The Indian Portrait - 8: Rajputana Nayak | Paintings from the Royal courts of Rajasthan

 Anil Relia graduated from the Faculty of Fine Arts, M. S. University, Baroda in 1978. In the same year, he started a small screen printing unit in Ahmedabad. His innovations in screen printing immediately caught the attention of many advertising agencies, renowned institutions and the corporate sector, all angling to use his skills for innovative print production assignments.

Anil Relia’s innate knowledge of art and his experimentation with the screen printing media raised this medium to great heights, which led him into the field of serigraphy. Renowned artists like M. F. Husain, S. H. Raza, K. G. Subramanyan, Madhvi and Manu Parekh, Manjit Bawa, Jogen Chowdhury, Amit Ambalal and many more have worked with him in his graphic studio. Taking time out of his studio to follow his other passion of collecting art, he has acquired a mammoth collection. A lot of which is from various families and friends who had discarded their ancestral paintings as they found them old fashioned, out of style or no longer needed them. He regularly visits scrap shops and junk dealers in urban and rural areas, to find such works. 

Anil Relia’s love of art from childhood made him one of the most prominent art collectors of India. For his passion, Anil Relia has been honoured with many awards including an award from the President of India.