Blurring the lines between governance and creativity, Rajanvir Singh Kapur, an IAS officer of 2012 batch, is fast becoming a compelling voice in India’s contemporary art landscape. Now preparing to take his art beyond regional boundaries, Kapur will be showcasing a new body of work at the Jehangir Art Gallery, Mumbai, from 16th to 22nd June 2025—a landmark event expected to draw civil society leaders, diplomats, intellectuals, and art aficionados.
Inspired by Aboriginal Australian art and the philosophy of Dreamtime, which Kapur encountered during a recent visit to Australia, the upcoming exhibition reflects a rich interplay of dot work, symbolism, and spiritual connection to nature. “I got fascinated by how this style—with its dots and vibrant colours—became such an evocative and exotic language of storytelling,” said Kapur. These elements now form the heart of his new collection.
Painting since his youth, Kapur has persistently nurtured his creative instincts alongside his administrative duties. His 2005 initiative, Pratigya Abhiyaan, launched while he was in university, used art as a tool to empower underprivileged children and raise funds for their education through art exhibitions.
Over the years, Kapur has woven art into the fabric of public service. In 2015–16, he led a unique voter awareness campaign using traditional Patachitra artists to engage rural women, which earned him a nomination for the Election Commission of India’s National Award for Voter Awareness.
As Managing Director of Calcutta Transport, he initiated groundbreaking projects like the world’s first Tram Art Gallery and transformed a defunct depot into TramWorld—an immersive public art space created in collaboration with international institutions and Indian galleries.
Kapur’s first solo exhibition at Emami Art, Kolkata (2023) drew widespread acclaim for its thematic series: Love and Longing, Passion, Phulkari, and Dreams—works that explored emotion, tradition, and memory in both monochrome and vibrant palettes.
Since then, Kapur has been actively engaged with the Kolkata Centre for Creativity, mentoring young artists and conducting art interventions as part of his association with Young Indians, a youth wing of the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). His work was also part of AMI Arts Festival in 2024.
With his upcoming Mumbai exhibition with another artist, Nidhi Choudhary, Rajanvir Singh Kapur brings his art practice to a national stage—continuing a rare journey that merges bureaucratic vision with artistic intuition, and public service with private creativity.
Exhibition:
Venue: Jehangir Art Gallery
Dates: 16th till 22nd June 2025
Time: 11am to 7pm
