought that now ‘Buddha Must Laugh’. I displayed this painting in August 1997 at the Lalit Kala Academy. In May 1998, we went for another round of test.”
While Khobragade has travelled to many countries and exhibited his works on varied subjects, his colour palette remains “very Indian”.
“I absorb cultural elements wherever I stay, but the core remains Indian,” he said.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
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