Chintan Upadhyay

Chintan Upadhyay (born 1972) is a contemporary Indian visual artist known for his multidisciplinary practice across painting, sculpture, installation, and socially engaged art. His work frequently explores identity politics, consumer culture, and reproductive technology. He is particularly recognised for his "Designer Baby" series-sculptural forms that reflect on commodification and gender dynamics—which have been widely exhibited and featured in Sotheby's South Asian art auctions, including a 2007 sale in New York.

In 2002, Upadhyay co-founded Sandarbh, a non-profit Contemporary Arts initiative based in Partapur ( a small Village), Rajasthan, designed to bring contemporary art practices intopublic and marginalized spaces. Sandarbh has been recognized in curatorial literature for its role in expanding the scope of site-specific and socially engaged art in India.

In October 2023, a Mumbai sessions court convicted him for criminal conspiracy and abetment in the murder of his estranged wife, Hema Upadhyay. He was acquitted in the related death of her lawyer, Harish Bhambhani, after the court found no direct evidence linking him to that killing and concluded Bhambhani was "in the wrong place at the wrong time." The Supreme Court of India later suspended his sentence and granted bail in September 2024, noting that the case was based solely on circumstantial evidence and there was no allegation of direct involvement in the act.

He began his art career as a painter, but later created sculptures and installations. His best known sculpture project is perhaps the Pet Shop project, which is an ongoing production of a "model baby" for every season, Baby Fetish.

He was awarded the Charles Wallace Foundation Award for Residency in Bristol, UK in 2012.

Early life Chintan was born on 18 August 1972, in Partapur in Rajasthan, India. He received a BFA degree in 1995, and a MFA degree in 1997, both degrees in painting are from the Faculty of Fine Arts from Maharaja Sayajirao University of Baroda in Vadodara, in Gujarat, India. Their bodies were found in khakhi-coloured cardboard boxes floating in a nullah. He was twice denied bail. In October 2023, he was convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison by a Dindoshi court. The Supreme Court of India later suspended his sentence and granted bail in September 2024, noting that the case was based solely on circumstantial evidence and there was no allegation of direct involvement in the act.

Solo shows

Following is the list of his solo shows: 2010 'Nature God', Sakshi Gallery, Taipei 2009–10 'Mistake', Inda Gallery, Budapest 2009 'Khatti Mithi', Project at Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai 2009 'Iconic Shrine', Jawahar Kala Kendra, Jaipur in collaboration with Roundabout and Gallery Soulflower, Bangkok 2008 'Mistake', Aicon Gallery, London 2008 'Pet Shop', Ashish Balram Nagpal Galleries, Mumbai 2008 'New Indians', Galerie Natalie Seroussi, Paris 2008 'Metastasis of Signs – A Walk in the Realm of Manipulated Realities', Gallery Espace, New Delhi 2007 'Tentuaa Dabaa Do (Kill Her)', Jawahar Kala Kendra, Jaipur, Rajasthan 2006 'I Want To Be An International Artist', Solo Performance, Seoul Art Centre, Korea 2006 'Clone Vitthala', Sculptures at Ashish Balram Nagpal Gallery, Mumbai 2006 'Maya', Paintings at Ashish Balram Nagpal Gallery, Mumbai 2005 'Baar Baar, Har Baar, Kitni Baar?', Installation and Interactive Performance, Sarjan Art Gallery, Vadodara 2004 'Conker's', Installation Project, Spike Island, Bristol, UK 2004 'Designer Babies', Ashish Balram Nagpal Gallery, Mumbai 2003 'New Breed / Hybrid', Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai 2002 'Commemorative Stamps', Ashish Balram Nagpal Gallery, Mumbai 2002 'Commemorative Stamps', Jawahar Kala Kendra, Jaipur 2002 'Floating thoughts', Interactive site-specific installation, Brisbane, Australia 1999 'So What', The Fine Art Company, Mumbai 1998 'This has been done before', Shahjehan Art Gallery, New Delhi 1996 'Desirable Objects', Leela Kempenski Art Gallery, Mumbai

