India, June 21 -- Former Indian President Dr S. Radhakrishnan was impressed 'by the originality of his conceptions and the neatness of execution', yet few remember this Bengali artist who once exhibited alongside Jamini Roy, Gopal Ghose, and D. P. Roy Chowdhury.

As I glanced through the illustrated catalogue, I was struck by an old watercolour that seemed too contemporary in its context.

Photo: Dwija Gallery

The top half of the painting depicted an old man (probably a teacher), slightly grotesque, in a gesture of despair, with a couple of closed books in front of him. The bottom half showed a young man (probably a student), also in a dejected posture, looking hopelessly at an array of open books.

My curiosity aroused, I wended my way ...