“Zoroastrian roots”

"It’s not a coincidence we are here,” said art historian and cultural theorist Ranjit Hoskote addressing a large gathering of the community and the city elite at the newly refurbished ballroom of the Taj Mahal Palace and Tower on the evening of June 10, 2010. "Jehangir and Shirin (Sabavala) lived here for two years at the Taj in the 1950s.” Hoskote spoke on the occasion of the premier of the film The Inheritance of Light, produced by Dr Homi Dhalla, founder and president of the World Zarathushti Cultural Foundation, directed by theater person Sam Kerawalla along with Anju and Rahoul Daswani and sponsored by the house of Godrej.

Birgit Zorniger, deputy general manager of the legendary hotel which hosted the event, termed the Sabavalas "wonderful people.” Aside from hosting the function the Taj also displayed its collection of Sabavala’s paintings. Only two works gracing the Taj Pierre in New York were not on display, noted Pheroza Godrej who delivered the introductory speech. She termed the 88-year-old painter, "a modern artist with deep classical influences” and referred to his "haunting, brooding portraits.”

Dhalla said he observed "important Zoroastrian elements in Sabavala’s paintings. That is how this film was born.” The 24-minute documentary examines "how Zoroastrian roots have influenced his works.”

Clockwise from top left: Jehangir Sabavala, Homi Dhalla, Pheroza Godrej, Sam Kerawalla, Rahoul Daswani, Ranjit Hoskote, section of the audience

In the film Sabavala and his wife discuss with Hoskote and Dhalla the various pulls and influences on his paintings.

Present in the audience amongst others were painter Gieve Patel, poet Adil Jussawalla and dancer Astad Deboo.

The DVD priced at Rs 150 is available from Rhythm House and the Parsiana Book Club.

A fortnight later, on June 21 Sabavala set a new record when his painting, Casuarina Line, a serene landscape, fetched Rs 1.7 crore at a Saffronart auction in New Delhi, reported The Times of India on June 22, 2010. The work was acquired by a buyer of Indian origin at almost three-and-a-half times its pre-sale estimate of Rs 50 lakhs.