Group shows

2012 '2 + 2 = 5', The Palette Art Gallery, New Delhi 2012 'Looking Back, Looking Forward', Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai 2012 'Mapmakers: The Evolution of Contemporary Indian Art', Aicon Gallery, New York 2012 'Contemporary: A Selection of Modern and Contemporary Art', presented by Sakshi Gallery at The Park, Chennai 2012 'Sightings', Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai 2011 'Adbhutam: Rasa in Indian Art', Centre of International Modern Art (CIMA), Kolkata 2011 'Skin Deep: The Art of Fibreglass', The Viewing Room, Mumbai 2011 'Between Seasons', Gallery Beyond, Mumbai 2011 'Love is a 4 Letter Word', Latitude 28, New Delhi 2011 'Fabular Bodies: New Narratives in the Art of the Miniature', presented by Harmony Art Foundation at Coomaraswamy Hall, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharah Vastu Sangrahalaya, Mumbai 2011 'Anecdotes', Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai 2011 'High-Light', presented by Sakshi Gallery, Mumbai at The Oberoi, Gurgaon 2011 'Dolls', Gallery Sumukha, Bangalore 2011 'Tech-Cut-Edge-Revelations', Ashna Gallery, New Delhi 2010 'Changing Skin', presented by The Fine Art Company at Coomaraswamy Hall, Chattrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalay, Mumbai 2010 'A. SYCO', The Viewing Room, Mumbai 2009 'Home Sweet Home', Religare Arts. i Gallery, New Delhi 2009 'Indian Summer', Galerie Christian Hosp, Berlin 2009 'Inaugural Show', Sakshi Gallery, Taipei 2008–09 'Signs Taken for Wonders: Recent Art from India and Pakistan', Aicon Gallery, London 2008–09 'Hot Shots', The Viewing Room, Mumbai 2008 'Uncovered', Sans Tache Art Gallery, Mumbai 2008 'Keep Drawing', Gallery Espace, New Delhi 2008 'The Ethics of Encounter', Gallery Soulflower, Bangkok 2008 'Indiavata', Gallery Sun Contemporary, Korea 2008 'Link', Sakshi Art Gallery, Mumbai 2008 'Freedom 2008 : Sixty Years After Indian Independence', Centre for International Modern Art (CIMA), Kolkata 2007 'Telling It Like It Is: The Indian Story', The Gallery in Cork Street, London 2007 'Here and Now: Contemporary Voices from India', Grosvenor Gallery, London 2007 'Young Guns', Institute of Contemporary Indian Art (ICIA), Mumbai 2007 'Keep Drawing', Pundole Art Gallery, Mumbai 2006 'Bombay Maximum City', Lille 3000, Lille, France 2005 -06 'Kaam', Arts India Gallery, New York and Palo Alto, USA 2005 'Annual Exhibition', Sakshi Art Gallery, Mumbai 2005 'Indian Contemporary Art', Preview TATE Britain 2005 'Configuration', Anant Art Gallery, New Delhi 2005 'Ways Of Seeing', Gallery Art Alive, New Delhi 2005 'Papereshi', Sarjan Art Gallery, Vadodara 2005 'Present-Future', National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), Mumbai 2005 'Indian Contemporary Art', Chelsea College of Art, London 2005 'Are We Like This Only?', Rabindra Bhavan, Vadhera Art Gallery, New Delhi 2004 'Bombay Boys', Palette Art Gallery, New Delhi 2004 'Charles Wallace Foundation Awards', British Council, New Delhi 2004 'Concepts and Ideas', Centre for International Modern art (CIMA), Kolkata 2004 Gallery 27, Oslo, Norway 2004 – 03 'Portraits of a Decade', Centre for International Modern art (CIMA), Kolkata and Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai 2004 – 03 'Dots and Pixels', Digital media, Sumukha Art Gallery, Bangalore and Gallery Espace, New Delhi 2004 'Bombay 17', Kashi Art Gallery, Kochi 2003 'Parthenogenesis', Ivan Dougherty Gallery, Sydney, Australia 2003 'Corresponding Latitudes', A Cross Cultural Collaborative Exhibition of Indian and Australian artists, Jawahar Kala Kendra – Jaipur 2002 ' Brahma to Bapu', Icons and Symbols in Indian art, Habitat centre, New Delhi, India and Centre for International Modern art (CIMA), Kolkata 2002 'Quotable Stencil', Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai 2001 ' Annual show', Gallery Wren, Sydney, Australia 2000 'Sic.', an Audio-visual Installation, The Fine Art Company, Mumbai 1999 'Mumbai Metaphor' Tao Art Gallery, Mumbai 1999 'Wall Paper', Lakeeren Art Gallery, Mumbai 1997 'Class of 1997', Lakeeren Art Gallery, Mumbai 1997 '50 yr. of Indian Independence', All India Fine Arts and Crafts Society, Delhi and Ravi Shankar Rawal Bhavan, Ahmedabad – Gujarat

Joint shows

2005 'You Have to Decide' an Interactive Installation and Performance Center for Art and Culture, Chiksarda, Transylvania, Romania 2005 'I'm a Slut', a collaborative video and performance with Amit Kekre, Gallery Beyond, Mumbai 2004 'Made in China', collaborative installation with Hema Upadhyay, Viart Gallery, New Delhi 2003 'Made in China', collaborative Installation with Hema Upadhyay, Gallery Chemould, Mumbai 2003 'Post Card', project with Hema Upadhyay, part of 'Parthenogenesis', Ivan Dougherty Gallery, Sydney 2000 Objects of Desire, collaboration with Hema Upadhyay, 'Art and Technology', Ideas and Images II, National Gallery of Modern Art (NGMA), Mumbai 1995 'Circa Early Seventies', Faculty of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara 1994 'Discount 33%', Faculty of Fine Arts, Maharaja Sayajirao University, Vadodara

Honours and awards 2004–05 Charles Wallace Foundation Award for a residency in Bristol, UK 2000–01 Gadi scholarship, NLKA, New Delhi 1998 Lalit Kala Academy for Outstanding Drawing in a drawing exhibition 1997 All India Avantika art exhibition, New Delhi 1996 Lalit Kala Academy for Outstanding Painting in the annual exhibition S.C.Z.C.C. for Outstanding Painting in the annual exhibition, Nagpur, Maharashtra 1995–97 Lalit Kala Academy for Outstanding Painting in the annual exhibition