Jai Zharotia

Jai Zharotia’s (1945- 2021) artworks are surreal, invoking and narrative. Quite sensual in colour application, the accounts are creative and abstract, weaved in a style of indigenous folk tales. Born in Delhi, Zharotia had studied at Delhi College of Art and later served as an art teacher at Bal Bhavan. The teacher career further got him a place at his alma mater, where he later became the head of the painting department. 

The imagery in Zharotia’s artworks is diverse, withdrawn not only from his subconscious but also from the rich Indian intangible heritage. From sculpture-like faces to fluid-floating forms, the colours in his paintings are warm, engaging and jubilant. A self-made vocabulary, bulbous forms and large faces are common features of his artistic ideas. However, these ideas come alive with a colourful and earthy palette of Zharotia’s canvases. Conceptually, the surreal forms appear to be hovering on the threshold of conscious and subconscious. The reality that the artist wants to perceive is not the same as we see in the world. Rather, they are metamorphosed through a visionary or an expected lens of the creator.

Primarily, Zharotia artworks play through such dualities, where the object, created as visual forms, follow a free-flowing space, engaging in tacit conversation, on the canvas. The recurring figure in maximum expressions appears like a protagonist, a silent observer and many a time an actor, who plays several roles in living a surreal life. They are not merely symbolic but observe a multiverse dimension to enable an indigenous, natural and accessible reading.

During his lifetime, Zharotia was a recipient of many awards. His artworks are in several reputed public and private collections, which include Alkazi, KNMA and DAG. At the same time, he had also shown his works in solo and group exhibitions at respected venues.