'Husain wished to come 'home' to touch Indian soil one last time'

New Delhi: At 95, M.F. Husain had just one wish - he wanted to come home and touch the Indian soil, recalls writer K. Bikram Singh about his last conversation with the painter, who died in London Thursday.

"I last spoke to Husain in March. He was in Dubai and was going to London at that time. I told Husain, 'Sir you can't come to India as a citizen, but why don't you come here for some time as a tourist?' He laughed out loudly that time and said, 'Ek dafaa apne watan ki mitti chhoone aaonga (One day I'll return to touch my country's soil).' Those were his words and it is really sad that till his last breath, he couldn't make it here," Singh told IANS on the phone.

Singh reviewed Husain's 60 years as an artist in his book "Maqbool Fida Husain", which was published in 2008. He feels Prime Minister Manmohan Singh could have done his bit in bringing Husain back to India.

"Our prime minister has been talking about how Husain's death is a huge loss to the nation. If his absence is really such a loss, then he should have done it (called him) that time. Do you think it wasn't in his hands?"




 

                                           Home | Top of the Page

Top Stories

Anna fasts again, government faces anti-corruption heat

As Gandhian Anna Hazare Wednesday began a daylong token fast here to denounce the police crackdown on yoga guru Baba Ramdev's agitation, civil society activists   »

Anna to fast at Rajghat, Congress and BJP at war

Dangers of Ramdev's rhetorics

  Most Read

M.F. Husain dies exiled from his homeland

Maqbool Fida Husain, who was hailed as the Picasso of India but was forced to live in self-imposed exile from his homeland due to death  »

M.F. Husain's death robs Indian art of tallest hero

Baba Ramdev’s anti Corruption Fast: New Face of Communal Politics

The police crackdown on people assembled to participate on the anti corruption fast by Baba Ramdev on the Sunday night, 5th June 2011, needs to be condemned to no end. As the police methods are, brutal by there nature, in their effort to evacuate the Ramlila ground, they did resort to the  »

  News Pick

Nashik blast: Police rule out bomb

Police have ruled out the possibility of any explosive device behind the blast that occurred in the congested Panchvati area of the city Wednesday   »

Powerful blast in Nashik building kills three

Agra's war on plastic: One step forward, two steps back?

It was one of the most successful eco-campaigns in the Taj city, and even earned rare praise from the Uttar Pradesh government, but Agra's war on plastic bags has suffered a major setback with the transfer of a key   »

Global oil use to grow by 1.7 mn barrels per day

The total oil consumption across the world will grow by 1.7 million barrels per day in 2011, the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) said. The agency also predicted in a review released Tuesday that the global oil consumption in   »

On history track: Punjab Mail chugs into 100th year

Once the preferred service for British officials disembarking at Mumbai and travelling up-country, the Punjab Mail entered its 100th year this month. It is the first train to achieve this distinction on Indian Railways' broad gauge network   »

Transparency revolution in India, but not everyone's ready: Antony

India is passing through a transparency revolution, but the four pillars of democracy are not yet ready for the transition, Defence Minister A.K. Antony said Wednesday in  »

Picture of the Day

A shattered photograph of the artist in a vandalised exhibition in New Delhi in August, 2008. The artist and his paintings have been a target of a Hindutva hate campaign. Some groups alleged that his work hurt religious sensitivities.

(Photo: V.V. Krishnan/ The Hindu)