By Anurag Tyagi, CNBC-TV18

The Indian art market has grown from being a miniscule USD 2 million to a huge USD 400 million market over the last seven years.

SaffronArt is back with its auction of Modern and Contemporary Indian Art with highlights that will remove any doubts of there being a slowdown in this market. The top position is taken by SH Raza whose work is estimated to fetch Rs 2.75-3.75 crore. On the contemporary side is Subodh Gupta's trademark, which is likely to bring in Rs 80 lakh to Rs 1 crore. Does that mean the art market remains buoyant even if inflation reigns at above 8% levels?

“We have to recognize that the buyer base that purchases Indian art is a very different sort of buyer base that may be affected, compared to other categories. These are buyers that will purchase, particularly at the top end from accumulated wealth and not from earnings. So, I don't think there will be a short-term impact. There may be a far reaching impact over a long period of time,” said Minal Vazirani, Director, SaffronArt.

Historically, Indian modern art has fetched higher prices than its contemporary counterparts. But with this auction, experts believe that younger artists too are soon catching up, as they get closer to estimated price points of the modern masters.

“You have got two different buyer bases. For modern art, the renewed momentum this year has been fuelled largely by Indian collectors or collectors of Indian origin. On the contemporary side, although there is a strong Indian collector base, the momentum has been fuelled largely by a new crop of non-Indian buyers. That is what has brought about the parity in prices,” said Minal Vazirani, Director, SaffronArt.

Steadily rising inflation and turbulence in the stock market should certainly be a cause for concern for investors. However, the Indian art market, having recently gone through a correction, is on the rebound; what with a work by Souza going out for nearly Rs 10 crore and a work by Subodh Gupta going out for nearly Rs 5 crore at the very recent Christie's auction. Now that is a clear indication of the fact that the art market is an interesting place to put your money in, especially if you are looking to diversify your portfolio.

The Indian art market has grown from being a miniscule USD 2 million to a huge USD 400 million market over the last seven years.

SaffronArt is back with its auction of Modern and Contemporary Indian Art with highlights that will remove any doubts of there being a slowdown in this market. The top position is taken by SH Raza whose work is estimated to fetch Rs 2.75-3.75 crore. On the contemporary side is Subodh Gupta's trademark, which is likely to bring in Rs 80 lakh to Rs 1 crore. Does that mean the art market remains buoyant even if inflation reigns at above 8% levels?

“We have to recognize that the buyer base that purchases Indian art is a very different sort of buyer base that may be affected, compared to other categories. These are buyers that will purchase, particularly at the top end from accumulated wealth and not from earnings. So, I don't think there will be a short-term impact. There may be a far reaching impact over a long period of time,” said Minal Vazirani, Director, SaffronArt.

Historically, Indian modern art has fetched higher prices than its contemporary counterparts. But with this auction, experts believe that younger artists too are soon catching up, as they get closer to estimated price points of the modern masters.

“You have got two different buyer bases. For modern art, the renewed momentum this year has been fuelled largely by Indian collectors or collectors of Indian origin. On the contemporary side, although there is a strong Indian collector base, the momentum has been fuelled largely by a new crop of non-Indian buyers. That is what has brought about the parity in prices,” said Minal Vazirani, Director, SaffronArt.

Steadily rising inflation and turbulence in the stock market should certainly be a cause for concern for investors. However, the Indian art market, having recently gone through a correction, is on the rebound; what with a work by Souza going out for nearly Rs 10 crore and a work by Subodh Gupta going out for nearly Rs 5 crore at the very recent Christie's auction. Now that is a clear indication of the fact that the art market is an interesting place to put your money in, especially if you are looking to diversify your portfolio.