Yashoda and Krishna by Raja Ravi Varma sold for Rs. 167.2 crore at a Saffronart auction in Mumbai.
Cyrus S Poonawalla acquired the painting after a competitive bidding process.
According to the Press Trust of India, the painting had been estimated to sell between Rs. 80 crore and Rs. 120 crore.
This is the highest price recorded for an Indian painting at auction to date.
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Who Is Cyrus S Poonawalla
Cyrus S Poonawalla is the founder and managing director of the Serum Institute of India, established in 1966. The company is headquartered in Pune.
He has been listed in global wealth rankings. The Hurun Global Rich List 2023 identified him as the richest healthcare billionaire.
In 2024, his family ranked ninth on Forbes’ list of India’s 100 richest, with a reported net worth of 22.1 billion dollars.
In 2026, the Hurun Rich List ranked the family as the fourth richest in India. He has received an honorary Doctor of Science degree from the University of Oxford.
He was awarded the Padma Shri in 2005 and the Padma Bhushan in 2022 by the Government of India. His son, Adar Poonawalla, is the CEO of the Serum Institute of India.
In a press statement, he said he aims to preserve the painting and make it available for public viewing periodically.
The Painting
Yashoda and Krishna is an oil painting created in the 1890s.
It measures 35 x 28.25 inches and carries the artist’s signature.
It shows Yashoda milking a cow while infant Krishna reaches for a goblet of milk from behind.
Who Is Raja Ravi Varma
Raja Ravi Varma was an Indian painter born in 1848 in present-day Kerala.
He is known for painting Indian mythological subjects using oil painting techniques, a method associated with European academic art at the time.
He depicted figures from the Ramayana and Mahabharata, along with Hindu deities, in a naturalistic style with detailed expressions, drapery and settings.
His work introduced a visual format where mythological characters were shown with human features and lifelike proportions. He also established a printing press to reproduce his paintings as oleographs.
These prints made images of deities available for wider purchase beyond royal and elite patrons. His works include well-known depictions of Lakshmi, Saraswati and scenes from Indian epics.
Raja Ravi Varma died in 1906.
